Reply to S/o. Explain the appeal of GSA and BSA

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[quote=Anonymous]1.  Cub Scouts works on very different lines that Boy Scouts (now just Scouts).

2.  Different Scout troops are run on different operating and organizational lines.  Although all troops are to be "scout lead" that can be very different from troop to troop.  You need to find one that works well for your family.  Ideally it should have a friend or two for the kid and at least some accountancies for the adults as there are lots of times over the years when you will need some help providing coverage, working on a project, and in getting involved yourself.  But, you do make friends along the way so having good friends up front is not a requirement.  How a troop operates makes all the difference as your kid and your family are in Scouts for multiple years.  It needs to work.  We switched from a school based troop fairly early on to a smaller troop that was based out of our church.  As then beginners we liked the more experienced leaders in the church troop.  In a suburban area chances are pretty good there are 2 or 3 different troops that you could look at.

3.  Lots of different types of kids do scouting.  We have two fairly typical teenagers who did scouts.  One is a sophomore now in college now and got his Eagle Scout rank when he was a Junior in high school.  His younger brother will become an Eagle Scout this November.  There were certainly different times over the years when they were less interested, and did fewer things, but they always liked summer camp and went for that, and they liked enough of the stuff for many of the badges that they were willing to do the work for them.  In their smaller troop (usually around 20 active kids) they would typically have about 10 kids who were into fairly normal stuff like themselves.  Sports, girls, other activities.  And, about half the troop would be kids who were less socially adapt.  When they all got together though it amazingly always seemed to be fine.  My kids learned how to play things like Magic the Gathering, and other kids got better at more physical activities.

4.  The stuff that Scouts do over time is fairly wide-ranging.  They will certainly go camping and hiking, and learn about first aid.  But, they will also do things like cooking, reading, acting, etc.  There are some 80 different badges that Scouts can earn.  As they advance through the various ranks they will need to earn specific badges and take on some more troop leadership roles.  The adults -- including active roles for parents -- help keep the kids on track and moving through the ranks.

All in all it has been a positive experience for our kids -- and family.  The boys certainly know how to safely camp and cook outdoors.  And, interestingly, there is still cache to the Eagle Scout rank.

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