Scout Pioneering: Good Ol’ Fashioned Outdoor Fun

Scout Pioneering, Good Ol’ Fashioned Outdoor Fun, is filled with all the information, illustrations, and instructions a unit needs to get an effective pioneering program off the ground and flourishing. Along with the author’s first-hand experience as a Scout leader who has run successful pioneering programs in his own troop and at the Philmont Training Center, it draws upon the expertise of Scouting’s most revered pioneering legends. Icing on the cake are over 250 pioneering-related photos bringing the text to life and capturing real Scouts in action, along with links to over 40 BSA-recognized how-to skill videos and Scout meeting activity videos.The Scout meeting activities are one of the book’s highlights. Knowing how to present these involving pioneering challenges during troop meetings produces positive outcomes that are unparalleled in their capacity to engage Scouts while making fun happen!Another highlight of the book is the colorful section on camp gadgets. An array of these impressive campsite improvements was presented in the pioneering village at the national jamboree. It was fun to observe the jamboree participants’ mouths open and sense their wheels turning, as youth and adult alike inspected them closely, asked questions, and took pictures in order to share the ideas with their troops back home.When John Thurman, camp chief at Gilwell for over twenty-five years, was asked, ＂Why pioneering?＂ His simple reply was, ＂To me the over-riding reason for presenting pioneering is that boys like it.＂ Lord Baden-Powell, Scouting’s founder wrote, ＂But there are reasons for pioneering other than the fact that boys like doing it. I am inclined to suggest to Scouters that in addition to the technical details of knotting, lashing, and anchorages, there is an educative value in pioneering since it gives elementary training in stresses, mensuration, etc., and it also develops initiative and resourcefulness. Additionally, it gives practice in team work and discipline. In other words, pioneering is practical and character building: the two essential ingredients of any program material for Scouts.＂A Scouting program consists of what Scouts DO! Providing a wide range of opportunities for fun, challenges, and personal growth, pioneering has all the qualities that keep Scouts involved and coming back for more. Amidst the wide spectrum of unique adventures available in Scouting, there’s always an attraction to and fascination with what’s termed, ＂old school.＂ Pioneering is all about using timeless skills to get things done and have a great time.