Parents,

If you’re new to Scouts or new to our Pack, welcome! If you’re back from last year, thanks for coming back. We hope that your son has a wonderful experience & wants to continue in the scouting path all the way to the top, Eagle Scout.

The mission of den leaders is to help promote the overall aims of scouting to develop a boy’s character, train him in good citizenship, and encourage him to become more fit physically, mentally, and morally. With keeping this mission in mind, the program calendars’ design is to not completely consume all of your free time (especially if you have other children doing activities) but to ensure that the boys complete their achievements to attain their Bear badge and have fun at the same time.

Where I need your help is to ensure that your scout does the assigned requirement/elective activities after the den meeting & before the pack meeting (typically on the 4^th Thursday of the month but varies due to holidays, school breaks, etc.). This also includes using your tracking sheet that you can keep in the back of your son’s Bear book to bring to the meetings (den & pack) for myself or other den leaders to check against our records (you can sign as the "Akela", which is a leader). We will try to do the field trips on the week right after the den meeting on the same night or a Saturday afternoon, depending on confirmation with the den on what works with everyone’s schedules.

You also need to make sure that if you’re the assigned presenter for a given month to please be prepared when it is your month to present. If you cannot do your assigned month, it is your responsibility to trade with another parent(s) if you’re unable to do so. This way each scout and parent is involved with the program and can benefit from it! I would suggest that for most of your presentation material to start with the Tulsa County Libraries & other areas (internet, bookstores, etc.).

Regards,

Russ Iden

Bears Den Leader, Den 2

Pack 41, Bixby Cub Scouts

Program: "Sharing Your World with Wildlife" (meets requirement (req.) 5e), presentation will be about extinct animals & fragile ecosystems in the world.

Group Activity: Make bird caller to attract birds (elective 12h).

Games: Who am I (animal charades), Crocodile Race & relays- crab race, kangaroo race, gorilla race & 30 yd dash.

Requirement homework (to meet achievement): requirements 5a, b, & c. & 16a & b.

Monthly Field Trip: requirement 5d- Oxley Nature Center (669-6644) & or Redbud Valley (part of Oxley Nature Center in Catoosa). Details to follow.

Presenter: Jackson’s

Program: Present program about ships, shipbuilding & or storm warnings related to ships (if you do storm warning flags, it meets elective 5c; see page 199 of bears handbook for details).

Group Activity: Learn to tie ropes (req. 22a, page 163), bring small rope/string for scouts to work with.

Games: Sink the ship (req. 15b), optional game: Coil rope @ target (meets req. 22d)

Requirement homework (to meet achievement): 12b, c, d, or e (minimum of three)

Monthly Field Trip: Schedule a tour of: architectural firm, home builders’ office, or maybe a boat dealer- to explain the process of building something.

Presenter: Jones’

Program: Book/Photos & bring example (if you can), of family coat of arms, knights & their colors (what the significant colors on a coat of arms means).

Group Activity: Make castle neckerchief (req. 21c), castle pencil holders, or make coat of arms with cardboard & string to put on.

Games: Balloon swords & balloon jousting (req. 23b)

Requirement homework (to meet achievement): 21g (+ 2 other req.’s in 21) + 23a, d, & e.

Monthly Field Trip: After meeting & prior to field trip, have scouts gather donation items for Goodwill & see if you can schedule tour of Goodwill Industries on SW Blvd in Tulsa.

Presenter: Schaefer’s

Program: Present story/photos on stars, planets, solar systems. Remind me to bring binoculars & small telescope & weather permitting, we’ll view stars outside as part of program.

Group Activity: Astronomy word scramble, others?

Games: Stars & straws, high-low star relay (some prep time on games; need to see copies of program I’ll provide as some things will have to be made before class).

Requirement homework (to meet achievement): 17a + 3 others (suggest 17b, d, e or f).

Monthly Field Trip: Tulsa Air & Space Museum Planetarium (week from Saturday after den meeting at 3pm- they have a program called "Night Skies over Green Country" that hopefully will be late enough that day so that no one will miss sports’ related games, etc.)

Presenter: Mumma’s

Program: Presentation about maps about the earth, north/south poles, oceans, continents, etc.

Group Activity: Go over knife safety requirements (req. 19a, b, & d) first! Then we’ll carve polar bears from soap bars (req.19c).

Games: Compass pointing, crossing the ice (pre-den meeting materials need to be made; check guide).

Requirement homework (to meet achievement): 18h + 4 other req.’s (suggest 18a, b, d, & e).

Monthly Field Trip: Tulsa Zoo- see polar bears (suggest Saturday or evening day depending on zoo schedule).

Presenter: Clark’s

Program: Presentation about Hawaii & the island chain, famous Hawaiians, their tourism & industries, etc.

Group Activity: Make invitations for Blue/Gold banquet with Hawaiian theme (palm trees, pineapples, etc.)

Games: Hawaiian words (make cards w/Hawaiian words on objects for kids to guess). You can also do posterboards with each letter of A L O H A on them with each letter on the front & facts on the back for the kids to learn.

Requirement homework (to meet achievement): 3a + 3j + 2 others (suggest 3b-3g).

Monthly Field Trip: Harmon Science Center (41^st & Hudson by Bishop Kelley) as they’re supposed to have some related geography exhibits.

Presenter: Dudley’s

Program: Presenter will tell stories from the bear book (pages 43-47) & can also checkout library book about other western folklore stories. You might tie cowboys & explorers to the outdoors as we also have weather as an underlying theme.

Group Activity: water cycle observations (if kitchen available).

Games: folklore match game (req. 4a, page 48) & identifying clouds & other scouts guess.

Requirement homework (to meet achievement): 8g + 2 others (suggest 8a, b, d, or e).

Monthly Field Trip: Schedule visit to weather department at radio or TV station or possibly at the National Weather Service office @ Tulsa International Airport.

Presenter: Seamen’s

Program: Check internet/library for presentation on managing money subjects for kids (requirement 13 will give some additional direction). You could use personal finance program of you & spouse- mortgage, utilities, etc.

Group Activity: Make coupon pouch, apple neckerchief slide.

Games: Kitchen anagrams, vegetable stew.

Requirement homework (to meet achievement): 13a, b, d-g (any four requirements).

Monthly Field Trip: Go to supermarket, Carmichael’s produce, or maybe a natural foods market or wholesale farmers’ market.

Presenter: Iden’s

Program: Presentation on nature, bugs, & other tiny outdoor insect life.

Group Activity: Build bird house or bug catcher (catcher would be a like a screened box), or bug catching net.

Games: Bug ID game, doodle bug races

Requirement homework (to meet achievement): 6 (3 req.’s) – suggest any of 16c-16f.

Monthly Field Trip: Outdoor den cleanup project – at school, neighborhood area, church, etc. (req. 6g).