Boyscouts Activities PDF

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including the illustrations and cover design,
without prior written permission from the
World Scout Bureau, Interamerican Region.
This reservation of rights applies equally to
National Scout Associations which are members
of the World Organization of the Scout Movement,
which may, nevertheless, reproduce individual
activity sheets and technical appendices,
providing they credit the source and mention REME.
Any alteration to content, drafting, illustrations or layout
requires prior authorization from REME.
Intellectual property registration: 133.435
ISBN: 956-8057-13-7
This rst edition of 3,000 copies
was printed in June 2003.
Interamerican Scout Ofce

Av. Lyon 1085,
6650426 Providencia, Santiago, Chile
tel. (56 2) 225 7561
fax (56 2) 225 6551
wscout@interamerica.scout.org
www.scout.org/interamerica
World Organization of the Scout Movement
EDUCATIONAL
ACTIVITIES
EDUCATIONAL
ACTIVITIES
for 11 to 15
year-olds
INTRODUCTION
INTRODUCTION
In April 1994 the Interamerican Scout Ofce created the Network for the Production of Educational
Material (REME). The purpose of this Network was to document and share the activities carried out in the
Scout Groups of the Region.
Since REMEs work began, 25 National Scout Organizations from all over the Americas have joined this
initiative. A number of them run internal Networks coordinated by National Correspondents, which produce,
compile, select, evaluate and validate ideas. These ideas are then sent to the Coordination Headquarters for
analysis. Those selected for publication proceed to the drafting, design, translation, printing and distribution
stages.
The fruits of this cooperative effort to enrich our educational resources are the activity sheets and
technical appendices which REME has published over these nine years, in the form of individual leaets
classed by Scouting Section.
In the same line of publications, the book Educational activities for 7 to 11 year-olds, containing 60
activities and activity ideas, was published in January 2003. The present publication Educational activities
for 11 to 15 year-olds is the second in the series.
It is aimed at Scout Unit Teams and other educators who work with young people outside Scouting. It
contains 30 activity sheets, each indicating the place, duration, form of participation, materials and objectives
of the activity. The educational objectives it helps to achieve are also specied, followed by a detailed
description of each activity. As well, the book contains 30 activity ideas in a more condensed format. These
include the educational objectives they contribute to achieving and a brief description of the contents and
proceedings of the activity. In addition, some activity sheets are supplemented by technical appendices. There
are 24 of these in total, containing instructions on how to make some of the materials or information useful for
conducting the respective activity.
Of the activities presented here, 44 have never been published before. The other 16 titles had been
printed previously in individual sheet format. These have been fully revised and updated for this edition in the
light of the experience gained in using them.
The activities in this book are intended to be a contribution to the work of educators and people who
work directly with young people. Like any such material, it can and should be adapted to the reality in which it
is used, as well as economic circumstances, climatic factors and, most importantly, the individual features of
the young people we are working with.
We launch Educational activities for 11 to 15 year-olds in the hope that it will translate into
more and better ideas and help generate a more attractive and varied programme to support the holistic
development of boys and girls.
Our thanks are due to the Scout Leaders of the Americas, whose hard work and generosity have helped
to make this book possible.
REME Coordination Headquarters

Interamerican Scout Organization
CONTENTS
CONTENTS
PHYSICAL DEVELOPMENT page 5
ACTIVITIES AND APPENDICES
OTHER IDEAS
Patrol Rally
Patrol Rally: a go-kart blueprint
Prehistoric Cooks
11
Rustic Cookery: recipes and utensils
13
A funbrary for the Unit
17
Ideas for making a funbrary
19
Our Daily Bread

Challenge Valley
23
25
Sports Inventors
Exploration while on Patrol
Safety in the Unit
Morning Exercise
An Orienteering Contest
27
28
28
29
30
CREATIVITY page 35
OTHER IDEAS
Inventors Congress
Weather Station
37
39
Homemade meteorological instruments

Weather forecasting
41
47
Lets Recycle the Patrol Record Book
53
The Patrol Spirit and the Patrol Record Book

Paper recycling
55
59
The Patrols got Rhythm
63
Making musical instruments:

Kena, Bottle Organ, Recorder and Piccoco
Pan Pipes and Whistles
Traverse Flute, Twanging Whistle and Forest Pipe
Percussion
65
70
75
79
Hydroponic Gardens
85
Basics of Hydroponic Gardening
87
Incredible Flying Machines

Prociency Fair
Scientic Exploration
Roll up and see the Circus!
Baden-Powells
School for Scientists
91
92
92
93
94
CHARACTER page 99
OTHER IDEAS

The Captive Balloon
101
An aerostatic balloon made out of paper
103
Adventure Theater
Operation Patch Adams
The Fire Festival
107
109
111
The story of the Fallas of Valencia

Paellas
Papier mch
113
115
119
Lets make a Commercial
125
What does your Mask say?

Give me a Hand
Wish Detectives
The Swap Meet
Models
127
128
128
129
130
AFFECTIVE DEVELOPMENT page 133

Parent-children Camp
Mens Business and Womens Business?
Its Party Time!
Pictures of our Adventures
Camp Watch
135
137
139
141
143
OTHER IDEAS
For or Against?
145
Open Doors
146
Games from our Grandparents Time 146
Firewomen and Nursemen
147
See How Much Ive Changed!
147
SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT page 151

OTHER IDEAS
The Mosquito Hunters
Emergency Research
History Kim
Photographic Report
Camp on the Move
The Latest on the Past
Vector transmitted diseases:

Dengue
Vector transmitted diseases:
Chagas Disease
153
155
159
Water TheatORT
163
Oral Rehydration Therapy

The basics of play-writing
The basics of street theatre
165
171
175
Where Would you Like to Eat Tonight?

Yes MLord
Encouter with our Origins
181
183
185
187
188
188
189
190
SPIRITUAL DEVELOPMENTpage 195

OTHER IDEAS
Popular Religious Celebration

A Prayer for Simple Things
Song of Thanks
The Whisper of the Stars
197
199
201
203
Discovering the Universe

Stars and Constellations
205
209
Our Hands
Serving Together
The Prayer Corner
The Patrol Prayer
Word of Life
Time to Build
215
217
218
218
219
219
PHYSICAL DEVELOPMENT
A new body
A new body
They discover their bodies anew every day, and their bodies are renewed
every day. Things happen to their bodies that disconcert them, but that also
encourage them to explore, to push themselves to their limits. The changes in
their bodies reveal beauty, make them feel shy, exceed all proportions, matter too
much or too little, make them glad to sad, hurt, give pleasure and are part of the
process of becoming and man or a woman.
They always seem to be tired, and only perk up at the mention of food.
Tidiness is not their strong point, they are drawn to sport, their appearance
worries them, their clothes dont t them, and if they do t they dont like them.
The day is too short to do everything they want to do and too long when there is
too little to do.
Everything is constantly changing, growing and developing. So much so
that it is difcult for them to pin down an image of themselves.
Growth area
PHYSICAL
DEVELOPMENT
PATROL RALLY
SUMMARY OF THE ACTIVITY

This activity helps Patrol members dene their roles more clearly, puts their organizational skills to the test, helps them to develop their own identities, and challenges their creativity and physical abilities. In this Patrol rally, the Scouts have
to make their own go-karts, complete a course that will require them to both drive
and push the go-karts, and overcome the obstacles they nd along the way.
2. To build a go-kart.
The Units meeting

place and the Scout
Units camp.
DURATION
One Unit meeting

and one or two days
at camp.
OBJECTIVES OF THE ACTIVITY

1. To encourage ingenuity and creativity.
PLACE
4. To promote teamwork.
PARTICIPANTS
All the Patrols.
3. To hold a race.
HELPS ACHIEVE THE FOLLOWING EDUCATIONAL OBJECTIVES

11 to 13
13 to 15
1. I take part in activities that help keep

my body strong and healthy.
2. I try to avoid situations which can
damage
my own or my friends health.
3. I know what I can and cant do with my
body.
4. I try not to be aggressive in games
and activities.
5. I eat food that helps me grow and I eat
at the proper times.
6. I like to take part in different
recreational activities.
7. I take part in the games, outings
and camps that my Patrol organizes.
1. I respect my body and that of others.

2. I know what to do in case of illness or accident.
3. I try to overcome the physical difculties caused
by my growing.
4. I talk to my friends to solve problems that come up between us.
5. I look after, clean and tidy the places where I camp.
6. I know which foods help me to grow and which dont.
7. I can make simple meals and be clean and tidy in the process.
8. I help to prepare games, outings and camps for my Patrol and
Unit.
Original idea:
David Amador,
REME team, Mexico.
MATERIALS
The materials needed will depend on what type of rally
the Scouts decide to have. Generally speaking, they will
need tools and materials for xing the go-karts, maps of
the course, suitable clothing, etc. The materials needed
to make the go-karts are listed in the technical appendix,
Patrol Rally: A Go-Kart Blueprint, which supplements this
activity sheet.
7
DESCRIPTION OF THE ACTIVITY
of the Patrols should therefore have a place that gives its

members the privacy they will need to decorate the go-kart
in a way that will surprise all the others when they reach
the starting gate.
Before leaving for camp

Design of the activity. During the preparatory
visit to the campsite, the Unit Council should plot out the
rally course. The more clearly dened the design of the
activity is, the easier this will be to do. Although the task
of designing the activity is simplied by the description
provided here, it is very important to customize this
activity, since it is more likely to be successful if it is
tailored to the needs and skills of the participants.
Once the go-karts are nished, it is a good idea

for the Unit Team to do a safety check to make sure that
all risk factors have been minimized. Once the go-karts
have been checked, the Patrols should be given the time
they need to make any adjustments that the Unit Team
feels are necessary. During this safety check the Unit
Team can also take the opportunity to review the special
features of each vehicle and award points for creativity.
Here are some of the general characteristics of

the Patrol rally:
On your mark, get set, go!
Except for the starting section, there will be a different

course for each Patrol.
Along the way, there will be tests that the Patrols
will have to complete and that will allow them to earn
points.
These tests should be of differing types and should be
suited to the Scouts abilities. The tests for all the
Patrols should be of equal difculty and complexity.
If the rally takes several hours, the Patrols should
comply with scheduled meal and rest periods during
that time. If they dont, they will lose points.
If the rally takes more than one day, the Patrols should
camp at a site that has been designated beforehand.
At the beginning of the activity, the Unit Team will give
each Patrol a map of the course together with all the
information its members need to complete the activity.
Much of this information will have been gathered during
the preparatory visit to the campsite.
At the appointed time, the go-karts, drivers and

other members of each team will meet at the starting line
and will do the following:
Building the go-kart for the rally. Before the

Scouts leave for camp, the Unit Team will also have
contacted a professional who can advise the Patrols about
how to build their go-karts. The technical appendix that
supplements this activity sheet diagrams one possible
model. The go-karts will have to be built ahead of time,
since this will require tools and materials that wont be
available at the camp. The team insignia (ags, team
colours and all the other decorations) that each Patrol
will add to its go-kart should be decided upon ahead of
time but can be prepared at the camp. If the Unit Team
has a simpler model than the one detailed in the technical
appendix, then of course that model can be used.
The Leaders should stay fairly close to the rally

participants at all times. If the Unit Team has some
means of moving quickly from one point to the next (an
automobile, bicycles, etc.), so much the better.
Final check of the go-kart and other equipment:

Materials and tools to be used for repairs, suitable
clothing for the participants, adequate supplies of food
and beverages, etc.
Distribution of the maps: The maps should clearly show
the course, rest areas, meal times, the checkpoints
at which certain tests (if any) have to be completed,
meeting points, major forks in the road, SOS stops, etc.
Distribution of instructions, recommendations or any
other information that the participants should have.
After any questions have been answered, the
instructions have been handed out, the go-karts and tools
have been checked its time to start the Patrol rally!
If the participants are going to have to stay

overnight away from the Scout camp, the place where
they will stay should be clearly marked on the maps. This
site should be the same for all the Patrols, should be set
up beforehand and should be supervised by some of the
Unit Team members. The scheduled rest times, or this
overnight stay in the event that there is one, will be a good
opportunity for the participants to share their impressions
and comments about the activity.
If it is important for the Patrols to acquire skills

in other rally-related areas (emergency repairs, navigation,
etc.), then these learning activities should be organized
and scheduled beforehand.
At the end of the rally, once all the Patrols have

returned to the camp, the Unit Team can be waiting for
them with a warm drink or a special meal. This will be a
good time to share new impressions about the activity, to
tell anecdotes, reveal secrets or talk about highlights. The
remarks made by the participants, together with the Unit
Teams observations, will help them to determine how well
the activitys objectives have been met and, if appropriate,
what impact this experience has had on the participants
development.
In camp
Decorating the go-karts
Each Patrol should be given enough time to add
its team insignia. The models creativity can be one of
the ways in which the participants can earn points. Each
PATROL RALLY:
A GO-KART BLUEPRINT
TECHNICAL APPENDIX
Tools:
Where to nd these materials:
Screwdrivers (various sizes)

Wrench
Adjustable pliers
Hammer
Spanners (8-17)
Metal saw
Measuring tape
Tongs/pincers
For use by adults only:

Power drill
Power welder
Junkyards
Mechanics shops
Hardware stores
Crafts shops
Brake pedals
BRAKE SYSTEM
Hinge
Tension
adjuster
Brake
cable
Brake system
Chassis
Steering
system
Chassis
Wirestop
(bicycle
brake)
Directional
crosspiece
Front
wheel
guide
Steering
shaft
Steering
nger
STEERING SYSTEM
Set arc
FRONT DRIVE CHAIN
Front of
chassis
Side of
chassis
Steering
driver
Front brace
Front drive chain
Front
wheel
fork
Front
wheel axle
Rotational
axle brace
Rear drive chain
REAR DRIVE CHAIN
Motorcycle
brake
Attachment
point
Bicycle
brake
Bicycle wheel
binding
Attention
Motocycle wheel
binding
nds
epe of
d
th
e
e
Wid n typ icycl )
o
le
(b
el orcyc
e
h
t
w mo
or
Chassis
Source: Scouts de France.

Scouts Magazine No. 67, FebruaryMarch 1994, pages. 16 and 17.
Wooden board
The driver should be

able to get out of his
or her seat quickly. In
most cases, the use of
a rigid protective device
above the drivers head
is mandatory. The
device should be xed
to the chassis.
Seat with back

(mandatory)
10
Growth area
PHYSICAL
DEVELOPMENT
PREHISTORIC COOKS

Cooking utensils and silverware havent always been around. There are
cultures in which people eat with their hands; in others, they use chopsticks instead of knives and forks. Some dishes have to be prepared in pots,
others are baked in a hole in the ground, others on sticks over a re, and
others with hot rocks or in mud ovens.
This activity will present the Scouts with the challenge of using or changing
traditional cookware in imaginative, ingenious ways. One of the meals to be
served during the next camp outing will not be prepared in the usual way;
instead, a new way of cooking it will have to be found.
PLACE
At the Units usual meeting
place and in camp.
DURATION
Part of a meeting before

leaving for camp and then
at camp, with the duration
of each part of the activity
being determined by the
Patrol.
PARTICIPANTS
2. To develop ingenuity and creativity.
The Scout Unit or Patrols.
3. To learn about different ways of preparing meals.

4. To prepare a balanced meal plan.

11 to 13
13 to 15
1. I help to clean and tidy my house and the places

where I study and play.
2. I eat food that helps me grow and I eat at the

proper times.
3. I know why cleanliness is important when
preparing and eating food.
Original idea: Juan Ochoa

REME Team, Peru; REME Team,
Panama; and the Italian/Bolivian
Scout Group of Cochabamba,
REME Team, Bolivia.
2. I know which foods help me to grow and which dont.

3. I can make simple meals and be clean and tidy in the
process.
MATERIALS
The materials to be used will depend on what cooking
utensils the Unit decides to make or what type of meal
the Scouts have decided to prepare for this activity. This
activity sheet is supplemented by the technical appendix,
Rustic Cooking: Recipes and Cooking Utensils, which
provides a variety of fun ideas.
11

Before camp
In camp
The Scouts should make the preparations for this

activity at one of the meetings held by the Unit before
the next camp outing, which may be for the Scout Unit
or Patrol. The only instruction is that they will not be
able to use traditional utensils for one of the meals to be
served at camp and that they therefore should gure out
a different way of serving that meal.
When the time for this activity has come, the

Patrols should be organized so that they can carry out all
the tasks it involves on time.
After looking at a sufcient variety of materials

on the subject (instructions for building ovens, recipes
for cooking meals using hot rocks, instructions for
making eating utensils, etc.), the Scouts will decide
what technique they are going to use. They should also
draw up a list of the materials or ingredients they will
need and should assign the responsibilities and tasks
involved.
It is important for this to be done well ahead
of time so that the Patrols will have time to obtain the
necessary materials or practice the necessary skills.
The Unit Team should keep tabs on the Patrols
work to make sure that the menu chosen by the
participants meets the nutritional requirements that are
so important at their age. The idea is not to draw up an
unsuitable menu but rather to maintain a balanced diet
while nding an original way to prepare the meal. The
technical appendix that supplements this activity sheet
provides some examples. This material can be provided
to the young people beforehand so that they can use
some of the ideas it offers if they so desire. There is,
of course, nothing to stop them from looking for options
other than those presented in the appendix.
Finally, when packing for camp, steps should be
taken to make sure that the materials to be used for this
activity have been included since, once the Scouts are at
the camp, it would be much more difcult to nd suitable
replacements.
The amount of time needed may vary a great

deal, depending on what technique has been chosen.
It will be different if the participants decide to make a
mud oven or if they choose to grill a sh, if they carve
wooden eating utensils or use gourds as recipients,
etc. It doesnt matter how much time they take; what is
important is that they are able to gauge how much time
the preparations will take and how long they will need to
prepare the food and that they respect the meal times
established for the camp.
When everything is ready, it will be time to
enjoy this tasty, original meal and to try out the new
utensils or implements that the young people have made
especially for this activity.
If the activity is conducted at a Unit camp, each
Patrol can invite a member of the Unit Team as a special
guest. If it is held at a Patrol camp, pictures can be
taken of the event and later a small exhibition can be
prepared to show the other members of the Unit what
was done.
Either way, at the next meeting of the Patrol
Council, as well as when the meal is being shared, the
participants can talk about the activity and evaluate
it. This will provide an opportunity to come up with new
ideas or think of ways to improve this activity the next
time it is held.
The Leaders should not miss this opportunity to
share their impressions with the Scouts, especially with
those whose progress they are monitoring, and to see
what they have got out of the activity.
12
RUSTIC COOKERY:
RECIPES AND UTENSILS
TECHNICAL APPENDIX
Rustic or outdoor cooking is a type of cooking in which traditional utensils are replaced
by natural objects that can be found while scouting and that can be adapted for use in preparing
meals.
It is important to remember that rustic cooking does not mean unhygienic cooking. On
the contrary, it involves making use of the available natural resources while maintaining sanitary
conditions and food quality. When practising this type of cooking, we often need to pay more attention to how we cook and store food than we normally would.
Several traditional recipes

Kabobs
(also known as shish-kabobs, shaslicks or brochettes)
This dish is of Persian origin, but many other cultures have similar dishes based on the same principle. It simply
involves skewering meat and vegetables on a wooden stick and cooking them over hot coals.
The rst step is to pick out one or several straight sticks. The sticks should be thin and strong. Pine twigs
should not be used because they will give the food a bad taste. As a general rule, it is wise to bite the stick to make
sure that it does not have a bitter taste, which would ruin the food. Once the sticks are chosen, they should be stripped
of bark and sharpened at one end.
The meat and vegetables to be skewered should be cut into cubes about one or two centimetres thick or of an
appropriate size, bearing in mind that they should not be so thin that they break when placed on the stick, or so thick
that they will take too long to cook, or so heavy that they break the stick. Once cut to the proper size, the food should
be placed on the stick, with pieces of meat being alternated with slices or pieces of onion, tomato, bacon, chilli peppers,
green apple or other vegetables and tastes that you want to try out. Once the food has been placed on the skewers, it
may be seasoned with salt and pepper before cooking.
Then build a re that will produce good coals, place forked
branches on either side of the re, and place the ends of the
skewer or skewers in the forked branches so that they can be
turned as the food cooks. Another possibility is to place stones
on either side of the re instead of the forked branches and then
rest the skewers on them. The skewers should not be so far
from the re that the food takes too long to cook, nor so
close that the food or the skewer might burn.
forked
branch
13
Green stick
Brochettes
OTHER IDEAS FOR ROASTING MEAT

Fork of green wood
he
id t
end
Bra
Rolls or hunters bread

This is a classic scout recipe. Mix a handful of our, a pinch of baking powder or powdered yeast, a
pinch of sugar and a pinch of salt. If the our you are using has baking powder in it, then you dont need to add
the yeast or baking powder. Once you have mixed these dry ingredients together, add some butter or margarine
and knead the dough, adding water little by little until there are no more lumps.
Taking the same precautions as described in the recipe for kabobs, choose
and prepare a stick. Then heat the stick and dust it with our. After dusting your
hands with our as well, form a roll of dough about one centimetre thick and ve
centimetres wide. Twist the dough around a stick to form a spiral and place it
over the re, either suspended between two forked branches or held rmly
between rocks. To make sure that the bread cooks evenly, the stick should
be turned continually until the dough swells and forms a dark golden crust.
Hunters bread
Dough
Tester
Coals
Soil
Potatoes
Dig a hole and line it with rocks. Build a re inside the hole and let it
burn down to coals. Scoop out the coals and place the potatoes (washed and
in their skins) in the bottom of the hole and cover them with ashes. Add more
rewood and keep the re burning for another hour or so.
In order to nd out whether the potatoes are cooked, prick them with
a thin, strong, sharpened stick. When the stick goes in easily, the potatoes
are ready. Remove the potatoes from the re and cut them in half in order to
let the steam out. Seasoned with salt and butter, they are very tasty.
Potatoes
14
As a variation of this recipe, you can prepare clay-baked potatoes. Wrap each
potato in wet newsprint, cover it with clay and place it in the ashes to bake.
Keep the surface hot using the same technique as in the previous recipe.
Another original and delicious recipe is to cook
eggs inside the potatoes. To do this, cut each potato in half
(washed and still in its skin) and carve out a small hole in
one of the halves. Pour the yolk of the egg into the hole and
spread the egg white on the cut surface of the two halves (this
will help make them stick back together). Then put the halves
together, pierce the potato with sharpened sticks to hold the
two halves together and then put the potato in the ashes to
bake. For this recipe, it is best to wrap the potato in aluminium
foil or cover it in clay.
Paper
Clay or mud
Coals
This can, of course, also be done with any other

edible tuber that can be cooked in the same way as
potatoes.
Stone-cooked meals
This technique calls for a smooth stone that is at enough to serve as a frying pan. Once you have found
such a stone, wash it and set it over the coals to heat. You will need to be careful, because some stones will burst
when they are subjected to sudden changes in temperature. To prevent this from happening, you can rst place the
stone beside the re (or in the sun if you are cooking during the day in hot weather) and then, once it has heated
up, place it on the coals. Even after taking these precautions, however, the stone may still explode, so you will
need to be careful.
Once the stone is good and hot, you can use it to cook a meal. Thin slices of red meat or chicken and
slices of onion or green pepper are a good choice (If you add a piece of cheese to these ingredients and then, when
the food is ready, sprinkle some olive oil over it, the result is very tasty.) If you spread a little butter (grease) or oil
on the stone, you can use it to cook sh.
Stone-cooked eggs
Stone
Stone-cooked eggs and bacon

Prepare the stone in the same way as described above.
When the stone is hot enough, place some strips of bacon around its
circumference. Break an egg (gently) inside the circle of bacon; the
bacon will keep the egg from spilling off the stone. Add salt and, if
desired, pepper.
15
Eggs with onion

Cut a large onion in half and remove all but the three outermost layers. Gently break an egg
into the onion. Place the onion over the coals and leave it there until the egg has cooked.
Another possibility is to use the peel of half an orange instead of an onion.
Pumpkin stew and pumpkin jam

Cut the top off of a pumpkin and scrape out the seeds. Then ll the pumpkin with pieces of meat
or ground beef and diced olives, onion, chilli peppers or red peppers, and hard-boiled eggs. You can also
add raisins and spices if you wish.
Put the top of the pumpkin back on and place it over the coals. From time to time, add a little
water to prevent the stew from becoming too dry. When the beef is cooked and the meat of the pumpkin
comes away from its walls, the stew is ready.
To make pumpkin jam, follow the same procedure but ll the pumpkin with water and sugar
instead.
Some ideas for utensils

If you would also like to make eating
utensils, this diagram shows you how to
carve spoons and forks.
Source: Manual Explorar y Acampar, Elvio Pero. Ed. Zig-Zag. Santiago, Chile. 1992.
(Food illustrations by the same author.) Tcnica Scout, Jorge Sprvoli, Argentina.
Illustrations of utensils were taken from Bricoler, Les Scouts-Fdration Catholique
des Scouts Baden-Powell de Belgique, 1999; and the pumpkin recipes are from Marcelo Fuentes, Argentina.
16
Growth area
PHYSICAL
DEVELOPMENT
A FUNBRARY FOR THE UNIT

What is a funbrary? Nothing more or less than a library of games and toys. And that is exactly what this activity is all about.
You will become bookworms in order to explore, research, obtain and make all sorts of new and exotic games and toys. Once
the Scout Units funbrary is ready, it can be opened to the public
for the enjoyment of adults and children alike.
PLACE
At the Packs usual meeting place or

at another appropriate location chosen
especially for this purpose.
DURATION
Preparation: This will depend on how much

time you set aside for scouting around,
collecting materials and making the games
and toys. In any case, these preparations
can be interspersed with other activities.
Implementation: Two or three hours each
time the funbrary is opened up.

1. To develop research skills and learn to innovate.
2. To explore new types of games.
3. To make games and toys.
4. To take part in a new and different type of activity for fun
and to provide a service to others.
PARTICIPANTS
All the Patrols in the Scout Unit.

11 to 13
13 to 15
1. I like to take part in different recreational activities.
1. I can choose between different recreational activities.
2. I take part in the games, outings and camps that my
2. I help to prepare games, outings and camps for my Patrol
Patrol organizes.
and Unit.
3. I know and play different sports and keep their rules.
3. I prepare games for different occasions.
MATERIALS
Original idea:
Valeria Negro, Argentina
and Hctor O. Carrer, ISO team.
The materials will vary depending on what games are chosen.

Generally speaking, various kinds of scraps can be used,
including bottles and plastic containers, boxes, wire, glue,
cutting tools, wood, etc. This activity sheet is supplemented by
a technical appendix entitled, Ideas for Making a Funbrary,
which provides suggestions and recommendations for this
activity.
17
The grand opening
Stage one: Explore and create
The Scout Unit can go about inaugurating the

funbrary or setting it up on different occasions in various
ways. Here are some ideas.
When the time scheduled for this activity in

the programme cycle arrives, the Unit Team should
remind the young people of what the activity involves
in general terms. They will also encourage the Scouts
to participate and to commit themselves to this task.
The rst activity for the Unit to organize is the
exploration stage. The Scouts can do research using
books and other documents, can look on the Internet,
talk to older persons, and invent, develop or assemble
games and toys. The technical appendix that comes
with this activity sheet provides information that can
help them with this task.
The Unit should use its regular procedures for
establishing goals, setting deadlines and assigning
duties for this stage of the activity, which calls for the
participants to assemble materials that they can use
later on to help them decide which games and toys
they want to include in the Scout Units funbrary. One
way of organizing the work is for each Patrol to be
responsible for proposing a certain number of ideas. If
this approach is chosen, then each Patrol will use its
usual procedures for going about this task.
Once the time set aside for these tasks
is over, the Scout Unit will meet to choose which
games and toys its members are going to make. This
selection process is aimed at avoiding repetition and
helping to improve the Scouts plans, but care should
be taken to avoid criticizing any of the choices that
the Patrols have made.
Once the games have been chosen, the next
step is to assemble the necessary materials and begin
to make them. It will be helpful for the Patrols to
have advice and assistance from the Unit Team as they
do this.
As the work progresses, the Unit Council will
choose the date for the funbrarys grand opening. The
Patrols should be informed of this decision well in
advance, of course.
Throughout this period, the Unit Team will
observe the Patrols work, will help the young people
with their task and will gather valuable information for
evaluating the activity later on.
Before the funbrarys grand opening
Depending on what the grand opening is going
to be like, various organizational tasks will have to be
carried out beforehand, such as preparing invitations,
obtaining permits, assembling materials to make
decorations with, etc. These jobs should be started
at least two weeks before the grand opening, and it
will be best if the games and toys have been nished
by then so that the Scouts will have enough time to
organize the opening itself.
If the funbrary is to be set up in the Units usual

meeting place, it can be organized as a type of fair, and the
Unit can invite the rest of the Scout Group, their parents and
friends, and sponsors or members young and old alike of
the Scout Groups community. The fair can be set up in the
meeting place itself or in a nearby public park or square. In
choosing the date for the funbrarys opening, one possibility
would be to select a special day for the community, Childrens
Day, the Groups anniversary, the coming of Spring An
opening like this will help create a bond between the Scout
Unit and the community, will help people learn more about
the Scout Movements work and understand what it does,
will motivate parents and other family members to take part
and, quite probably, will get other young people excited about
helping or joining the Scout Group.
The opening can also be used to provide a service to
a specic community or institution. In this case, the funbrary
can be set up in an orphanage, a youth centre or a low-income
neighbourhood.
If the funbrary is going to be open to people of all
ages, it should include games as well as toys. If, on the
other hand, it is intended for a certain type of guest or group,
this will have an inuence on what it includes and how it
is presented. For example, if the idea is to get parents
interested, then there should be plenty of parlour games. If
the funbrary is intended for children in a nursery school, then
it should have toys. If it is designed for youth groups, then it
should feature games that allow the participants to test their
physical skill. If the funbrary is going to be set up at camp,
then it should have games which make the most of the wide
open spaces that are available there and which use materials
that can be easily transported.
Once the grand opening has been held or the funbrary
has been set up, the Scout Unit will meet to evaluate the
work that the Scouts have done. The funbrarys guests may
also be asked for their opinions about their experiences and
for recommendations for improving or adding to it.
Running the funbrary
The Scout Units funbrary will provide it with yet
another tool for serving the community, and the job of running
it can be rotated among the various Patrols. Whichever
Patrol is in charge of the funbrary at a given time should be
responsible for keeping the inventory up to date, adding new
games and toys (or organizing activities for this purpose),
making repairs and doing the necessary maintenance so that
the funbrary will be ready whenever it is needed and will work
as it should once it is set up. The variety of games and the
quality of the funbrarys contents can gradually be upgraded.
As time goes by, this shared responsibility for running
the funbrary can also be evaluated and used as a source of
information on the personal development of the Scout Units
members.
18
IDEAS FOR MAKING A FUNBRARY

TECHNICAL APPENDIX
When we play, we make something that doesnt exist into something real.
When we play, we can be someone different from who we are.
When we play, for a little while we inhabit a non-existent place and we are in control of time and distance.
When we play, we can make the sun shine at night and the moon shine at noon,
we can empty the seas, and we can make a summer of the coldest winter month.
Libro de cabecera, Pipo Pescador.
The word funbrary is a composite of the word fun and (li)brary, which signies a place where you can store
things. So a funbrary is a place where you can store things that are fun to do. But it is also much more than that.
Just imagine that you step into a place that is decorated with brightly coloured ags and where there are all
sorts of open boxes and different groups of people. The people in some of these groups are concentrating very hard
on playing a game in which they move around on a giant board and they act as the actual markers or pieces. Over in
another area, you hear shouts and laughter as one team wins a naval battle and the other team is already getting ready
to counterattack. Some people are playing on their own, two others are trying to decide which game to play, and still
others are working on a jigsaw puzzle.
The groups are made up of people of all ages. Over in a corner some people are singing and acting things out.
Watch out! Youre in the middle of a racetrack. As you walk along, you hear the beginning of a riddle and you wonder
what the answer might be. As you walk along with your head in the clouds, you come across a box. You bend down and,
among all the different toys and games you nd there, you see a checkers board.Hey! Your grandfather taught you how
to play checkers. You grab the board and run off, looking for someone to play checkers with. As you are looking, you see
a young girl who is announcing that a new game of ninepins is about to start.
If you havent already gured it out, you are in a FUNBRARY. Welcome!!
What do you need to put together a funbrary?

1. Enthusiasm
In any project you start, the most
important thing is for people to be enthusiastic
about the idea, for them to feel that your idea
for a project will help the group achieve one
of its objectives, and for them to decide to go
ahead with it.
2. Toys
What types of games and toys?
The funbrary can include various types of games: board
games, ball games, parlour games, inventive games, tests of
physical strength or skill, etc. The young people can use the
following criteria to help them choose what games to include.
19
Variety of games,
Types of skills they help develop
Number of participants,
Type of relationship they foster (more
competitive or more cooperative),
How complicated the rules are (take
the participants ages into account),
Materials needed to make the toys or
games (materials that pose no hazard to the participants, are not

too easily breakable, etc.),
Toys that can be made by the participants, taking into account
their skill levels,
The type of person the funbrary is for: just the Scout Group or
the wider community; one age group or one segment of the
population, etc.
The funbrary can also have a theme, such as a focus on regional games, games made out of natural or scrap
materials, traditional games, etc. If a particular focus of this sort is chosen, it will surely inuence what games and toys
are selected and will call for the use of special guidelines.
How can we get what we need?

There are various ways to obtain the toys needed for the funbrary. Here are three of the many possible
ways:
Borrowing: Toys and games may be loaned by participants for use while the funbrary is being held.
Construction: Toy-building workshops can be held in which the participants use natural or scrap
materials, wood, clay, fabric, and any other material they can nd that will help them create an appropriate
game.
Many games can be played by tracing out the board on the ground and using seeds or pebbles as
markers. This is another interesting way of making up toys or games wherever you are. One possibility
is to have cards set out in the funbrary that explain the games rules and describe how the game boards
are designed so that the games can be made each time people want to play them. Lots of games can be
played with just a paper and pencil, such as tic-tac-toe, battleships, pictionary Can you think of some
others?
Research: You can also put together a list of traditional or regional games, or a list of toys and
games that your parents or grandparents used. You can interview people, go to the library and do Internet
searches. You can invite the people you interview to help you investigate.
3. The funbrarians
Whenever the funbrary is being used, there should be at least two people in charge of it. These funbrarians
should do two very important and interrelated jobs:
Taking care of the materials: This involves sorting and straightening up the games and toys so that
it will be easy for the participants to see them and choose the ones they are interested in; keeping a
record of what toys are used each time; and planning ahead for any repairs that may be needed.
Helping the participants to enjoy the funbrary: This entails creating a relaxed atmosphere and, when
necessary, helping the participants to organize the games or settle any problems that arise. It is
very helpful if the funbrarians have played the games themselves beforehand so that they know the
rules and the different variations and so that, if the need arises, they can adapt the games to t the
number of people who want to play or to make them more appropriate for the players of a certain
age.
The people chosen to act as funbrarians should be people who like to play games and to help other
people to play them. The funbrarians need to be willing to work with other people, to play and to let others
play, to observe and to take appropriate action when the situation calls for it.
20
4.
The location
It is best to set up the funbrary in a convenient location (even if it is not the

same one each time) that is not too near other activities that may be going on at
the same time. If it is possible to decorate the area so that the participants will feel
drawn to enter a special place, so much the better.
It is also important to think about where the materials for the funbrary can
be stored when theyre not in use.
5.
Running the funbrary
Its very important to remember that the funbrary is something that people can choose to
participate in or not. In other words, when it is set up at the scheduled time, the idea is for the
people who want to take part to come in and start playing. Whenever possible, it is also important to
invite people of all ages as a way of fostering interaction between people of different generations in a
spontaneous setting. When people of different ages are going to participate, games should be chosen
that will be interesting for all the age groups involved.
The funbrarians will be in charge of running the games, explaining the rules to the people who
dont know them, and inviting or encouraging the participants to play and to organize their own games.
Sometimes, when younger children are faced with so many games and toys, they dont know what
to choose. If this happens, it may be better to pre-select certain games. In other cases, many people will
want to play the same game; if this happens, you can organize them into bigger teams or have them take
turns. In each funbrary, different sorts of situations are surely going to arise, but the funbrarians will be
there to solve problems and offer solutions that will make the activity all the better.
The funbrarians should be on duty taking part, observing, suggesting ideas and playing along
with the others for the entire time that the funbrary is open. A funbrary is a very dynamic place in which
people can switch from one game or team to another whenever they wish, may decide to leave whenever
they want to, or can decide to stay and talk with others. The funbrarians will need to adapt to this kind of
an atmosphere, one in which people choose what they want to do on their own and may change from one
activity to another as they wish.
After they have nished a game, the players should set up the game again so that it will be ready
for the next people who want to use it. It is important for the participants to understand that there are
certain basic rules that they must follow, and taking care of the various materials is one of the most
important rules of all.
Ideas for making toys

Board games. Game boards can be made out of strips of different pieces of cloth which
can then be sewn or glued together to make a picture (these boards can be rolled up for easy
transportation). Another possibility is to make them out of wood scraps obtained from a carpenter or by
breaking down fruit crates (which will greatly reduce the cost involved) and then drawing the appropriate
design on them with paint or ink. Clay is another material that you can use. If you use clay, you can
shape it into sheets and then, once it is dried or has been baked in a kiln (depending on the type of clay
that you choose to use), draw the lines and colour them in. Paper and cardboard can also be used, but
they wear out faster.
Markers for the games can be made out of sections cut off from a broom handle or from corks,
seeds, buttons, pebbles, bottle caps, shells or clay. The markers can then be painted or decorated so
that the different players can tell which markers are theirs.
21
Dominos can be made by

drawing or gluing paper or paperboard
with the different numbers of spots on
thick cardboard, wood or matchboxes.
The spots can be the usual circles, or
you can use some other original design.
Stilts can be made out of tin

cans (cans of tinned fruit, motor oil
or anything else that is the right size)
and twine or thin rope. The length of
the twine or rope should be adjusted
to t the height of each player.
Bowling pins can be made by lling 10 plastic bottles with water or

sand and arranging them in a triangle. The players can then try throwing a
ball or a hard orange at them to knock them down.
All sorts of fun games can be made with very simple materials.
One such game is the memory game. For this game, you make pairs of
cards that have matching drawings, photos or shapes on them. There
should be at least twelve pairs of these matching cards. After looking at
all the cards for a few seconds, the players put them face down and throw
dice to see who goes rst. Players take turns at turning two cards over,
one by one. If the two cards match, the player keeps them; if not, the
player turns them back over and leaves them where they were. The other
players can see the cards as they are turned over and can try to memorize their locations so that they can use them when their turn comes. The
player who collects the most cards wins.
The list of games that can be included in a funbrary is almost innite. You can use the following
list of toys and games and of web sites to give a boost to your imagination and help you think of other
possibilities.
Cards Dice Chess Scrabble Boggle Ludo Guessing games Yo-yos Model car races Kites
Chinese sticks Tic-tac-toe Trivia games Battleships Hangmans bluff Jigsaw puzzles
Catch the goose The rope game Tejo Bowling Puppets Marionettes Hopscotch Foursquare
Senku Monopoly Ball games Paper planes
<www.ipausa.org> The American Association for the Childs Right to Play

<www.familytlc.net> Tools to enhance the parent/child relationship
<www.amfolktoys.com> American Folk Toys, Games, Crafts & Music
<www.angelre.com/ny/DebbiesPage/Trashtoys.html> Make toys from trash
<www.puzzle.dse.nl/index_us.html> The Ultimate Puzzle Site
<www.geocities.com/Athens/8136/tonguetwisters.html> The Tongue Twister Data Base
<www.frontiernet.net/carlise/riddle/> Riddle of the Week
<www.earlychildhood.com/crafts/index.cfm> Crafts for the early childhood
Source: Valeria Negro, Argentina.
22
Growth area
PHYSICAL
DEVELOPMENT
OUR DAILY
BREAD

During the morning of a day spent at camp, the young people hear that the utensils
and ingredients that were going to be used to make lunch have been conscated by the Unit Team. A scoring system has been set up and, in order to get the
materials back, the Scouts will have to earn a certain number of points by passing
various tests. The Patrol that earns the required number of points can recover the
minimum ingredients and utensils needed to make lunch, but the Patrol that knows
the most about what constitutes a proper diet will be able to make the best use of
the points it has won.
PLACE
In camp.
DURATION
One morning.
PARTICIPANTS
The Scout Unit,

working in Patrols.

1. To appreciate food and the effort it takes to obtain it.
2. To make good use of the available resources to prepare meals.
3. To encourage resourcefulness.

11 to 13
13 to 15
1. I try to avoid situations which can damage my own or my
1. I know which foods help me to grow and which
friends health.
dont.
2. I try not to be aggressive in games and activities.

3. I eat food that helps me grow and I eat at the proper times.
4. I know why cleanliness is important when preparing and
in the process.
3. I help to prepare games, outings and camps for
eating food.
my Patrol and Unit.
Original idea: Rucamanqui

Scout Group, Chile.
2. I can make simple meals and be clean and tidy
MATERIALS
Two sheets of paperboard, one of which is cut into small
cards. The other materials will depend on what type of
contest is chosen, as explained below.
23

Before the activity
During the activity
At least one day ahead of time, the Unit Team will

make the following preparations:
The Unit Team will explain what the activity

involves and challenge the Patrols to win points by
completing different tests so that they can earn back
the ingredients for that days lunch. The factor of
surprise is important for the success of this activity, so
it should not be one of the activities chosen at the time
the programme cycle was being planned.
1. Selection of the ingredients (some essential ingredients

and other supplementary ones) that are necessary
or useful for the preparation of a variety of complete,
balanced lunches. A set of ingredients needs to be
assembled that can be used to make different dishes of
varying difculty. This way, some Patrols can decide to
settle for a certain number of points while others either
because they have not organized their points well or
because they want to make a more elaborate meal may
continue trying to earn more points. The differences
between the lunches prepared by the various Patrols using
the points they earned will provide information about
who used their points well or badly, who is more of a
perfectionist, who didnt earn enough points, who wasnt
able to organize well, etc.
2. Assignment of points to each ingredient and utensil based
on how necessary it is and how much of a demand there
will be for it. The points should be assigned in such a
way as to ensure that all the Patrols can have the basic
ingredients needed to make a nutritional meal.
3. Preparation of a sign listing the available ingredients, their
nutritional value and the number of points needed for each
one.
4. Preparation of a large number of coupons representing
different amounts of points.
5. Organization of a set of trials and contests for earning
the points. These tests should involve a combination of
physical and intellectual activities, such as: handkerchief
duels, code-breaking, following clues, popular sports,
riddles, answering questions about basic woodcraft,
answering questions about the main diseases caused by
consuming improperly handled food, etc. The number of
points awarded for each test will depend on its difculty.
In order for the activity to work out well, the number
of points should match those assigned to the different
ingredients and utensils.
6. Placement of a stand at camp headquarters or elsewhere
in the camp where the Scouts can redeem their points.
In the morning, before the activity begins, the Unit
Team will gather up each Patrols cooking utensils (if at all
possible, without the Scouts noticing it).
24
The contests can take all morning, but with the

rst ingredients and utensils they get, one member of
each Patrol can begin preparing lunch while the others
try to win more points so that the meal will be better
and more complete.
The contests should end at least half an hour
before lunchtime so that all the members of each Patrol
can help nish preparing the meal.
When the lunches are ready, each Patrol will
show the Leaders what dishes they have prepared. The
Leaders will then decide if the meals are complete and
if the Patrols have made good use of the resources they
had.
Some sort of recognition will be given to the
Patrols that have prepared the most nutritional meals
with the fewest number of points.
One possible variation of this activity could
involve the kidnapping of each Patrols cooks, who
can then be rescued using the same point system.
If this option is chosen, the Unit Team will think of
something for the cooks to do while they are waiting
to be rescued, but whatever they do should not involve
earning points to rescue themselves.
During the activity, the Unit Team can observe
the Scouts to see how well they accept the challenge,
how much they know about the nutrients contained in
the different ingredients, how well they can organize
themselves, what abilities and skills they use in the
contests, how creative they are and whether or not
they maintain good hygiene while preparing the food,
etc. These observations, together with the Scouts
own comments about the activity after it is over (a
good time to talk about it may be while the participants
are eating their lunches), will allow the Unit Team to
evaluate the activity and the impact it has had on the
young people.
PHYSICAL
DEVELOPMENT
Growth area
CHALLENGE
VALLEY

This activity is a contest involving the preparation and completion of an obstacle course. Taking advantage of the topography of the area where the Unit has
set up camp, the Scouts will create original types of obstacles that will test
their companions abilities.
This will be a double challenge because the Patrols will not only have to create
original kinds of obstacles, but they will also have to overcome the obstacles
made by their fellow Scouts.

1. To develop physical skills needed
for outdoor activities.
2. To use ingenuity, creativity
and manual skills.
3. To build team spirit.

4. To promote good sportsmanship.
PLACE
In camp.
DURATION
Each Patrol will need about

half a day to set up its portion
of the course, and the Scout
Unit will take around two
hours to complete the activity.
PARTICIPANTS
The Scout Unit,

working in Patrols.

11 to 13
13 to 15
1. I take part in activities that help keep my body strong and
healthy.
2. I try to overcome the physical difculties caused
by my growing.
friends health.
3. I talk to my friends to solve problems that come
3. I know what I can and cant do with my body.
up between us.
4. I help to prepare games, outings and camps for
my Patrol and Unit.

6. I take part in the games, outings and camps that my Patrol
organizes.
MATERIALES
Original idea:
Miguel Harfagar, Chile.
A score sheet for each Patrol, maps of the whole trail,

and prizes or some other form of recognition. The other
materials will depend on the type of obstacle course created
by each Patrol.
25

Before camp
Well before the time scheduled for this activity (if
at all possible, during one of the preparatory visits made
to the campsite), the Unit Council should choose the area
where the course will be set up and divide the trail up into
as many sections as there are Patrols in the Scout Unit. In
selecting the site, the following factors should be considered:
The course should not be too long. A course that takes
between one and two hours to complete is best.
The trail chosen for this activity should have some
interesting and challenging but not dangerous
topographical features. The idea is for the Patrols to use
their ingenuity to overcome these obstacles but without
running unnecessary risks
The sections of the trail assigned to each Patrol should
be the same length and of equal difculty.
Making the obstacle course
Once the Scouts are at the camp and the time set
aside for setting up the obstacle course has arrived, Patrol
Leaders and Assistant Patrol Leaders should be given the
following materials:
A complete map of the entire trail, with the sections
assigned to each Patrol clearly marked;
A list of the aspects that will be considered when
awarding points for the preparation of the different
sections of the obstacle course. For example, points
may be awarded for the originality of the obstacles,
for making the most out of the available materials, for
observing safety standards, for taking proper care of the
environment, etc.;
After the Patrols have received their working
materials, they will go over their sections of the trail, plan
what obstacles they want to build, gather the materials they
need and set up their portion of the obstacle course.
The Unit Team should remind the Patrols that the
idea is to take advantage of the natural features of the
terrain to create obstacles that will require the participants
to use their resourcefulness, knowledge and physical skills
to overcome them. A good way to make sure that the
different sections will be of more or less the same difculty
is to have each section include one obstacle designed
to test physical skills, one that requires the contestants
to gather something and one that draws on their powers
of observation. As always, the Team must watch over
the Patrols as they work and be ready to help whenever
necessary.
When all the Patrols have nished making their
sections of the course, and while they are involved in other
activities, the Scout leaders will inspect the entire trail in
order to:
Make sure that the obstacles are suitable and that
the course is safe. The corresponding Patrol(s) will be
informed about any part of the course that does not
meet these standards and will be given an adequate
amount of time to x it.
Award the rst points in the contest. Each Patrol will

receive points for its section of the course based on the
scoring guidelines that the Unit Team has prepared and
given to the Patrols in advance.
This inspection will also give the Unit Team an
opportunity to gather information that will be useful when
evaluating the activity. The Team should look for such things
as creativity, resourcefulness in taking advantage of the
natural features of the terrain and the available materials,
the use of orienteering techniques, concern for safety, and
compliance with the instructions that have been handed out
regarding the construction of the obstacles.
Time to start!
Once everything is ready, but before the Patrols
arrive at the starting point, the Team should prepare its
recommendations and instructions for the activity.
Each Unit can decide how it would like to conduct this
activity. The following outline is one possibility.
Each Patrol will start off in a different section of the
course and will have nished the course when its members
reach their starting point. The entire trail will be marked
on a map that will be given to each Patrol when they start
off. The map will also show which section each Patrol should
start off at and in which direction they should go. Each time
a Patrol has nished one section of the course and is ready to
begin the next one, its members will rst have to overcome
a surprise obstacle that the Unit Leaders have designed
themselves. For example, the Scouts might be asked to tie
a certain type of knot, detect special sorts of trail markers,
transcribe a message in Morse Code, etc.
Throughout the course, the Unit Team will monitor the
Patrols. The Teams job will not only be to keep the score for
each group, but also to make sure that everyone is safe and
to gather information on the participants skills in the areas of
teamwork, resourcefulness in overcoming the obstacles they
encounter, use of their physical abilities, good sportsmanship
in difcult situations, the value placed on healthy competition,
and the respect shown for each of the Patrol members
potentials and capabilities. These types of factors will be
taken into account when evaluating the activity and will
provide a point of reference when reviewing the progress that
each Scout is making in his/her personal development.
As noted earlier, the activity will end when each
Patrol has completed the course and returned to its starting
point. While the Leaders are tallying up the scores in order
to determine which Patrol has won, the Scouts will gather up
and store the materials they used in preparing their sections in
order to leave the trail in the same condition as they found it.
At nightfall a little ceremony will be held in order to
announce the scores and hand out certicates or other forms
of recognition to the participating groups. This will also be
a good opportunity to have an informal conversation in which
the Scouts can say what they think about the activity they
have just completed. Their observations and the experience
gained during the activity will prepare the young people to
think up other similar sorts of activities that will surely enrich
the Unit.
26
IDEAS
IDEAS
OTHER IDEAS
OTHER IDEAS
SPORTS INVENTORS
Original idea: Hctor O. Carrer, ISO team.
In response to an invitation extended by the Unit Team,

the Patrols will set themselves the task of inventing
new sports to be played by the Unit. These sports will
then become part of the Patrols regular recreational
activities.
In keeping with the commitment that the Patrols have made

and within the time periods to which everyone has agreed,
each Patrol should: *invent a sport; *obtain or make the
equipment needed to play the sport; *obtain the necessary
permission if a certain type of playing eld is required.
After the Patrols have been encouraged to take part in

this activity, the following steps should be completed:
*give a presentation on the types of requirements
that the new sports should full (type of participation,
rules of the game, the functions and authorities of
the person in charge of making sure the rules are
observed, new and special terminology, development
of a new technique, etc.); *determine how much time
the Patrols will have to create their new sport (realistic
deadlines to which everybody agrees and which will
allow enough time to come up with an interesting
proposal and plan); *set the dates on which the new
sports will be presented and played (all the different
sports do not necessarily have to be played on the
same day).
As the deadline approaches, the Patrols should make sure

they carry out the following tasks: *announce the event and
obtain the necessary permission if the activity is to be held
somewhere other than the Scout Units usual meeting place;
*remind people of the date, time and place set for the sport
to be played; *make or obtain diplomas or certicates to be
given to the players after the games are over.
There may be other tasks to carry out, depending on the
nature of the activity. This sheet simply gives some ideas that
may help you to plan out the event.
When everything is ready, it will be time to play! Dont forget
to write out a description of the new sports in the Patrols
record book.

11 to 13
13 to 15
1. I take part in activities that help keep my body strong

and healthy.
2. I notice the changes that are happening in my body.
friends health.
Patrol organizes.
8. I play a sport regularly.

2. I try to overcome the physical difculties
caused by my growing.
3. I can choose between different recreational
activities.
4. I help to prepare games, outings and camps
for my Patrol and Unit.
5. I make an effort to improve my performance
in the sport I play and I know how to win and
lose.
27
EXPLORATION WHILE
ON PATROL
An exploratory outing is a great challenge for any Patrol.

Setting yourself a goal, a place to reach, an area to
explore, something to discover, new tasks to complete
An outing like this gets the Patrol into action and lets each
one of its members feel like part of a team that is moving
forward and growing. The objective of this activity is to
invite the Patrols to go out exploring on a regular basis.
The Patrol Council is the one that should propose and
select an exploratory outing. The idea is to prepare a
suitable setting for a brainstorming session, choose the
ideas that seem to be the most interesting and attractive
to a majority of the participants (the ideas that cant be
put into practice now might be used later on), gure out
what needs to be done in order to implement them and
go out and explore the world. Once you get back, you can
think about what you have achieved and see how much you
have grown during your adventure. As T.S. Eliot once said,
And the end of all our exploring/Will be to arrive where
we started/And know the place for the rst time.
Original idea: Jinny Cascante, Equipo REME Costa Rica.
The possibilities to be explored are endless; they are

the outcome of the capacity for surprise of the men
and women who dare to seek out new paths. You can
explore in the city or in the country; you can be pursuing
a scientic objective or a cultural one; you can stop once
you reach your goal, or you can use it as a stepping stone
to nd new possibilities. A few examples that have more
to do with physical development might include learning
about and playing sports from the most remote parts of
the planet that you can think of; entering the world of
science and doing research on aerodynamics or noise
pollution; probing the secrets of our kitchens and nding
out about the origins of the fragrant herbs and spices that
crowd our shelves, what foods they are used with and
what nutrients our bodies absorb from them; nding out
how many of the inventions that Jules Verne devised for his
novels are actually in existence today; or identifying plants
and animals found near your campsite. There are so many
possibilities, but you need to keep your eyes and ears open
to appreciate all the marvellous things to be found in the
world around us.

11 to 13
13 to 15
I help to prepare games, outings and camps for

my Patrol and Unit.

Patrol organizes.
SAFETY IN THE UNIT

A Scout Unit that is safe, both at its meeting place and
during the activities in which its members take part, is
the main goal of this activity idea. There are four basic
concepts that should be kept in mind at all times: Prevent: You always need to take some time to imagine and
detect potential hazards in any of the activities you engage
in. You need to identify what types of behaviour minimize those risks and to set clear limits. Inform: Everybody
should be told about existing risks in a clear, direct manner so that they will avoid acting in ways that put them at
risk. Where appropriate, this should be supplemented by
a system for distributing announcements and warnings.
Maintain prevention and information: A preventive awareness should be maintained, information on existing hazards
should be repeated on a regular basis and signage should
be well maintained. Be ready to help effectively: If, even
though preventive and informational measures have been
kept up, an accident or emergency situation does arise,
you have to *know beforehand what will need to be done;
*have immediate access to the equipment or other implements you will need to help; and *know what steps to take
Original idea: REME Coordination Headquarters, based on a

proposal sent by Lilian G. Zurieta, REME team, Bolivia.
to avoid leaving other potentially risky areas uncovered

while you are providing assistance.
Bearing these things in mind, the idea is that, once a year,
as part of the activities provided for in the applicable programme cycle, the Patrols will become safety ofcers.
At the time scheduled for this activity (over a period of one
or two weeks), the Patrols will inspect their usual meeting
place to see whether they nd any safety problems in the
Patrols or the Scout Units facilities. These inspections
can be carried out by category: health (cleanliness of bathrooms, waste disposal, etc.), physical safety (electrical
plugs, lighting, access, etc.), and many others. An effort
should be made both to prevent a repetition of previous
problems and to make sure that all the many potentially
risky aspects are being tackled.
The jobs of these safety ofcers are not over once they
have detected potential problems, though. After they have
found a safety problem, the Patrols will need to prepare
a report about it. In that report, they should identify
28
the problem, specify the hazards it poses and

propose a way of resolving the situation. Each
Patrol will have an opportunity to present the
results of its research in an interesting way
(a video, a poster, a radio programme, a short
story, a picture book, a magazine article,
etc.). It is important to make sure that the
messenger does not become the message. In
other words, it is good for the information about
the problem to be presented in an interesting
and original way, but the method used to
communicate that message should not eclipse
its content.
Once the presentations have been given and the solutions

proposed by each Patrol have been explained, the most important
part of this activity can begin: the implementation of the proposed
solutions.
The Patrols will reach an agreement about how the work is to
be distributed and who will obtain what materials. They will also
decide how much time is to be allotted for these tasks. Depending
on what types of tasks are to be performed, this stage of the
activity may include the development of special skills. In this
case, the necessary contacts and arrangements for expert advice
will need to be made.

11 to 13
13 to 15
1. I take part in activities that help keep my body

strong and healthy.
2. I try to avoid situations which can damage my own
or my friends health.
4. I help to clean and tidy my house and the places
where I study and play.

2. I know what to do in case of illness of accident.
MORNING EXERCISE
Original idea: Franklin Briceo, REME team, Panama;

and REME team, Paraguay.
A good way to start the day at camp is to take part in an

activity that fosters healthy living habits, such as daily
exercise.
This type of exercise does not require a physical
programme or a sports instructor. A little bit of creativity
will enable you to take advantage of the area where you
are camping to take part in a fun, varied exercise routine.
Remember that this exercise session is not intended to
prepare anyone for a specic sport. Its purpose is simply
to motivate young people to make regular physical exercise
a part of their daily lives.
As soon as they get up in the morning, before they do
anything else, the members of the Scout Unit can do a
morning exercise routine and enjoy nature at the same
time. A brisk walk or slow jog around the campgrounds for
ten minutes or so will allow people to warm up. They can
then do some more physically demanding exercises, such
as relay races or climbing a nearby hill. To nish up, they

can do elongation exercises that allow them to stretch
their muscles while gradually getting their breath back
after the strenuous exercises they have just done.
If there is a body of water nearby, you can also add some
water sports or top off the exercise routine with a nice
cool dip that will let you combine your daily exercise
session with some washing up. If you do this, though,
be careful not to pollute the water with soap or other
chemicals. The best way to go about this is to get
yourselves nice and wet in the stream or lake and then,
in pairs and at a minimum of 5 metres away from the
shore, to soap up and rinse off by dousing each other with
buckets of water. If you do this far enough away from
the waters edge, the soapy water will be absorbed in the
ground and will lter through the soil, so that the water
that runs back to the river or lake will be free of harmful
substances.

11 to 13
13 to 15
1. I take part in activities that help keep my body

strong and healthy.
2.I notice the changes that are happening in my body.
5. I take care of my personal appearance and keep
myself clean.

2. I understand that the changes happening in my body
affect what I am like as a person.
3. I try to overcome the physical difculties caused by
my growing.
4. I take care of my personal appearance and always try
to be clean and tidy.
29
AN ORIENTEERING
CONTEST
With the help of a compass, the Patrols will complete
a course through open country that the Unit Team has
plotted out beforehand. In addition to allowing the Scouts
to test their physical stamina, this activity will help them
to develop their ability to gure out what direction they are
heading in, gauge distances and scout out the best path.
Developing the necessary knowledge and skills to nd
out where you are and how to get to another location as
quickly and directly as possible (i.e., to nd your own way)
has been an important part of the Scout Movements
outdoor activities ever since its founding.
The Scout Movement is not the only place that these skills
are appreciated, though. As early as 1919, the President
of the Amateur Athletics Association of Sweden, Major
Ernst Killander, introduced orienteering as an additional
recreational activity for athletes who were training for
track and eld events. Orienteering competitions began to
be held in Europe in 1962 and then, at the world level, in
1966.
The Unit Team will plot out a course that includes from
12 to 15 stations. The rst station will be located
approximately 200 metres away from the starting line.
There will be a sign at that station which indicates the
station number together with the bearing and distance
Original idea: Tropas 1, Competencias de Orientacin,

J. Jos Martnez de la Rosa, Mexico, 1984.
of the following station. With the help of a compass,

each Patrol will decide what path to take to the second
station. Once the participants have reached it, they will
see another sign that is similar to the one they saw at the
rst station (station number, bearing of the next station,
and its distance), and so forth. These signs are to be
placed so that they can only be seen from a short distance
away. The objective is to reach the next station as quickly
as possible. It is up to each Patrol to decide what path to
take from one station to the next. Each station provides
information about the next one, so the Patrols will not be
able to skip any stations if they want to get to the nish
line. In any event, as a means of ensuring that all the
Patrols pass through all the stations, the Unit Team can
leave different messages at every station for each Patrol
in which they ask them to perform a specic task.
If this is the rst time that a contest of this sort is to be
held, then the orienteering course should be a simple one.
A course running through a fairly open woodland would be
a good way to start. As time goes on, the course can be
made more complicated by adding longer stretches between stations, elements that require map-reading skills,
more difcult tasks to complete between one station and
another, etc. The courses can also be of different types
(cross-country, straight-line courses, etc.) or can be run at
night.

11 to 13
13 to 15
1. I take part in activities that help keep my body strong and healthy.

2. I know what to do in case of illness
of accident.
3. I try to overcome the physical
difculties caused by my growing.
Here I write down other ideas for activities with the Scout Unit
30
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32
33
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Interamerican Scout Ofce

World Organization of the Scout Movement

REME Coordination Headquarters

ACTIVITIES AND APPENDICES

Patrol Rally: a go-kart blueprint

Rustic Cookery: recipes and utensils

A funbrary for the Unit

Ideas for making a funbrary

Our Daily Bread

Homemade meteorological instruments

Lets Recycle the Patrol Record Book

The Patrol Spirit and the Patrol Record Book

The Patrols got Rhythm

Making musical instruments:

Basics of Hydroponic Gardening

Incredible Flying Machines

ACTIVITIES AND APPENDICES

An aerostatic balloon made out of paper

The story of the Fallas of Valencia

Lets make a Commercial

What does your Mask say?

AFFECTIVE DEVELOPMENT page 133

SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT page 151

The Mosquito Hunters

Vector transmitted diseases:

Oral Rehydration Therapy

Where Would you Like to Eat Tonight?

SPIRITUAL DEVELOPMENTpage 195

Popular Religious Celebration

Discovering the Universe

SUMMARY OF THE ACTIVITY

The Units meeting

One Unit meeting

OBJECTIVES OF THE ACTIVITY

HELPS ACHIEVE THE FOLLOWING EDUCATIONAL OBJECTIVES

1. I take part in activities that help keep

1. I respect my body and that of others.

DESCRIPTION OF THE ACTIVITY

of the Patrols should therefore have a place that gives its

Before leaving for camp

Once the go-karts are nished, it is a good idea

Here are some of the general characteristics of

On your mark, get set, go!

Except for the starting section, there will be a different

At the appointed time, the go-karts, drivers and

Building the go-kart for the rally. Before the

The Leaders should stay fairly close to the rally

Final check of the go-kart and other equipment:

If the participants are going to have to stay

If it is important for the Patrols to acquire skills

At the end of the rally, once all the Patrols have

Where to nd these materials:

Screwdrivers (various sizes)

For use by adults only:

FRONT DRIVE CHAIN

Rear drive chain

REAR DRIVE CHAIN

Source: Scouts de France.

The driver should be

Seat with back

SUMMARY OF THE ACTIVITY