Articles on Scouting with special needs and disabilities
This article appeared in the Fall 2020 issue of Abilities Digest. Special needs and disabilities are all around us. There are many of us who have disabilities, but by looking at us, one cannot tell. In the next few months, we all will be either recruiting or joining a new unit. With that in mind,... Continue Reading →
The following was a response to a problem encountered by a Scout parent. It originally appeared in the Summer 2020 issue of Abilities Digest. Here is the dilemma: the Scout has immunization problems and the Scout’s physician suggests the Scout be isolated while camping. The unit leadership does not agree. Having a special needs child... Continue Reading →
This article appeared in the Summer 2020 issue of Abilities Digest. When a group of young friends reach Scouting age, there is often a discussion of whether to join a pack or troop, and then which one to join. Parents get involved, and careful parents will try to identify the best unit for their own... Continue Reading →
You have a den full of very active WEBELOS. You have discovered they are mostly kids who have been diagnosed with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD). and a couple of them are “on the spectrum” too. You don’t really know what all of this labeling means; all you see are the results of whatever it... Continue Reading →
This article from Scouting Magazine discusses the work in assistive technology by adult Eagle Scouts Buddy Marshall (left) and Mark Chilutti. Mark Chilutti is a member of the BSA's National Special Needs and Disabilities Committee. https://blog.scoutingmagazine.org/2020/12/17/how-two-eagle-scouts-are-making-assistive-technology-more-accessible/
Philmont offers two events next summer highlighting special needs and disabilities in Scouting: the Zia Experience and the training conference.
New Scout Orientations are meetings held by Scoutmasters or Cubmasters with their groups of new Scouts. The meetings let Scouts and parents know what the ins and outs of their new Scouting unit entail. During the orientation, the leadership may discuss the frequency of meetings, the intent of activities, the rank requirement sequences, the outing... Continue Reading →
A scoutmaster recently asked the National Special Needs and Disabilities Committee about training for “Bob,” an assistant scoutmaster with cognitive limitations. “Bob” assists with simple tasks during daytime events and camp activities, but does not participate in overnights. “Bob” has completed Youth Protection Training (YPT), but not Outdoor Leadership Skills (OLS), which traditionally involves an... Continue Reading →
“Houston, Tranquility Base here. The Eagle has landed.” said Neil Armstrong as he landed on the moon, July 20, 1969. Tranquility Base, named by Armstrong, became a very famous area in the Sea of Tranquility during those exciting space travel years. You can just imagine it: how peaceful, quiet, and beautiful in its desolation. Fast... Continue Reading →
Adapted from a report by Tony Mei, the Inclusion Advisor for Centro Mondial at the 2019 World Scout Jamboree. The 2019 World Scout Jamboree (WSJ) took place last summer at the Summit Bechtel Reserve in West Virginia. It was the first World Jamboree to take place in North America since the 1983 Jamboree in Alberta,... Continue Reading →
