Promise Challenge badge

1. Promise Challenge badge Adding interest and support, for leaders to run a balanced programme.

2. Promise Challenge Cub Scouts should complete four of the following: • Over a period of time help another Cub during Pack activities; this could be for a new Cub's first few weeks in the Pack or during a residential experience. • Over a period of time, carry out good turns for someone outside of the Pack. This could be helping a relative with housework or doing some work in the local community. • Describe an occasion that you found particularly challenging and explain how you did your best. • Find out about someone who has done their best. • Take an active part in the leadership of the Pack. • Help to run a Pack activity or game. • Take part in Pack Forums and be a role model for younger Cubs. • Take an active part in an act of worship, reflection or celebration with other Cub Scouts. This could be in the form of St George's Day celebrations, Remembrance Day or Scouts' Own. • Find out about a faith other than your own. This should include places of worship and a festival or ceremony. If possible a visit to a place of worship should be undertaken or a visit from a religious leader arranged. • Hold the My Faith Activity Badge.

3. 1. Help another cub • This could be during the first few nights a new cub visits • This could be helping a cub on a nights away experience for the first time • This could be as a sixer looking after your six, through a sequence of activities. See “How to help sheet.”

4. 2. Good turns • This needs to happen outside the normal cub activity time, such as at home or a relatives house. • It does need to have direction, and will involve some kind of discussion with the cub, before they undertake this task. • A note or photograph will be adequate for signing off. Note : This could move into the Home Help badge.

5. 3. Challenging situations • This needs to be a situation which you have seen the child struggling and then succeeding. The discussion needs to be around how the child thought they had found success, not necessarily what they found hard. A lot of the time this could be when the cub has a sixer or seconder role.

6. 4. Finding out about someone • Discussion with the cub what it means to “Do your best” would be useful before the children start their research. They could use the “Biography” sheet to help them with finding out, as it does ask them questions to help them with their research. A good website for kids biographies, even though it is very American, especially the printout section. (Example of Florence Nightingale resources are included from the site.) http://gardenofpraise.com/leaders.htm

7. 5. Leadership in the Pack • As long as you have a structure within your pack, which involves sixers and seconders becoming sixers and seconders through a process, rather than just age, then this is quite an easy one for the cub to get. • However a check does need to be made that cubs are taking their role of seconder or sixer seriously.

8. 6. Help run a Pack activity or game • As pack of their role of sixer, they could start to help run the games or activities. I find that this is easier for activities, especially if they are working as sixes. However, care needs to be taken that the cub knows what they are doing, and are not given responsibility to run it independently of an adult. • An easy situation is to have a cub are leaders night. Give the sixes a chance to produce an evening’s activities as a group, based on a theme.

9. 7. Pack Forums and Role Model. • Pack forums work really well, but do not have to exclusive to just sixers and seconders. Have a pack forum at the end of a camp, or during a term to find out what they have enjoyed, and maybe some ideas for next time. • As mentioned above, having a system in place for choosing sixers and seconders is really important, rather than just based on age. If the system is in place many of the older cubs will try to become role models of the criteria set. Sometimes, it might take a bold step of making a cub into a seconder, to increase their self confidence, which persuades them to be a better role model.

10. 8. Take an active part in an act of worship • Be careful here, turning up is not the requirement. It is when a cub takes an active role within worship, reflection or celebration. Having a Cubs’ Own (Scouts’ Own) on camp is good example; a part maybe where a group of cubs act out a fable or religious story before the adults explains what it means. • It might be part of a sketch at St. George’s Day celebration/service.

11. 9. Find out another religion. • www.packresources.co.uk Has a lot of really good resources in the World Faith’s badge, based on many of the religions of the world.

12. 10. Hold the My Faith Activity Badge 1. Find out about your place of worship including something about each of the following: a. the people involved, their titles and what they do b. the important or sacred objects c. the festivals and customs d. the stories and traditions. These could be from books, videos or other sources. 2. Choose a favourite religious song or hymn and sing it with other Cub Scouts. (You should explain to the Pack why you like it and what it means to you.) A good idea for a Cubs’ Own or campfire at camp. 3. Choose a favourite prayer or reading and share it with the Pack at an appropriate occasion. (You may write the prayer and should explain to the Pack why you like it and what it means to you.)

13. Websites which might be helpful • www.packresources.co.uk • http://www.chiddingstone.kent.sch.uk/homework/religion.html • http://gardenofpraise.com/leaders.htm