Research shows that childhood development accelerates around ages four and five, about the time youth begin formal education. To supplement the learning and growth children experience at home and in an educational environment at that age, Boy Scouts of America has developed a program for five-year-old kindergarten children called “Lion.” Parents of Lions work together independantly of the Pack to meet and play through the self-guided adventures laid out in their Lion activity books. The Pack provides a mentor known as a “Lion Guide” who will coach the group through their first session and serve as a resource for any questions or ideas to help those parents develop a plan for future sessions throughout the year. In the Lion program, an Adult Partner (a parent, grandparent, or other guardian) always accompanies each scout. All the Lions and their Adult Partners form a team or “Den” and work with their new friends at their own pace. Lions may be invited to attend the occasional Pack meeting, if the program scheduled can support age appropriate activities, such as the Pinewood derby race or family camping event.
The Bobcat badge is the first badge that is earned by all Tiger, Cub, and Webelos Scouts. This badge is required for all scouts because it involves learning the Cub Scout Promise, the Law of the Pack and other fundamental aspects of Cub Scouting. Completion of this badge gives the Scout the right to wear the Bobcat patch on his uniform (in the twelve o’clock position of the front left shirt pocket) and the right to proceed to his next rank (which will vary based upon age.) At the end of the Scout year (in May), Lions graduate into a Tiger den.
In the Tigers program, an Adult Partner (a parent, grandparent, or other guardian) always accompanies each scout. The Tigers and an Adult Partner form a team. The first few Tiger meetings are organized and run by the Tiger Den Leader in order to introduce the Tigers and Adult Partners to Scouting. After that, each Tiger/Adult team selects a topic from the Tiger book and presents the topic to the Tiger Group (one topic per meeting). The Tiger earns progress beads towards their Tiger badge. Completion of this badge earns the right for the Scout to wear the Tiger patch on their uniform (in the six o’clock position of the front left shirt pocket, directly beneath the Bobcat patch). At the end of the Scout year (in May), Tigers graduate into a Wolf den.
In the Wolf program, completion of adventures found within the Wolf handbook leads to earning the Wolf badge and Adventure loops. The Wolf handbook includes many activities that are family oriented. Your child will need your assistance to earn this rank. Completion of this badge earns the right for the Scout to wear the Wolf patch on his uniform (see the section on placement of emblems and insignia near the end of the handbook). At the end of the Scout year (in May), Wolf scouts graduate into a Bear den.
In the Bear program, completion of Adventures in the Bear handbook leads to earning the Bear badge. The Bear handbook includes many activities that are family oriented. Your scout will need your assistance to earn this rank. Completion of this badge earns the right for the Scout to wear the Bear patch on his uniform (see the section on placement of emblems and insignia near the end of the handbook). At the end of the Scout year (in May), Bears graduate into a WEBELOS den.
The WEBELOS program (and there is always an S at the end of WEBELOS) is designed to transition the scouts from Cub Scouts to Boy Scouts. In the Webelos program, scouts earn Adventure pins in areas such as geology, scholarship, fitness, and outdoorsmanship that count towards the Webelos rank. As such it’s really broken into two phases, based upon the rank badge being earned. In the First-Year Webelos program, the boys work on their Webelos badge, however, in the second year they work on the Arrow of Light. The focus of the Webelos den is to work together as a team, much like a Boy Scout Patrol. This includes Webelos den camping.
