The Scout Law says that a Scout is "wise in the use of his resources". Search, Discover and Collect games can help your Scouts discover the resources all around them. Games like these are often called scavenger hunts, a name that implies the items collected have no cash value. But the games themselves can be a valuable asset in your inventory of learning experiences for your Scouts.
Use them to test the independent leadership qualities of your patrol leaders. They'll have to organize and mobilize their patrol members without you looking over their shoulders. It's a good way to evaluate the effectiveness of the patrol system in your troop. You can also use the games as themes for patrol meetings, letting patrols work on the projects during the interval between troop meetings.
The main objective of each game is for Scouts to demonstrate initiative, resourcefulness, and imagination while having lots of fun. Remember that they are games. If your Scouts are not having fun, stop the game and revise it. Invite suggestions from them. They'll soon let you know how to improve it.
To get you started, I've offered brief supporting stories for each game, but tailor them to your local conditions. Invent your own stories to keep the games relevant and personal for your Scouts.
Add razzle dazzle to their presentation. Mail the material to the Scouts. Record it on an audio cassette and drop off the tape at their homes. Ask someone unknown to them to call them and give them the instructions. Arrange for them to call a number at a certain time when an answering machine will give them a message. Pin the list on the notice board of the local supermarket. Publish it in the neighbourhood newspaper or the church bulletin. Have a Girl Guide personally deliver the list. Make up the list by cutting words out of newspapers or magazines.
Put the clues in interesting and challenging locations, perhaps in a waterproof bag submerged in the local pond with a plastic bottle bobbing at the surface to mark the spot. Display them in the window of a store that's closed for the evening. Hang them from the balcony of a sixth-story apartment so that the Scouts need binoculars to read them.
Involve every Scout, but make sure they operate at least in pairs and, preferably, in patrols, not as individuals. Invite parents to join in to help locate the articles or drive patrols where necessary.
Set a very specific time limit and make sure someone in each patrol has a watch. Err on the side of allowing too little rather than too much time. That way you leave them wanting more.
Play outdoors. Set very definite boundaries, making them wide enough to allow some scope for adventure, but limited enough for safety. Consider whether the game will run during the day or in the evening, whether parents will be involved, or whether you're at camp or at home.
Once every six to eight weeks is a good rate of frequency for these games. Record the date you play each game so that you won't overdo it. As I've said before, your aim is to leave the Scouts wanting more.
Emphasize the need for the patrol to prepare and discuss before they take off at a gallop to collect the first three things on their list. Some games may require equipment- camera, tape recorder, magnifying glass, calculator, rubbing or plaster cast kit. Scouts should be able to borrow what they need from home. Remind them to get permission and be careful when they use the things they've borrowed.
The rubbing kit includes white paper, masking tape, and wax crayon without its paper sleeve. To use, Scouts tape the paper securely over the item to be rubbed and rub the side of the crayon on the paper.
A plaster casting kit includes 0.5 kg Plaster of Paris, 2 cm x 25 cm strips of flexible cardboard, five to 10 paper clips, water container, mixing bowl or bag, and stir stick. With the cardboard strips and paper clips, Scouts make a small secure collar around the item they are casting, then mix plaster and water to a smooth yogurt-like consistency, and pour it into the collar. It takes about 30 minutes to set.
Some games may require the investment of a few dollars for supplies or rewards. Perhaps the money can come from troop or patrol funds.
Weather permitting, make sure uniforms are visible. Scouts behave better in uniform and the public will know who they are.
If you play a game during a troop meeting, walk or drive around the area to make sure everything is going according to plan. Be ready with executive decisions if changes are needed.
Throw in a few surprises. Capture the patrol leaders and put their assistants in charge. Arrange for their cars to run out of gas after only five minutes. Write the clues in an ink that fades away in a short time. You don't want to confuse them too much, just to keep them on their toes.
When everyone is in, take a few minutes to draw out what the Scouts accomplished and learned by playing the game. Try questions like:
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Applaud the Scouts' efforts rather than insisting on specific results for a game. Correct answers are nice but not essential, so award points on that basis. Everyone who actively participates is a winner. Wind up the game with hot chocolate at Skip's house, a visit to the local burger palace, or a campfire with marshmallows and wieners to roast.
On the instructions for each game, include a time limit and a place to note the date it was played. Although we haven't done so here, number the collectibles in an item-by-item list. If the Scouts must provide other information (address, opening hours, etc.), leave space beside each item to include this material.
The Canadian Society of Expatriates and Habitants (CanadiansEH?) are gathering Canadian artifacts for their museum in Antarctica They have asked us to collect items that illustrate our use of the following symbols of Canada. Deliver these items no later than....: maple leaf; Canadian Centennial Maple Leaf beaver;
Canadian Coat of Arms, Canadian flag; the words 'Canada' or "Canadian" or "Canuck"; letter of the alphabet incorporating a maple leaf pre-1965 Canadian flag; lyrics of the second verse of O Canada; member of the RCMP; Canadian parliament building book written by a Canadian author; song written by a Canadian (you have to sing it); Canadian invention, with inventor's name; name of any member of the Order of Canada; Hudson's Bay Company provincial coat of arms; provincial flag, province name or name given to someone who lives in the province; provincial flower; provincial logo; municipal coat of arms; municipal flag; municipal logo; city hall or civic centre.
Collect one item from each category. Use clippings from newspapers, magazines, corporate literature, pamphlets, brochures or catalogues; rubbings, photographs; or anything else that shows the symbol being used. Your patrol earns bonus points for any items another patrol does not duplicate. Be prepared to explain why we use these symbols. What are they symbols of? Do we need them? Suggest some other symbols we could use. (Scouter's Note: relate to the Citizen Achievement Badge)
The Ottawa Historical Open House (OHOH) has appealed for the public's assistance in gathering a special series of items to demonstrate our national progress. No later than...., they need two different examples each of an article that could not have existed: 100 years ago; 50 years ago; 10 years ago; one year ago; one month ago; one week ago; yesterday; one hour ago; one minute ago; one second ago.
You can reverse the game theme by having Scouts search for items that will not exist in the same periods of time in the future.
The Incredible Shrinking Scout has decided to quit show-biz and live as a hermit on a desert island. Normal suitcases are too big for him, so pack up this empty soup can with as many useful items as possible. He'll need only one of each item. You must have it packed no later than... (Scouter's Note: Give each patrol a clean empty can. Any size will do as long as each patrol gets the same size.)
The over-30 crowd like to remind the under-30 crowd that things are not what they used to be. Everything has changed. It's true. There are changes all around us. By no later than...., bring back one each of something that is changing: its size or shape; its weight; its colour; its texture; in number, every day; so slowly you can't tell, into something else; by natural causes; because of human activity.
The Scout motto is Be Prepared By no later than...., find newspaper articles, magazine stories, book titles, chapter headings, pamphlets, or anything else that uses the words "Be Prepared". Make sure you keep the explanations of why the readers should be prepared.
An alternative to this game might be to collect news stories that demonstrate lack of preparation. You can play a similar game asking Scouts to find newspaper or magazine stories that show the Scout promise or law in action (not just stories about Scouts, but any that show the spirit of the Scout promise and law). Or you could ask them to find articles and other evidence about people, not necessarily Scouts, doing good turns. Another idea is to ask the Scouts to collect ideas for community good turns and then do them.
Our community has been infiltrated by strange automatons who can be identified only by their complete ignorance of local services. Make sure nobody thinks you are an automaton. By no later than...., make a map showing where to find the following services closest to our meeting place and their hours of business for today: public telephone, doughnut shop; doctor; fire hydrant, public mail box; fire station; junior public school; church; convenience store; playground; community centre; hockey arena; drugstore; barbershop; taxi stand gas station; hamburger joint, cemetery historic site; bus stop; health club; chiropractor; pizza shop; high school; florist; lawyer; video rental; newspaper box; hotel; real estate agent.
Be prepared to explain why each of these services is located where it is. Is it convenient? For whom? Is it accessible? By everyone? Is it safe? If not, why not? Is it available all the time? Who needs it? Who uses it? Who can't use it? Why?
Some things just don't make sense if you see them in the wrong context. They seem out of place. Prove that this is true by bringing in an item you'd never see in a: store window; car; school; coat pocket; lunch pail; refrigerator; kitchen cabinet; garden shed; garage; drawer; closet; wallet; hockey arena; home for seniors; swimming pool; backpack; sleeping bag; canoe; aeroplane; garden.
Be prepared to explain why you'd never see the item in the location you matched it with.
A neighbourhood child has fallen down a disused well. The rescue teams have reached him with a pipe only 2 cm in diameter. Now they need to send him as many items as possible that will fit easily through this thin tube. The items must be useful to the victim. Bring in one each of as many such items as you can find by no later than..... (Scouter's Note: Give each patrol a short length of 2 cm pipe so that they can measure the items as they collect them. Once they're back at base, have them try to send the items through a one metre length of 2 cm pipe.)
The Troop Scouter is suffering from a mild case of amnesia and can't remember what name to use. The amnesiologist suggests that the brain can be stimulated by the sight of articles whose names begin with the same letter as the Troop Scouter's surname. Collect 20 such items no later than....)
The material in this article is taken from an activity book Scouter Colin Wallace is preparing for the Greater Toronto Region. Watch for more of his Search, Discover, & Collect ideas in future issues.
From: jim.speirs@canrem.com (Jim Speirs)
Date: Sat, 31 Dec 94 07:25:00 -0500
Article #R36
Scouter Colin Wallace, Scarborough, Ont., put together a selection of scavenger hunt games that provide a lot of fun, stimulate Scouts' initiative, resourcefulness, and creativity, and make excellent patrol activities. For guidelines on preparation and presentation, see the Oct.'89 issue. Here are a few more of his games ideas to try.
Akela has invited one patrol to work with the Cub pack next week. To help the Court of Honour decide which patrol will best represent the troop, here is a test for your patrol. By no later than...., bring back the necessary ingredients for staging successful demonstrations of:
Scouter's Notes
Space invaders have demanded that you produce evidence of the earth's current level of technology by no later than.... You must collect samples that demonstrate our society's use of: transistors; incandescence; fluorescence; luminosity; polystyrene; polypropylene; polyester; acrylic; latex; nylon; laser; liquid crystal display (LCD); light emitting diode (LED); magnetic diskettes; magnetic recording tape; electricity (plug in); electricity (battery power); stainless steel; moulded plastic; sheet plastic; laminated plastic; metal alloy.
Scouter's Note: Relate to the Engineering and Science Challenge badges.
Mr. Wizard blew up his laboratory. He needs your help to replace some parts of his physics experiments. By no later than...., bring in as many examples as you can of the six basic machines: screw; wedge; inclined plane; lever; pulley; wheel & axle.
With your Polaroid camera, take one photograph of each of the following situations. You have film for 20 attempts. Don't let any other patrol photograph a member of your patrol.
No later than..... deliver photographs of: the whole patrol inside a telephone booth; a Scout at least 5 m up a tree; three Scouts blowing bubble gum; all the members of the households of two Scouts; the Canadian flag; a woman on a bicycle; a Scout in the back seat of a bus; two Scouts in a police cell; three Scouts on the back of a fire truck; a suspicious-looking character often seen walking near the troop's meeting place about 30 minutes after the meeting starts (don't let this person see you take the photo); a Scout from another patrol; a Scout beside a statue; a Scout holding a chicken.
Scouter's Notes: You have to provide your own suspicious-looking character. Relate to the Photography Challenge badge.
In the words of the song, "One is one and all alone and ever more shall be so." Some things are found only as solitary items. Other things occur only in groups of two, three, four, or more.
By no later than...., bring back one sample item from each of these groups: one; two; three; four; five; six; seven; eight; nine; ten; eleven; twelve; twenty; twenty-five; fifty; one hundred.
We have received a message from the planet Graidot in the Garbajio Galaxy. Their environmental pollution is so bad that their world is slowly becoming a colourless, featureless gob of grey goo. Unless they install some sensory organisms soon, they will lose touch with reality. We have agreed to help.
By no later than...., bring back one each of something: hot; frozen; sweet; sour; sticky; rough; smooth; slippery; squishy; rubbery; wobbly; perfumed; stinking; salty; bitter; cheesy; prickly; corrugated; colourful; pure.
The television game show, Scouting Squares, is offering a grand prize of one trillion dollars. How to win? Examine a 2.5 cm square of an object and, from that, identify the whole object then bring in an example. The patrol with the largest collection of objects wins.
Scouter's Notes: You need to assemble a series of 2.5 cm squares of different items. To avoid cutting an object of value, make a template with a 2.5 cm square hole in it. The template must be large enough to cover the object, except for the critical 2.5 cm square. Invite patrols to challenge each other by producing their own series of samples.
The National Centre for the Visually Impaired is compiling a library of sounds to use in their training programs. By no later than...., use your tape recorder to record 5-10 seconds each of: cash register operating; telephone ringing; book pages flipping; washing machine agitating; backpack zipper opening or closing; typewriter pounding; Scout belt buckling; cloth ripping; group committee chairperson singing O Canada; Scout with mouthful of crackers whistling; your PL at the other end of a telephone call; piano playing; brass wind instrument blowing; Scout playing Happy Birthday on paper and comb; shoes being brushed; newspaper tearing; bell ringing; Scout blowing over the mouth of an empty bottle; three hole punch punching; cellophane paper crackling; deck of cards riffling; coffee pot percolating; popcorn popper popping; television commercial blaring; paper bag bursting; magic marker squeaking; car starting; referee whistle whistling; dog barking; three adult non-Scouts responding to your polite request for their opinion of Scouting.
Earn bonus points by recording a sound that no other patrol can identify.
Last edited: February 22, 2004
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