Hibernation, 27/11/09

Where do they live?

Matching game - putting animals in their homes

Chat about animals that hibernate

Blanket game

Beavers run round being animal - when ‘hibernate’ is shouted they all ‘go to sleep’. One is covered by a blanket and the others have to guess who it is

Cold Cookery - hedgehogs

Use either small Swiss roles or chocolate fairy cakes.

Let the Beavers cover with chocolate butter cream and add chocolate buttons as the spines.

Make 2 each

Musical animals

Each Beavers has a chair - all have an animals name stuck under the seat (some that hibernate + some that don’t). When the music stops the Beavers looks under his seat - if the animal there hibernates they are out.

The Golden Windows

It was getting toward the end of summer and I was about to enter the second grade. Each morning all summer long I had noticed a particular house up on a hill about a mile away. This house, I thought, must be spectacular because every morning when I got up, it looked like it had golden windows. On this particular morning, I decided to go see the house with golden windows. I packed a lunch and started out on my big journey. Not long after I started, I came to a fence and couldn’t resist the temptation to see how far I could walk along the top rail. Then, I continued on my way until I came to a stream, where I stopped for a long while to catch crayfish and minnows.

By that time I was hungry and I ate my lunch. Starting up the hill to the house with the golden windows, I happened to see a porcupine. We stared at each other for what seemed to be an eternity. Finally, I gave up and returned to my quest. When I did reach the house with the golden windows, I was very disappointed. There was the house, but instead of being majestic, it was a deserted, rundown shambles. The railings were falling off the porch, the screen door was off its hinges, the yard needed mowing, and the flower garden was overgrown with weeds. I was crushed. Sadly, I sat down on the front steps and just happened to gaze back toward my own home. There, in the late afternoon sun, was my house with golden windows!

Often in life we think that someone else has it far better than we do, or maybe that we should have a position much better than the one we have. But, we really should stop and think about all that we have and be thankful.

Scotland, 20/11/09

Game
Toss the caber
Using rolls of newspaper see who can toss the caber the furthest

Craft
Curling Stones
Curling Disks
1. Curling Stones - paint stones with thistle patterns
2. Curling Disks - the Beavers cannot really play curling with stones within a building so make paper plate wizzers for them to throw around. Use small paper plate, colour and cut the edges from outside towards centre (appx 3cm). Bend "cuts" up and down.

Game:  Scotch Broth
Played in teams
Give each person name of an item in the broth:
Potato Carrot Meat Gravy Peas Onion
When leader calls out name of an item, that person runs to end of room round obstacle and back.
If ‘broth’ is mentioned, whole team to run

Craft: Make a tartan
The Beaver Scouts can all design their own tartan on a piece of A4 paper

Game: Golf
Played in teams - with each team having a golf club and a ball
The Beaver Scouts have to knock the ball down the hall and into a box (pretend hole).
Then run back again and pass the ball and club to the next player.

Game: Queenie, Queenie, who's got the ball (traditional Scottish game)
A person is picked to be the "queenie," and that person turns her back to everyone else. The "queenie" then throws the ball over her shoulder and one of the other players needs to catch it or pick it up. Everyone, except the "queenie", puts their hands behind their backs so that the "queenie" doesn't know who has the ball. The "queenie" then turns around and everyone shouts: because you don't have the ball!"
The "queenie" has to guess who has the ball through a process of elimination. If the person with the ball is the last one to be picked, that person becomes the new "queenie."

Game
Throw the Curling Disks
Beavers stand on each side of a roped off area. Beavers throw the wizzers across the "divide". When whistle blows see who's wizzer is in the area

Skill
Tasting
Provide a selection of Scottish dishes for the Beaver Scouts to taste:
Haggis
Scottish shortbread
Edinburgh rock
Scotch pancakes
We has shortbread and oat cakes with Scottish cheese and highland spring water

Identifying Fish
Label one end of the room ‘lake’ and the other ‘sea’
Prepare the pictures or names of fish – printed onto large cards
The Beaver Scouts stand in the middle of the hall and the leader holds up a card
The Beaver Scouts have to chose where the fish would live and run to that end of the hall
You could make up some bogus cards – with made up fish or non-fish on.
When these are held up the Beaver Scouts have to stay in the middle of the hall
Try using this game to fit another theme – eg: animals with forest / fields

Hot Air Balloons, 13/11/09

Let the Beaver Scouts blow up the balloons for use during the evening (watch for allergies).

Chat about Hot Air Balloons and how they work.

This can be used as part of the Discovery Challenge or Experiment badge.

Game:   TimeBomb

A Beanbag or other suitable bomb (use a small balloon)

This is basically a game of tag with a simulated time-bomb. The player tries to touch someone with the bomb, that player then has to take the bomb.

Every 30~60 seconds a Leader blows a whistle and whoever has the 'bomb' is out.

Craft: Hot Air Balloon

Balloon

Paper cup

4 straws

Decorate the paper cup

Tape the straws to the paper cup (on opposite sides)

Then tape the balloon into the centre of the straws and a piece of string to hang the hot air balloon in the Beaver Scouts bedroom

Game:    Balloon Tag

Balloons and string

Each player blows up a balloon, ties a knot in the end, then ties a length of string to the end of the balloon and ties to other end to their ankle.

The players have to try to burst everyone else's balloons by stamping on them, while at the same time protecting their own balloon (they are not allowed to pick up the balloons). When a player’s balloon is burst, they sit at the side. The winner is the last player who has a balloon and then all the players who were out are allowed back in to try and burst the winners’ balloon.

NOTES:

A balloon that is only half inflated will be more difficult to burst.

Also a prize could be given if a player has happened to get a balloon which has already had a chocolate penny put in it.

Game:    Flapping game

The lodges line up in relay formation. Give one player a rolled up newspaper. On the word ‘go’ they use the newspaper to flap their balloon up to the far end of the hall. They then pick up their balloon and run back - giving it to the next person. The game continues until everyone has had a turn.

Pearls of Wisdom—Quotes from Baden-Powell

“Fun, fighting, and feeding! These are the three indispensable elements of the boy’s world.”

Healthy Eating, 06/11/09

Talk about the healthy eating and the badge work we are doing

Game: Sweeties

Beavers are split into teams, each team in a different corner of the room, and the teams are named after sweets e.g. smarties, gobstoppers etc.

The leaders stand in the middle of the room and the beavers run round in a clockwise direction. One leader blows a whistle and shouts the name of one of the sweets then all the beavers have to try to get back to their corners while the leaders catch the beavers from the named team. When a beaver is caught before he/she manages to reach Home he sits in the middle with the catchers.

Game: Baked beans

Pre-designate one wall/corner as the ‘tin’. Leader calls at random:

String Beans                           All Beavers to link hands

Runner beans                         all the beavers run round

Broad beans                           all the beavers to stand still with arms and legs in a broad stretch.

Jumping beans        all the beavers to jump round the hall

French beans                          all beavers wave hand and say oh la la

On the command ‘baked beans’ all the beavers to run to the ‘tin’.

Game continues until all the Beavers are exhausted.

Game: Fruit Salad

Beaver Scout sit in a circle on chairs or on the floor.

They are named as per pieces of fruit – apple / orange / banana / pear

One beaver is in the centre (don’t forget to give him a name). When their name is called they have to swap seats with the beaver in the centre trying to get a seat.

When ‘fruit salad’ is called everyone swap seats.

Game: True and false on healthy / unhealthy foods

Have a list of  different foods and let the Beaver Scout guess which are healthy and which are not. Label one wall true and the other false. Ask a question and the beavers have to run to the wall they think is correct.

List of healthy / unhealthy food

Good

Apple

Orange

Grapes

Bread

Baked potato

Juice

Chop

Bananas

Melon

Strawberries

Fruit

Fish

Bad

Chips

Cream cakes

Burger

Pop

Ice cream

Cakes

Sweets

Pie

Hot dog

Pizza

Wine

Chocolate

Activity: Making a sandwich

Beavers make up 2 sandwiches of their choice

Activity: Fruit Kebabs

Using a variety of seasonal fruits - the beavers can make up their own fruit kebabs