Great Southwest Council, Scouts BSA
Strengthening Youth Through Scouting
Cub Scouts and Scouts BSA is a year-round program for boys and girls in first grade through high school that provides fun, adventure, learning, challenge, and responsibility to help them become the best version of themselves. Young men and women go to exciting places, test themselves, develop important life skills, and have one-of-a-kind adventures that can’t be found anywhere else. The Scouting Slogan is “Be Prepared”. Scouting prepares young people for life. Through successive achievements, boys and girls will learn life lessons including academic skills, self-confidence, ethics, citizenship, fitness, and leadership. Scouting offers experiences that broaden horizons and show young people what’s possible.
Scouts BSA is designed to be experienced outdoors but also has a STEM component. Scouts BSA offers a STEM initiative for young men and women with a drive for science. The Boy Scouts of America’s STEM initiative uses Scouting’s programs to encourage the natural curiosity of youth members and their sense of wonder about these fields. They will learn to develop and hone the skills needed to pursue further scientific interest and learning in their academic and professional lives. Scouting is a time-tested program that fosters the spirit of discovery for future innovators.
There is something for everyone in Scouting!
Activities/Resources
Scout Me in
The following link takes you the "Scout Me in" web Page where you will find information on each of the Scouting BSA programs including our STEM Scouts Program. Scouting has a program for boys and girls from ages 6 to 21. The page contains information on how to find a Scouting program near you.
Activity/Resource Website: https://www.scouting.org/
Sink or Float?
Experiment: Sink or Float? Learn the concepts around density (Grades 3 -5)
Activity/Resource Website: https://blog.stemscouts.org/experiment-sink-or-float/
Thermal Expansion
Experiment: Thermal Expansion. (Grades 3 -5) Thermal Expansion is a quick and easy introductory lesson for students to begin exploring effects of temperature on matter. This experiment is very simple however can be used to frame particle behaviors.
Activity/Resource Website: https://blog.stemscouts.org/experiment-thermal-expansion/
Land a Spacecraft on Target
Land a Spacecraft on Target: (Grades 6 -12) Have you ever wondered how hard it is to land at a specific spot on the Moon, Mars, or another planet? Find out in this activity by building a device that can zip down a line and drop a "lander" onto a target.
Activity/Resource Website: https://www.jpl.nasa.gov/edu/learn/project/land-a-spacecraft-on-target/
Planetary Pasta Rovers
Planetary Pasta Rovers: (Grades 9- 12) Using only pasta and glue, students must design a rover that will travel down a one-meter ramp and then travel an additional one meter on a smooth, flat surface
Activity/Resource Website: https://www.jpl.nasa.gov/edu/teach/activity/planetary-pasta-rover/
Contact Information
Mike Maurer
GSWC President
bmaurer69@comcast.net
https://www.gswcbsa.org/
