Simsbury Troop 175

Welding merit badge requirements

Want to know what it takes to earn the new Welding Merit Badge exepcted to be released in the next few weeks? Take a look below what appeared in the offical Scouting Magazine Blog.

 

Welding merit badge requirements

1. Do the following:

a. Explain to your counselor the hazards you are most likely to encounter while welding, and what you should do to anticipate, help prevent, mitigate, or lessen these hazards.

b. Show that you know first aid for, and the prevention of, injuries or illnesses that could occur while welding, including electrical shock, eye injuries, burns, fume inhalation, dizziness, skin irritation, and exposure to hazardous chemicals, including filler metals and welding gases.

2. Do the following:

a. With your counselor, discuss general safety precautions and Material Safety Data Sheets related to welding. Explain the importance of the MSDS.

b. Describe the appropriate safety gear and clothing that must be worn when welding. Then, present yourself properly dressed for welding—in protective equipment, clothing, and footwear.

c. Explain and demonstrate the proper care and storage of welding equipment, tools, and protective clothing and footwear.

3. Explain the terms welding, electrode, slag, and oxidation. Describe the welding process, how heat is generated, what kind of filler metal is added (if any), and what protects the molten metal from the atmosphere.

4. Name the different mechanical and thermal cutting methods. Choose one method and describe how to use the process. Discuss one advantage and one limitation of this process.

5. Do the following:

a. Select two welding processes, and make a list of the different components of the equipment required for each process. Discuss one advantage and one limitation for each process.

b. Choose one welding process. Set up the process you have chosen, including gas regulators, work clamps, cables, filler materials, and equipment settings. Have your counselor inspect and approve the area for the welding process you have chosen.

6. After successfully completing requirements 1 through 5, use the equipment you prepared for the welding process in 5b to do the following:

a. Using a metal scribe or soapstone, sketch your initial onto a metal plate, and weld a bead on the plate following the pattern of your initial.

b. Cover a small plate (approximately 3″ x 3″ x 1/4″) with weld beads side by side.

c. Tack two plates together in a square groove butt joint.

d. Weld the two plates together from 6c on both sides.

e. Tack two plates together in a T joint, have your counselor inspect it, then weld a T joint with fillet weld on both sides.

f. Tack two plates together in a lap joint, have your counselor inspect it, then weld a lap joint with fillet weld on both sides.

7. Do the following:

a. Find out about three career opportunities in the welding industry. Pick one and find out the education, training, and experience required for this profession. Discuss this with your counselor, and explain why the profession might interest you.

b. Discuss the role of the American Welding Society in the welding profession.

Inventing Merit Badge

Have you ever had a great idea that you thought people would love to have? Do you like to make things with your hands? Maybe Inventing merit badge is for you.

This merit badge was one of the original merit badges and one of the first to be discontinued. It was reintroduced in 2010 with new requierments.

In December the troop will discuss inventing and work on  this badge.

 

Inventing requirements

1. In your own words, define inventing. Then do the following: a. Explain to your merit badge counselor the role of inventors and their inventions in the economic development of the United States. b. List three inventions and state how they have helped humankind. 2. Do ONE of the following: a. Identify and interview with a buddy (and with your parent’s permission and merit badge counselor’s approval) an individual in your community who has invented a useful item. Report what you learned to your counselor. b. Read about three inventors. Select the one you find most interesting and tell your counselor what you learned. 3. Do EACH of the following: a. Define the term intellectual property. Explain which government agencies oversee the protection of intellectual property, the types of intellectual property that can be protected, how such property is protected, and why protection is necessary. b. Explain the components of a patent and the different types of patents available. c. Examine your Scouting gear and find a patent number on a camping item you have used. With your parent’s permission, use the Internet to find out more about that patent. Compare the finished item with the claims and drawings in the patent. Report what you learned to your counselor. d. Explain to your counselor the term patent infringement. 4. Discuss with your counselor the types of inventions that are appropriate to share with others, and explain why. Tell your counselor about one nonpatented or noncopyrighted invention and its impact on society. 5. Choose a commercially available product that you have used on an overnight camping trip with your troop. Make recommendations for improving the product, and make a sketch that shows your recommendations. Discuss your recommendations with your counselor. 6. Think of an item you would like to invent that would solve a problem for your family, troop, chartered organization, community, or a special-interest group. Then do EACH of the following, while keeping a notebook to record your progress: a. Talk to potential users of your invention and determine their needs. Then, based on what you have learned, write a statement describing the invention and how it would help solve a problem. This statement should include detailed sketch of the invention. b. Create a model of the invention using clay, cardboard, or any other readily available material. List the materials necessary to build a prototype of the invention. c. Share the idea and the model with your counselor and potential users of your invention. Record their feedback in your notebook. 7. Build a working prototype of the item you invented for requirement 6*. Test and evaluate the invention. Among the aspects to consider in your evaluation are cost, usefulness, marketability, appearance, and function. Describe how your original vision and expectations for your invention are similar or dissimilar to the prototype you built. Have your counselor evaluate and critique your prototype. Before you begin building the prototype, you must have your counselor’s approval, based on the design and building plans you have already shared. 8. Do ONE of the following: a. Participate with a club or team (robotics team, science club, or engineering club) that builds a useful item. Share your experience with your counselor. b. Visit a museum or exhibit dedicated to an inventor or invention, and create a presentation of your visit to share with a group such as your troop or patrol. 9. Discuss with your counselor the diverse skills, education, training, and experience it takes to be an inventor. Discuss how you can prepare yourself to be creative and inventive to solve problems at home, in school, and in your community. Discuss three career fields that might utilize the skills of an inventor.

Public Speaking Merit Badge

Troop 175's Leadership group is working on the Public Speaking Merit Badge to help be more effective leaders. 

The final requirement for the merit badge:

5. Show you know parliamentary procedure by leading a discussion or meeting according to accepted rules of order; or by answering questions on the rules of order.

This requirement can be met by taking the following short 8 question online test and printing the results page and giving it to Mr. Rice (Don't forget to print the results page!).

Click on the link in the box to get started.

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Reposted from December 5, 2008

Environmental Science Merit Badge

In December, the troop will be working on the Environmental Science merit badge. For those interested in earning this Eagle-required merit badge, here are the requirements.

You should download the merit badge workbook for this badge as well.

Environmental Science requirements

Make a timeline of the history of environmental science in America. Identify the contribution made by the Boy Scouts of America to environmental science. Include dates, names of people or organizations, and important events. Define the following terms: population, community, ecosystem, biosphere, symbiosis, niche, habitat, conservation, threatened species, endangered species, extinction, pollution prevention, brownfield, ozone, watershed, airshed, nonpoint source, hybrid vehicle, fuel cell. Do ONE activity in EACH of the following categories (using the activities in this {the merit badge} pamphlet as the basis for planning and carrying out your projects): a. Ecology 1. Conduct an experiment to find out how living things respond to changes in their environments. Discuss your observations with your counselor. 2. Conduct an experiment illustrating the greenhouse effect. Keep a journal of your data and observations. Discuss your conclusions with your counselor. 3. Discuss what is an ecosystem. Tell how it is maintained in nature and how it survives. b. Air Pollution 1. Perform an experiment to test for particulates that contribute to air pollution. Discuss your findings with your counselor. 2. Record the trips taken, mileage, and fuel consumption of a family car for seven days, and calculate how many miles per gallon the car gets. Determine whether any trips could have been combined ("chained") rather than taken out and back. Using the idea of trip chaining, determine how many miles and gallons of gas could have been saved in those seven days. 3. Explain what is acid rain. In your explanation, tell how it affects plants and the environment and the steps society can take to help reduce its effects. c. Water Pollution 1. Conduct an experiment to show how living things react to thermal pollution. Discuss your observations with your counselor. 2. Conduct an experiment to identify the methods that could be used to mediate (reduce) the effects of an oil spill on waterfowl. Discuss your results with your counselor. 3. Describe the impact of a waterborne pollutant on an aquatic community. Write a 100-word report on how that pollutant affected aquatic life, what the effect was, and whether the effect is linked to biomagnification. d. Land Pollution 1. Conduct an experiment to illustrate soil erosion by water. Take photographs or make a drawing of the soil before and after your experiment, and make a poster showing your results. Present your poster to your patrol or troop. 2. Perform an experiment to determine the effect of an oil spill on land. Discuss your conclusions with your counselor. 3. Photograph an area affected by erosion. Share your photographs with your counselor and discuss why the area has eroded and what might be done to help alleviate the erosion. e. Endangered Species 1. Do research on one endangered species found in your state. Find out what its natural habitat is, why it is endangered, what is being done to preserve it, and how many individual organisms are left in the wild. Prepare a 100-word report about the organism, including a drawing. Present your report to your patrol or troop. 2. Do research on one species that was endangered or threatened but which has now recovered. Find out how the organism recovered, and what its new status is. Write a 100-word report on the species and discuss it with your counselor. 3. With your parent's and counselor's approval, work with a natural resource professional to identify two projects that have been approved to improve the habitat for a threatened or endangered species in your area. Visit the site of one of these projects and report on what you saw. f. Pollution Prevention, Resource Recovery, and Conservation 1. Look around your home and determine 10 ways your family can help reduce pollution. Practice at least two of these methods for seven days and discuss with your counselor what you have learned. 2. Determine 10 ways to conserve resources or use resources more efficiently in your home, at school, or at camp. Practice at least two of these methods for seven days and discuss with your counselor what you have learned. 3. Perform an experiment on packaging materials to find out which ones are biodegradable. Discuss your conclusions with your counselor. Choose two outdoor study areas that are very different from one another (e.g., hilltop vs. bottom of a hill; field vs. forest; swamp vs. dry land). For BOTH study areas, do ONE of the following: a. Mark off a plot of 4 square yards in each study area, and count the number of species found there. Estimate how much space is occupied by each plant species and the type and number of nonplant species you find. Write a report that adequately discusses the biodiversity and population density of these study areas. Discuss your report with your counselor. b. Make at least three visits to each of the two study areas (for a total of six visits), staying for at least 20 minutes each time, to observe the living and nonliving parts of the ecosystem. Space each visit far enough apart that there are readily apparent differences in the observations. Keep a journal that includes the differences you observe. Then, write a short report that adequately addresses your observations, including how the differences of the study areas might relate to the differences noted, and discuss this with your counselor. Using the construction project provided or a plan you create on your own, identify the items that would need to be included in an environmental impact statement for the project planned. Find out about three career opportunities in environmental science. Pick one and find out the education, training, and experience required for this profession. Discuss this with your counselor, and explain why this profession might interest you.

Welding will be the newest merit badge

The Boy Scouts of America approved an official welding merit badge which will available to Scouts in late December, 2011.

Opportunities in the welding field are endless, and Scouts earning their Welding merit badge can not only explore the fundamentals of welding, but also learn about the different career paths within the industry.

Welding is the latest of a new group of career oriented merit badges.

We'll post the requirements as soon as they are available.

Lifesaving Merit Badge

Water safety is paramount when an active troop like Simsbury Boy Scout Troop 175 goes swimming. One of the best ways to be prepared for emergencies is to have a strong understanding of lifesaving skills. One way to demonstrate your understanding of the topic is t earn the Eagle-optional Lifesaving merit badge. 

 

Lifesaving requirements

Before doing requirements 2 through 15 a. Complete Second Class requirements 7a through 7c and First Class requirements 9a through 9c. Second Class requirements 7a through 7c 7.a. Tell what precautions must be taken for a safe swim. 7.b. Demonstrate your ability to jump feetfirst into water over your head in depth, level off and swim 25 feet on the surface, stop, turn sharply, resume swimming, then return to your starting place. 7.c. Demonstrate water rescue methods by reaching with your arm or leg, reaching with a suitable object, and by throwing lines and objects. Explain why swimming rescues should not be attempted when a reaching or throwing rescue is possible, and explain why and how a rescue swimmer should avoid contact with the victim. First Class requirements 9a through 9c 9.a. Tell what precautions should be taken for a safe trip afloat. 9.b. Successfully complete the BSA swimmer test. 9.c. With a helper and a practice victim, show a line rescue both as tender and as rescuer. (The practice victim should be approximately 30 feet from shore in deep water). b. Swim continuously for 400 yards using each of the following strokes in a strong manner for at least 50 continuous yards: front crawl, sidestroke, breaststroke, and elementary backstroke. Explain the following: a. Common drowning situations and how to prevent them. b. How to identify persons in the water who need assistance. c. The order of methods in water rescue. d. How rescue techniques vary depending on the setting and the condition of the person needing assistance. e. Situations for which in-water rescues should not be undertaken. Demonstrate "reaching" rescues using various items such as arms, legs, towels, shirts, paddles, and poles. Demonstrate "throwing" rescues using various items such as lines, ring buoys, rescue bags, and free-floating supports. Successfully place at least one such aid within reach of a practice victim 25 feet from shore. Show or explain the use of rowboats, canoes, and other small craft in performing rescues. List various items that can be used as rescue aids in a noncontact swimming rescue. Explain why buoyant aids are preferred. Perform the following equipment-based rescues for a conscious practice subject 30 feet from shore. Use a proper entry and a strong approach stroke. Speak to the subject to determine his condition and to provide instructions and encouragement. a. Present a rescue tube to the subject, release it, and escort the victim to safety. b. Present a rescue tube to the subject and use it to tow the victim to safety. c. Present a buoyant aid other than a rescue tube to the subject, release it, and escort the victim to safety. d. Present a buoyant aid other than a rescue tube to the subject and use it to tow the victim to safety. e. Remove street clothes in 20 seconds or less and use a non-buoyant aid, such as a shirt or towel, to tow the subject to safety. Explain when it is appropriate to remove heavy clothing before attempting a swimming rescue. Explain the importance of avoiding contact with an active victim and describe lead-and-wait tactics. Perform the following nonequipment rescues for a conscious practice subject 30 feet from shore. Begin in the water from a position near the subject. Speak to the subject to determine his condition and to provide instructions and encouragement. a. Provide a swim-along assist for a calm, responsive, tired swimmer moving with a weak forward stroke. b. Perform an armpit tow for a calm responsive, tired swimmer resting with a back float. c. Perform a cross-chest carry for an exhausted, passive victim who does not respond to instructions to aid himself. In deep water, show how to escape from a victim’s grasp on your wrist. Repeat for front and rear holds about the head and shoulders. Perform the following rescues for an unconscious practice subject at or near the surface 30 feet from shore. Use a proper entry and strong approach stroke. Speak to the subject and splash water on him to determine his condition before making contact. Remove the victim from the water, with assistance if needed, and position for CPR. a. Perform an equipment assist using a buoyant aid. b. Perform a front approach and wrist tow. c. Perform a rear approach and armpit tow. Describe how to respond if a victim submerges before being reached by a rescuer, and do the following: a. Recover a 10-pound weight in 8 to 10 feet of water using a feetfirst surface dive. b. Repeat using a headfirst surface dive. Demonstrate knowledge of resuscitation procedures: a. Describe how to recognize the need for rescue breathing and CPR. b. Demonstrate proper CPR technique for at least 3 minutes using a mannequin designed to simulate ventilations and compressions. Demonstrate management of a spinal injury: a. Explain the signs and symptoms of a spinal injury b. Support a face up victim in calm, shallow water. c. Turn a subject from a facedown to a faceup position while maintaining support. Show that you know first aid for other injuries or illnesses that could occur while swimming or boating, including hypothermia, heat reactions, muscle cramps, sunburn, stings, and hyperventilation.

Troop 175 scouts have the opportunity to work on the Foresty Merit Badge. Please see the email that was sent out for the complete schedule.

In working through the Forestry merit badge requirements, Scouts will explore the remarkable complexity of a forest and identify many species of trees and plants and the roles they play in a forest's life cycle.They will also discover some of the resources forests provide to humans and come to understand that people have a very large part to play in sustaining the health of forests. The Forestry merit badge was one of the Original 57 Merit Badges issued by the Boy Scouts of America in 1911.

 

Forestry requirements

Prepare a field notebook, make a collection, and identify 15 species of trees, wild shrubs, or vines in a local forested area. Write a description in which you identify and discuss the following: a. The characteristics of leaf, twig, cone, or fruiting bodies b. The habitat in which these trees, shrubs or vines are found. c. The important ways each tree, shrub, or vine is used by humans or wildlife and whether the species is native or was introduced to the area. If it is not native, explain whether it is considered invasive or potentially invasive. Do ONE of the following: a. Collect and identify wood samples of 10 species of trees. List several ways the wood of each species can be used. b. Find and examine three stumps, logs, or core samples that show variations in the growth rate of their ring patterns. In the field notebook you prepared for requirement 1, describe the location or origin of each example (including elevation, aspect, slope, and the position on the slope), and discuss possible reasons for the variations in growth rate. Photograph or sketch each example. c. Find and examine two types of animal, insect, or damage on trees. In the field notebook you prepared for requirement 1, identify the damage, explain how the damage was caused, and describe the effects of the damage on the trees. Photograph or sketch each example. Do the following: a. Describe contributions forests make to: 1. Our economy in the form of products. 2. Our social well-being, including recreation 3. Soil protection and increased fertility. 4. Clean water. 5. Clean air. (carbon cycling, sequestration) 6. Wildlife habitat 7. Fisheries habitat 8. Threatened and endangered species of plants and animals b. Tell which watershed or other source your community relies on for its water supply. Describe what forest management means, including the following: a. Multiple-use management b. Sustainable forest management c. Even-aged and uneven-aged management and silvicultural systems associated with each type. d. Intermediate cuttings. e. The role of prescribed burning and related forest management practices. With your parent's and counselor's approval, do ONE of the following: a. Visit a managed public or private forest area with its manager or a forester familiar with it. Write a brief report describing the type of forest, the management objectives, and the forestry techniques used to achieve the objectives. b. Take a trip to a logging operation or wood-using industrial plant and write a brief report describing: 1. The species and size of trees being harvested or used and the location of the harvest area or manufacturer. 2. The origin of the forest or stands of trees being utilized (e.g., planted or natural) 3. The forest's successional stage. What is its future? 4. Where the trees are coming from (land ownership) or where they are going (type of mill or processing plant) 5. The products that are made from the trees 6. How the products are made and used. 7. How waste materials from the logging operation or manufacturing plant are disposed of or utilized. c. Take part in a forest-fire prevention campaign in cooperation with your local fire warden, state wildfire agency, forester, or counselor. Write a brief report describing the campaign, how it will help prevent wildfires, and your part in it. Do the following: a. Describe the consequences to forests that result from FIVE of the following elements: wildfire, absence of fire, insects, tree diseases, air pollution, overgrazing, deer or other wildlife overpopulation, improper harvest, and urbanization. b. Explain what can be done to reduce the consequences you discussed in 6a. c. Describe what you should do if you discover a forest fire and how a professional firefighting crew might control it. Name your state or local wildfire control agency. Visit one or more local foresters and write a brief report about the person (or persons). Or, write about a forester's occupation including the education, qualifications, career opportunities, and duties related to forestry.

Requirements for New Chess Merit Badge

Here are the new requirements for the Chess Merit Badge just released by the Boy Scouts of America.

Requirements

1. Discuss with your merit badge counselor the history of the game of chess. Explain why it is considered a game of planning and strategy.


2. Discuss with your merit badge counselor the following:
   1. The benefits of playing chess, including developing critical thinking skills, concentration skills, and decision-making skills, and how these skills can help you in other areas of your life
   2. Sportsmanship and chess etiquette


3. Demonstrate to your counselor that you know each of the following. Then, using Scouting's Teaching EDGE, teach the following to a Scout who does not know how to play chess:
   1. The name of each chess piece
   2. How to set up a chessboard
   3. How each chess piece moves, including castling and en passant captures


4. Do the following:
   1. Demonstrate scorekeeping using the algebraic system of chess notation.
   2. Discuss the differences between the opening, the middle game, and the endgame.
   3. Explain four opening principles.
   4. Explain the four rules for castling.
   5. On a chessboard, demonstrate a "scholar's mate" and a "fool's mate."
   6. Demonstrate on a chessboard four ways a chess game can end in a draw.


5. Do the following:
   1. Explain four of the following elements of chess strategy: exploiting weaknesses, force, king safety, pawn structure, space, tempo, time.
   2. Explain any five of these chess tactics: clearance sacrifice, decoy, discovered attack, double attack, fork, interposing, overloading, overprotecting, pin, remove the defender, skewer, zwischenzug.
   3. Set up a chessboard with the white king on e1, the white rooks on a1 and h1, and the black king on e5. With White to move first, demonstrate how to force checkmate on the black king.
   4. Set up and solve five direct-mate problems provided by your merit badge counselor.


6. Do ONE of the following:
   1. Play at least three games of chess with other Scouts and/or your merit badge counselor. Replay the games from your score sheets and discuss with your counselor how you might have played each game differently.
   2. Play in a scholastic (youth) chess tournament and use your score sheets from that tournament to replay your games with your merit badge counselor. Discuss with your counselor how you might have played each game differently.
   3. Organize and run a chess tournament with at least four players, plus you. Have each competitor play at least two games.

Chess Merit Badge To Be Available in September

The BSA’s newest merit badge, Chess, will be launched in September with some exciting events designed to raise interest and awareness. The kickoff event will take place at the grand opening of the new Chess Hall of Fame on Sept. 8-10.

We'll post the requirements on September 7th, when they are released.

 

Top Merit Badges of 2010

Did you ever wonder what was  the most popular merit badges in Boy Scouting? It did, so I asked the BSA and here is what I learned about the badges earned in 2010:

Ther were 2,056,870 merit badges earned by boy scouts in 2010.

The top 12 badges were all Eagle required.

Merit Badge	2010 Number
First Aid	89,694
Swimming	78,825
Environmental Science	74,836
Citizenship in the world	67,483
Citizenship in the Nation	64,683
Camping	62,174
Communications	59,462
Personal Fitness	58,988
Citizenship in the Community	58,891
Family Life	58,767
Personal Management	56,793

The top non-Eagle required merit badge was Rifle Shooting followed by Leatherwork, Fingerprinting, Wood Carving and Archery.

The most popular of the new merit badges was Geocaching with 4,533 badge earned. This was followed by Scouting Heritage (3,814), Scuba Diving (2,962) and Inventing (616).

The least popular merit badge was Fly Fishing with only 475 badges earned in 2010. This beat out the new Inventing (616), American Business (677), American Labor (739) and the canceled and then uncanceled badge Bugling (844) for bottom honors.

 

Steps to Becoming a Merit Badge Counselor

  The merit badge program is designed to give scouts the opportunity to explore career choices, develop hobbies and avocations, meet new adults, develop responsibility for their own education and develop a deeper sense of civic responsibility. Scouts are responsible for choosing and earning merit badges. There are currently more than 120 badges from which to choose. For a scout to earn a badge, they need to have the requirements signed off by an adult with some experience in that area. That is where you can help our troop.

 

 Steps to Becoming a Merit Badge Counselor

 

1. It is required to fill out an Adult Leader Application form (current printing). BSA requires that all counselors be registered Scouters. The most recent version of the application must be used and filled in completely. This is a three part form and each page of the online version needs to be completed. The information provided is treated confidentially and will be used to perform a background check of the applicant. There is no fee to be a counselor. Download BSA Adult Application.

2. Fill out a Merit Badge Counselor Information Sheet, specifying the badges that you wish to teach. Please list only those badges for which you are fully qualified. Place an explanation of your qualifications on the back of the form. Download Merit_Badge_counselor_form. You will find a complete list of merit badges with their requirements at MeritBadge.org.

3. All merit badge counselors must take the online Youth Protection Training (YPT) course. This can be done on-line my creating an account at https://myscouting.scouting.org and selecting the YPT. This 20 minute course shows all Scouters the BSA requirements for interacting with scouts. Once completed, you will be able to print out the completion certificate and attach it to your applications.

4. Submit your paperwork to Dave Miller, Troop Advancement Chairman, or an Assistant Scoutmaster at one of the troop meetings.

5. National requires that each adult re-charter every year. Since there is no fee involved, the District simply confirms that each counselor intends to remain a counselor for the coming year.

Welcome the newest BSA Merit Badge - Robotics

Robotics is the BSA’s 126th currently available merit badge.  It’s the latest example of how Scouting embraces the interests of modern boys while preparing them for careers in science, technology, engineering, and math—fields collectively known as STEM.

Download a Robotics merit badge workbook

Visit the Boy's Life Robotics Resource page

 

Here are the requirements:

1. Safety. Do each of the following:
  a. Explain to your counselor the most likely hazards you may encounter while working with robots and what you should do to anticipate, mitigate and prevent, and respond to these hazards. Describe the appropriate safety gear and clothing that should be used when working with robotics.
  b. Discuss first aid and prevention for the types of injuries that could occur while participating in robotics activities and competitions, including cuts, eye injuries, and burns (chemical or heat).

2. Robotics industry. Discuss the following with your counselor:
  a. The kinds of things robots can do and how robots are best used today.
  b. The similarities and differences between remote control vehicles, telerobots, and autonomous robots.
  c. Three different methods robots can use to move themselves other than wheels or tracks. Describe when it would be appropriate to use each method.

3. General knowledge. Discuss with your counselor three of the five major fields of robotics (human-robot interface, mobility, manipulation, programming, sensors) and their importance to robotics development. Discuss either the three fields as they relate to a single robot system OR talk about each field in general. Find pictures and/or at least one video to aid your discussion.

4. Design, build, program, test. Do each of the following:
  a. With your counselor’s approval, choose a task for the robot or robotic subsystem that you plan to build. Include sensor feedback and programming in the task. Document this information in your robot engineering notebook.
  b. Design your robot. The robot design should use sensors and programming and have at least 2 degrees of freedom. Document the design in your robot engineering notebook using drawings and a written description.
  c. Build a robot or robotic subsystem of your original design to accomplish the task you chose for requirement 4a.
  d. Discuss with your counselor the programming options available for your robot. Then do either option 1 OR option 2.
    (1) Option 1. Program a robot to perform the task you chose for your robot in 4a. Include a sample of your program’s source code in your robot engineering notebook.
    (2) Option 2. Prepare a flow chart of the desired steps to program your robot for accomplishing the task in 4a. Include procedures that show activities based on sensor inputs. Place this in your robot engineering notebook.
  e. Test your robot and record the results in your robot engineering notebook. Include suggestions on how you could improve your robot, as well as pictures or sketches of your finished robot.

5. Demonstrate. Do the following:
  a. Demonstrate for your counselor the robot you built in requirement 4.
  b. Share your robot engineering notebook with your counselor. Talk about how well your robot accomplished the task, the improvements you would make in your next design, and what you learned about the design process.

6. Competitions. Do ONE of the following.
  a. Attend a robotics competition and report to your counselor what you saw and learned about the competition and how teams are organized and managed.
  b. Learn about three youth robotics competitions. Tell your counselor about these, including the type of competition, time commitment, age of the participants, and how many teams are involved.

7. Careers. Name three career opportunities in robotics. Pick one and find out the education, training, and experience required for this profession. Discuss this with your counselor, and explain why this profession might interest you.

Law Merit Badge

The Scout leadership has choosen the Law Merit Badge has the next topic for our upcoming troop meetings.Guest speakers will help cover the requirements for the scouts.

Earning this merit badge enables a Scout to learn about the history and kinds of laws, the purpose and methods of law enforcement, consumer protection agencies, emerging law, and careers in the legal profession.

 

Law requirements

Define "law." Tell some of its sources. Describe functions it serves. Discuss TWO of the following: a. The Justinian Code, The Code of Hammurabi, and the Magna Carta. b. The development of the jury system. c. Two famous trials in history. Tell what civil law is; tell what criminal law is. Tell the main differences between them. Give examples of each. Ask five people (not more than one from your immediate family) about the role of law enforcement officers in our society. Discuss their answers with them. Go to a law enforcement officer in your neighborhood and ask about his or her responsibilities and duties. Report your findings. Tell about several laws that were passed to protect the consumer and the seller. Tell about several organizations that provide help to consumers and sellers. Do ONE of the following: a. Attend a session of a civil or criminal court. Write 250 words or more on what you saw. b. Plan and conduct a mock trial with your troop or school class. After the trial is over, discuss it with the group. Arrange a visit with a lawyer who works for a business, bank, title company, or government agency. Find out his or her duties and responsibilities. Report what you learned. Explain the requirements for becoming a lawyer in your state. Describe how judges are selected in your state. Make a list of 15 jobs which deal with some aspect of law or legal processes. Tell which you prefer. Why? Tell where people can go to obtain the help of a lawyer if they are unable to pay for one. Tell what you can do if you can afford a lawyer but do not know of any in your area. Discuss with your counselor the importance of TWO of the following areas of law that have recently emerged and are still developing: a. Environmental law b. Computers and the Internet c. Copyright and the Internet d. Space travel and satellites orbiting the earth

Public Speaking Merit Badge Requirement Test

Troop 175's Leadership group is working on the Public Speaking Merit Badge to help be more effective leaders. 

The final requirement for the merit badge:

5. Show you know parliamentary procedure by leading a discussion or meeting according to accepted rules of order; or by answering questions on the rules of order.

This requirement can be met by taking the following short 8 question online test and printing the results page and giving it to Mr. Rice (Don't forget to print the results page!).

Click on the link in the box to get started.

Powered By ProProfs - Create A Quiz or Flash cards

Reposted from December 5, 2008

Communications Merit Badge

Troop 175 will hold a merit badge class in March for the Eagle Required Communications merit badge. This badge will be lead by Mr Carter and is limited to 20 scouts, First Class rank or higher. Rank will be given preference in considering participation.

A second class may be schedule for April for those scouts who are unable to get a spot in the March class. This will be announced at a later date.

The requirements for the Communications merit badge are listed below.

 

Communications requirements

Do ONE of the following: a. For one day, keep a log in which you describe your communication activities. Keep track of the time and different ways you spend communicating, such as talking person-to-person, listening to teachers or the radio, watching television, reading books and other print media, and using any electronic communication device. Discuss with your counselor what your log reveals about the importance of communication in your life. Think of ways to improve your communications skills. b. For three days, keep a journal of your listening experiences. Identify one example of each of the following, and discuss with your counselor when you have listened to: 1. Obtain information 2. A persuasive argument 3. Appreciate or enjoy something 4. Understand someone's feelings c. In a small-group setting, meet with other scouts or with friends. Have them share personal stories about significant events in their lives that affected them in some way. Take note of how each scout participates in the group discussion and how effectively he communicates his story. Report what you have learned to your counselor about the differences you observed in effective communication. d. List as many ways as you can think of to communicate with others (face-to-face, by telephone, letter, e-mail, text messages, and so on). For each type of communication discuss with your counselor an instance when that method might not be appropriate or effective. Do ONE of the following: a. Think of a creative way to describe yourself, using, for example, a collage, short story or autobiography, drawing or series of photographs, or a song or skit. Using the aid you created, make a presentation to your counselor about yourself. b. Choose a concept, product, or service in which you have great confidence. Build a sales plan based on its good points. Try to persuade the counselor to agree with, use, or buy your concept, product or service. After your sales talk, discuss with your counselor how persuasive you were. Write a five-minute speech. Give it at a meeting of a group. Interview someone you know fairly well, like, or respect because of his or her position, talent, career or life experiences. Listen actively to learn as much as you can about the person. Then prepare and deliver to your counselor an introduction of the person as though this person were to be a guest speaker, and include reasons why the audience would want to hear this person speak. Show how you would call to invite this person to speak. Attend a public meeting (city council, school board, debate) approved by your counselor where several points of view are given on a single issue. Practice active listening skills and take careful notes of each point of view. Present an objective report that includes all points of view that were expressed, and share this with your counselor. With your counselor's approval, develop a plan to teach a skill or inform someone about something. Prepare teaching aids for your plan. Carry out your plan. With your counselor, determine whether the person has learned what you intended. Do ONE of the following: a. Write to the editor of a magazine or your local newspaper to express your opinion or share information on any subject you choose. Send your message by fax, email or regular mail. b. Create a web page or blog of special interest to you (for instance, your troop or crew, a hobby, or a sport).. Include at least three articles or entries and one photograph or illustration, and one link to some other Web page or blog that would be helpful to someone who visits the Web page or blog you have created. It is not necessary to post your Web page or blog to the Internet, but if you decide to do so, you must first share it with your parents and counselor and get their permission. c. Use desktop publishing to produce a newsletter, brochure, flier or other printed material for your scout troop, class at school, or other group. Include at least one article and one photograph or illustration. Plan a troop court of honor, campfire program, or an interfaith worship service. Have the patrol leaders' council approve it, then write the script and prepare the program. Serve as master of ceremonies. Find out about three career opportunities in the field of communication. Pick one and find out the education, training, and experience required for this profession. Discuss this with your counselor, and explain why this profession might interest you.

On the February Troop trip to Mt Snow and Bromley, participants will be able to work on requirements for the Snow Sports Merit Badge.

Scouts interested in earning this badge should read the requirements and be ready to discuss and demonstrate the requirements of the option that they have chosen.

 

Snow Sports requirements

Discuss winter sports safety, and show that you know first aid for injuries or illnesses that could occur while skiing or riding, including hypothermia, frostbite, shock, dehydration, sunburn, fractures, bruises, sprains, and strains. Tell how to apply splints. Explain why every skier or snowboarder should be prepared to render first aid in the event of an accident. Explain the procedure used to report an accident to the local ski patrol for the area where you usually ski or ride. Do EACH of the following: a. Tell the meaning of the Your Responsibility Code for skiers and snow-boarders. Explain why each rider must follow this code. b. Explain the Smart Style safety program. Tell why it is important and how it applies to skiers and snowboarders in terrain parks and pipes. c. Explain the precautions pertaining to avalanche safety, including the responsibility of individuals regarding avalanche safety. d. Tell the meaning of the Wilderness Use Policy. Explain why each skier and snowboarder must adopt this policy. Complete all of the requirements for ONE of the following options: downhill (Alpine) skiing or cross-country (Nordic) or snowboarding. DOWNHILL (ALPINE) SKIING a. Show how to use and maintain your own release bindings and explain the use of two others. Explain the international DIN standard and what it means to skiers. b. Explain the American Teaching System and a basic snow-skiing progression c. Name the major ski organizations in the United States and explain their functions. d. Discuss the five types of Alpine skis. Demonstrate two ways to carry skis and poles safely and easily. e. Explain the importance of strength, endurance, and flexibility in downhill skiing. Demonstrate exercises and activities you can do to get fit for skiing. f. Present yourself properly clothed and equipped for downhill skiing. Discuss how the clothing you have chosen will keep you warm and protected. g. Demonstrate how to ride one kind of lift and explain how to ride two others. h. Explain the international trail-marking system. i. On a gentle slope, demonstrate some of the beginning maneuvers learned in skiing. Include the straight run, gliding wedge, wedge stop, sidestep, and herringbone maneuvers. j. On slightly steeper terrain, show linked wedge turns. k. On a moderate slope, demonstrate five to 10 christies. l. Make a controlled run down an intermediate slope and demonstrate the following: 1. Short-, medium-, and long-radius parallel turns 2. A sideslip and safety (hockey) stop to each side 3. Traverse across a slope m. Demonstrate the ability to ski in varied conditions, including changes in pitch, snow conditions, and moguls. Maintain your balance and ability to turn. CROSS-COUNTRY (NORDIC) SKIING a. Show your ability to select, use, and repair, if necessary, the correct equipment for ski touring in safety and comfort. b. Discuss classical and telemark skis. Demonstrate two ways to carry skis safely and easily. c. Discuss the basic principles of waxing for cross-country ski touring. d. Discuss the differences between cross-country skiing, ski touring, ski and downhill skiing. e. Explain the importance of strength, endurance, and flexibility in cross-country skiing. Demonstrate exercises and activities you can do to get fit for skiing. f. List items you would take on a one-day ski tour. g. Present yourself properly clothed and equipped for a one-day ski tour. Discuss the correct use of your clothing and equipment, and how the clothing you have chosen will keep you warm and protected. h. Demonstrate the proper use of a topographic map and compass. i. Show a degree of stamina that will enable you to keep up with an average ski-touring group your age. j. On a gentle, packed slope, show some basic ways to control speed and direction. Include the straight run, traverse, sideslip, step turn, wedge stop, and wedge turn maneuvers. k. On a cross-country trail, demonstrate effective propulsion by showing proper weight transfer from ski to ski, pole timing, rhythm, flow, and glide. l. Demonstrate your ability, on a tour, to cope with an average variety of snow conditions. m. Demonstrate several methods of dealing with steep hills or difficult conditions. Include traverses and kick turns going uphill and downhill, sidesteps, pole drag, and ski-pole "glissade." SNOWBOARDING a. Discuss forward-fall injuries. Tell about prevention and what action must be taken in the event of any type of injury or accident. b. Do the following: 1. Demonstrate your ability to select the correct equipment for snowboarding and to use it for safety and comfort. 2. Present yourself properly clothed and equipped for snowboarding. Discuss how the clothing you have chosen will keep you warm and protected. c. Show how to use and maintain your own bindings, and explain the use of the different binding methods. Explain the need for leashes. d. Discuss the four types of snowboards. Demonstrate how to carry a snowboard easily and safely. e. Demonstrate exercises and activities that will get you fit for snowboarding. f. Demonstrate how to ride one kind of lift and explain how to ride two others. g. Explain the international trail-marking system. h. Demonstrate the basic principles of waxing a snowboard. i. Do the following: 1. On a gentle slope, demonstrate beginning snowboarding maneuvers. Show basic ways to control speed and direction. Include the sideslipping maneuver. 2. On slightly steeper terrain, show traversing. j. On a moderate slope, demonstrate an ollie, a nose-end grab, and a wheelie. k. Make a controlled run down an intermediate slope and demonstrate the following: 1. Skidded, carved, and jump turns 2. Stops 3. Riding fakie l. Demonstrate your ability to ride in varied conditions, including changes in pitch, snow conditions, and moguls. Maintain your balance and ability to turn. m. Name the major snowboarding organizations in the United States and explain their functions.

BSA Merit Badge Requirement Changes for 2011

Several merit badge requirements have received minor modifications and updates. Here is a series of articles from Scouting Magazine.

 

2011 revised requirements: Sports merit badge

2011 revised requirements: Archery merit badge

2011 revised requirements: Nuclear Science merit badge

2011 revised requirements: Horsemanship merit badge

2011 revised requirements: Astronomy merit badge

 

If you are already working on one of these merit badges, you may continue to use the old requirements. If you are just starting the badge, you would need to use the new requirements.

First Aid Class To Be Held In January

First Aid is one of the most important for a boy scout in our troop. Being prepared, if you're walking down the street or participating in high adventure activities, means knowing what to do if someone gets hurt.

 

Troop 175 will be offering a class starting in January for those scouts ranked First Class or higher that would like to earn this Eagle-required merit badge. A sign up sheet will be available at the Dec 9th troop meeting.

 

First Aid requirements

Satisfy your counselor that you have current knowledge of all first aid requirements for Tenderfoot Rank, Second Class Rank, and First Class Rank. Do the following: a. Explain how you would obtain emergency medical assistance from your home, on a wilderness camping trip, and during an activity on open water. b. Explain the term triage. c. Explain the standard precautions as applied to bloodborne pathogens. d. Prepare a first aid kit for your home. Display and discuss its contents with your counselor. Do the following: a. Explain what action you should take for someone who shows signals of shock, for someone who shows signals of a heart attack, and for someone who shows signals of stroke. b. Identify the conditions that must exist before performing CPR on a person. Then demonstrate proper technique in performing CPR using a training device approved by your counselor. c. Explain the use of an automated external defibrillator (AED). d. Show the steps that need to be taken for someone suffering from a severe cut on the leg and on the wrist. Tell the dangers in the use of a tourniquet and the conditions under which its use is justified. e. Explain when a bee sting could be life threatening and what action should be taken for prevention and for first aid. f. Explain the symptoms of heatstroke and what action needs to be taken for first aid and for prevention. Do the following: a. Describe the signals of a broken bone. Show first aid procedures for handling fractures (broken bones), including open (compound) fractures of the forearm, wrist, upper leg, and lower leg using improvised materials. b. Describe the symptoms and possible complications and demonstrate proper procedures for treating suspected injuries to the head, neck, and back. Explain what measures should be taken to reduce the possibility of further complicating these injuries. Describe the symptoms, proper first aid procedures, and possible prevention measures for the following conditions: a. Hypothermia b. Convulsions / seizures c. Frostbite d. Dehydration e. Bruises, strains, sprains f. Burns g. Abdominal pain h. Broken, chipped, or loosened tooth i. Knocked out tooth j. Muscle cramps Do TWO of the following: a. If a sick or injured person must be moved, tell how you would determine the best method. Demonstrate this method. b. With helpers under your supervision, improvise a stretcher and move a presumably unconscious person. c. With your counselor's approval, arrange a visit with your patrol or troop to an emergency medical facility or through an American Red Cross chapter for a demonstration of how an AED is used. Teach another Scout a first-aid skill selected by your counselor.

 

December Troop Meeting Dedicated to Scouting Heritage

In honor of the 100th Anniversary of the Boy Scouts, Troop 175 will be working on the new Scouting Heritage merit badge during the first full troop meeting of December.

In addition to the program at the troop meeting, scouts will also need to complete requirements 6 and 8.

On May 4th, the Boy Scouts of America announced the requirements for its newest merit badge - Scouting Heritage, in honor of the 100th anniversary of scouting in America.

Below are the requirements.

 

Requirements

1. Discuss with your counselor the life and times of Lord Baden-Powell of Gilwell. Explain why he felt a program like Scouting would be good for the young men of his day. Include in your discussion how Scouting was introduced in the United States, and the origins of Boy Scouting and Cub Scouting under Baden-Powell.
2. Do the following:
   
   1. Give a short biographical sketch of any TWO of the following, and tell of their roles in how Scouting developed and grew in the United States prior to 1940.
      
      1. Daniel Carter Beard
      2. William D. Boyce
      3. Waite Phillips
      4. Ernest Thompson Seton
      5. James E. West
   2. Discuss the significance to Scouting of any TWO of the following:
      
      1. Brownsea Island
      2. The First World Scout Jamboree
      3. Boy Scout Handbook
      4. Boys’ Life magazine
3. Discuss with your counselor how Scouting’s programs have developed over time and been adapted to fit different age groups and interests (Cub Scouting, Boy Scouting, Exploring, Venturing).
4. Do ONE of the following:
   
   1. Attend either a BSA national jamboree, OR world Scout jamboree, OR a national BSA high-adventure base. While there, keep a journal documenting your day-to-day experiences. Upon your return, report to your counselor what you did, saw, and learned. You may include photos, brochures, and other documents in your report.
   2. Write or visit the National Scouting Museum in Irving, Texas.* Obtain information about this facility. Give a short report on what you think the role of this museum is in the Scouting program.
      • *If you visit the BSA’s national traveling tour, Adventure Base 100, in 2010, you may use this experience to fulfill requirement 4b. Visit www.adventurebase100.org (with your parent’s permission) for the schedule and for more information.
5. Learn about the history of your unit or Scouting in your area. Interview at least two people (one from the past and one from the present) associated with your troop. These individuals could be adult unit leaders, Scouts, troop committee members, or representatives of your troop’s chartered organization. Find out when your unit was originally chartered. Create a report of your findings on the history of your troop, and present it to your patrol or troop or at a court of honor, and then add it to the troop’s library. This presentation could be in the form of an oral/written report, an exhibit, a scrapbook, or a computer presentation such as a slide show.
6. Make a collection of some of your personal patches and other Scouting memorabilia. With their permission, you may include items borrowed from family members or friends who have been in Scouting in the past, or you may include photographs of these items. Show this collection to your counselor, and share what you have learned about items in the collection. (There is no requirement regarding how large or small this collection must be.)
7. Reproduce the equipment for an old-time Scouting game such as those played at Brownsea Island. You may find one on your own (with your counselor’s approval), or pick one from the Scouting Heritage merit badge pamphlet. Teach and play the game with other Scouts.
8. Interview at least three people (different from those you interviewed for requirement 5) over the age of 50 who were Scouts. Find out about their Scouting experiences. Ask about the impact that Scouting has had on their lives. Share what you learned with your counselor.

October is Camping Month

Over the next several troop meetings, the scouts for Simsbury Troop 175 will be working on requirements for the Camping Merit Badge. This Eagle required badge is improtant in a troop such as ours because it teaches many of the basic and advanced skills we use each month on our camp outs.

Camping is one of the best-known methods of the Scouting movement. When he founded the Scouting movement in the early 1900s, Robert Baden-Powell encouraged every Scout to learn the art of living out-of-doors. He believed a young person able to take care of himself while camping would have the confidence to meet life's other challenges, too.

Requirements

1. Show that you know first aid for and how to prevent injuries or illnesses that could occur while camping, including hypothermia, frostbite, heat reactions, dehydration, altitude sickness, insect stings, tick bites, snakebite, blisters, and hyperventilation.
2. Learn the Leave No Trace principles and the Outdoor Code and explain what they mean. Write a personal and group plan for implementing these principles on your next outing.
3. Make a written plan for an overnight trek and show how to get to your camping spot using a topographical map and compass OR a topographical map and a GPS receiver.
4. Do the following:
   1. Make a duty roster showing how your patrol is organized for an actual overnight campout. List assignments for each member.
   2. Help a Scout patrol or a Webelos Scout unit in your area prepare for an actual campout, including creating the duty roster, menu planning, equipment needs, general planning, and setting up camp.
5. Do the following:
   1. Prepare a list of clothing you would need for overnight campouts in both warm and cold weather. Explain the term "layering."
   2. Discuss footwear for different kinds of weather and how the right footwear is important for protecting your feet.
   3. Explain the proper care and storage of camping equipment (clothing, footwear, bedding).
   4. List the outdoor essentials necessary for any campout, and explain why each item is needed.
   5. Present yourself to your Scoutmaster with your pack for inspection. Be correctly clothed and equipped for an overnight campout.
6. Do the following:
   1. Describe the features of four types of tents, when and where they could be used, and how to care for tents. Working with another Scout, pitch a tent.
   2. Discuss the importance of camp sanitation and tell why water treatment is essential. Then demonstrate two ways to treat water.
   3. Describe the factors to be considered in deciding where to pitch your tent.
   4. Tell the difference between internal- and external-frame packs. Discuss the advantages and disadvantages of each.
   5. Discuss the types of sleeping bags and what kind would be suitable for different conditions. Explain the proper care of your sleeping bag and how to keep it dry. Make a comfortable ground bed.
7. Prepare for an overnight campout with your patrol by doing the following:
   1. Make a checklist of personal and patrol gear that will be needed.
   2. Pack your own gear and your share of the patrol equipment and food for proper carrying. Show that your pack is right for quickly getting what is needed first, and that it has been assembled properly for comfort, weight, balance, size, and neatness.
8. Do the following:
   1. Explain the safety procedures for
      1. Using a propane or butane/propane stove
      2. Using a liquid fuel stove
      3. Proper storage of extra fuel
   2. Discuss the advantages and disadvantages of different types of lightweight cooking stoves.
   3. Prepare a camp menu. Explain how the menu would differ from a menu for a backpacking or float trip. Give recipes and make a food list for your patrol. Plan two breakfasts, three lunches, and two suppers. Discuss how to protect your food against bad weather, animals, and contamination.
   4. Cook at least one breakfast, one lunch, and one dinner for your patrol from the meals you have planned for requirement 8c. At least one of those meals must be a trail meal requiring the use of a lightweight stove.
9. Show experience in camping by doing the following:
   1. Camp a total of at least 20 days and 20 nights. The 20 days and 20 nights must be at a designated Scouting activity or event. Sleep each night under the sky or in a tent you have pitched. You may use a week of long-term camp toward this requirement. If the camp provides a tent that has already been pitched, you need not pitch your own tent.
   2. On any of these camping experiences, you must do TWO of the following, only with proper preparation and under qualified supervision.
      1. Hike up a mountain, gaining at least 1,000 vertical feet.
      2. Backpack, snowshoe, or cross-country ski for at least 4 miles.
      3. Take a bike trip of at least 15 miles or at least four hours.
      4. Take a nonmotorized trip on the water of at least four hours or 5 miles.
      5. Plan and carry out an overnight snow camping experience.
      6. Rappel down a rappel route of 30 feet or more.
   3. Perform a conservation project approved by the landowner or land managing agency.
10. Discuss how the things you did to earn this badge have taught you about personal health and safety, survival, public health, conservation, and good citizenship. In your discussion, tell how Scout spirit and the Scout Oath and Law apply to camping and outdoor ethics.

 

Time Is Running Out For The Historical Merit Badge Program

At long last, the Boy Scouts of America has released the details of their long awaited Historic Merit Badge Program first announced back on January 12, 2010.

The program honors Scouting's rich 100-year history by introducing today's Scouts to the merit badges earned by yesterday's youth. To bring the badges into a 21st-century context, the BSA has created supplemental information guides that will accompany scans of the original merit badge pamphlets.

• The badges can be earned beginning today, and requirements must be completed by Dec. 31, 2010.

• Historic merit badges do count toward a Scout's rank advancement.

• Each merit badge emblem features a gold border, which will help identify it as special to the centennial year.

Pamphlets for these badges will not be reprinted. Instead, Scouts and Scouters can go online to find digital scans of the original pamphlets.

Here are the requirements for each of the historic merit badges:

Pathfinding

To obtain a merit badge for Pathfinding, a Scout must:

1. In the country, know every lane, bypath, and short cut for a distance of at least two miles in every direction around the local scout headquarters; or in a city, have a general knowledge of the district within a three-mile radius of the local scout headquarters, so as to be able to guide people at any time, by day or by night.
2. Know the population of the five principal neighboring towns, their general direction from his scout headquarters, and be able to give strangers correct directions how to reach them.
3. If in the country, know in a two mile radius, the approximate number of horses, cattle, sheep, and pigs owned on the five neighboring farms; or, in a town, know, in a half-mile radius, the location of livery stables, garages and blacksmith shops.
4. Know the location of the nearest meat markets, bakeries, groceries, and drug stores.
5. Know the location of the the nearest police station, hospital, doctor, fire alarm, fire hydrant, telegraph and telephone offices, and railroad stations.
6. Know something of the history of his place; and know the location of its principal public buildings, such as the town or city hall, post-office, schools and churches.
7. Submit a map not necessarily drawn by himself upon which he personally has indicated as much as possible of the above information.

Here is an Information Guide and original booklet for the merit badge.

Tracking

To obtain a Merit Badge for [Tracking], a Scout must:

1. Demonstrate by means of a [tracking] game or otherwise, ability to [track] skillfully in shelter and wind, etc., showing how to proceed noiselessly and “freeze” when occasion demands.
2. Know and recognize the tracks of ten different kinds of animals or birds in his vicinity, three of which may be domestic.
3. Submit satisfactory evidence that he has trailed two different kinds of wild animals or birds on ordinary ground far enough to determine the direction in which they were going, and their gait or speed. Give the names of animals or birds trailed, their direction of travel, and describe gait and speed; or submit satisfactory evidence that he has trailed six different kinds of wild animal or birds in snow, sand, dust, or mud, far enough to determine the direction they were going and their gait or speed. Give names of animals or birds, their direction of travel, and describe gait and speed.
4. Submit evidence that he has scored at least 30 points from the following groups:
   Group (f) and 4 of the 5 groups (a), (b), (c), (d), (e) must be represented in the score of 30 and at least 7 points must be scored from (a), (b), or (c). Make clear recognizable photographs of
5. (a) Live bird away from nest - 4 points each
6. (b) Live woodchuck or smaller wild animal - 3 points each
7. (c) Live wild animal larger than woodchuck - 4 points each 
8. (d)  Live bird on nest - 3 points each
9. (e)  Tracks of live wild animal or bird - 2 points each
   AND
10. (f) Make satisfactory plaster cast of wild animal or bird tracks with identification imprint on back of cast - 2 points each

Here is an Information Guide and original booklet for the merit badge.

Carpentry

To obtain a Merit Badge for Carpentry, a Scout must:

1. Demonstrate the use of the rule, square, level, plumb-line, mitre, chalk-line and bevel.
2. Demonstrate the proper way to drive, set, and clinch a nail, draw a spike with a claw-hammer, and to join two pieces of wood with screws.
3. Show correct use of the cross-cut saw and of the rip-saw.
4. Show how to plane the edge, end and the broad surface of a board.
5. Demonstrate how to lay shingles.
6. Make a simple article of furniture for practical use in the home or on the home grounds, finished in a workmanlike manner, all work to be done without assistance.

Here is an Information Guide and original booklet for the merit badge.

Signaling

To obtain a Merit Badge for Signaling, a Scout must:

1. Make an electric buzzer outfit, wireless, blinker, or other signaling device.
2. Send and receive in the International Morse Code, by buzzer or other sound device, a complete message of not less than 35 words, at a rate of not less than 35 letters per minute.
3. Demonstrate an ability to send and receive a message in the International Morse Code by wigwag and by blinker or other light signaling device at the rate of not less than 20 letters per minute.
4. Send and receive by Semaphore Code at the rate of not less than 30 letters per minute.
5. Know the proper application of the International Morse and Semaphore Codes; when, where, and how they can be used to best advantage.
6. Discuss briefly various other codes and methods of signaling which are in common use.

Here is an Information Guide and original booklet for the merit badge.

Merit Badge Presentations

Charlie Siegal recently earned his carpentry merit badge and his photography merit badge. Here are two presentations that you might enjoy from those badges.

Download Carpentry from the Past

Download Canoeing and Camping on the Waters of Maine

Playing With Fire

 Simsbury Boy Scout Troop 175 Would like to thank Lt Vince Civitillo and the Simsbury Fire Department for helping them to have a great meeting while fulfilling several requirements for the Fire Safety merit badge.

Under the direction of Eagle scout and Simsbury Firefighter Lee Adamovich, the troop has been working on this important merit badge. After a short time in the classroom, the scouts were treated to some hands on activities including directing a live fire hose, going through the training building, and watching how fast a couch can go out in flames.

Any Scout 15 years old or older can learn about becoming a fire cadet by going to the Simsbury Fire Department Website.

To see photos from the event, go to the Troop Photo Library.

May is "Light My Fire" Month

This month Simsbury Boy Scout troop 175 will be "Light My Fire month". The scouts  will be working on advancement requirements that pertain to fire safety and will also work on the Fire Safety merit badge, led by Troop 175 Eagle scout and Simsbury Fireman Lee Adamovich.

Please review the following requirements before the next troop meeting.

Fire Safety Requirements

Do the following: a. Demonstrate the technique of stop, drop, roll, and cool. Explain how burn injuries can be prevented. b. List the most frequent causes of burn injuries. Explain the chemistry and physics of fire. Name the parts of the fire tetrahedron. Explain why vapors are important to the burning process. Name the products of combustion. Give an example of how fire grows and what happens. Name the most frequent causes of fire in the home and give examples of ways they can be prevented. Include a discussion about fires caused by smoking in the home, cooking, candles, fireplaces, and electrical appliances. Do the following: a. Explain the role of human behavior in the arson problem in this country b. List the actions that cause seasonal fires and explain how these fires can be prevented. List common circumstances that cause holiday-related fires and explain how these fires can be prevented. Conduct a home safety survey with the help of an adult. Then do the following: a. Draw a home fire-escape plan, create a home fire-drill schedule, and conduct a home fire drill. b. Test a smoke alarm and demonstrate regular maintenance of a smoke alarm. c. Explain what to do when you smell gas and when you smell smoke. d. Explain how you would report a fire alarm. e. Explain what fire safety equipment can be found in public buildings. f. Explain who should use fire extinguishers and when these devices can be used. g. Explain how to extinguish a grease pan fire. h. Explain what fire safety precautions you should take when you are in a public building. Do the following: a. Demonstrate lighting a match safely. b. Demonstrate the safe way to start a charcoal fire. c. Demonstrate the safe way to melt wax. Explain the difference between combustible and noncombustible liquids and between combustible and noncombustible fabrics. Do the following: a. Demonstrate the safe way to fuel a lawnmower. b. Demonstrate the safety factors, such as proper ventilation, for auxiliary heating devices and the proper way to fuel those devices. Do the following: a. Explain the cost of outdoor and wildland fires and how to prevent them. b. Demonstrate setting up and putting out a cooking fire. c. Demonstrate using a camp stove and lantern. d. Explain how to set up a campsite safe from fire. Visit a fire station. Identify the types of fire trucks. Find out about the fire prevention activities in your community. Choose a fire safety-related career that interests you and describe the level of education required and responsibilities of a person in that position. Tell why this position interests you.

BSA Announces New Scouting Heritage merit badge

On May 4th, the Boy Scouts of America announced the requirements for its newest merit badge - Scouting Heritage, in honor of the 100th anniversary of scouting in America.

Below are the requirements.

Requirements

1. Discuss with your counselor the life and times of Lord Baden-Powell of Gilwell. Explain why he felt a program like Scouting would be good for the young men of his day. Include in your discussion how Scouting was introduced in the United States, and the origins of Boy Scouting and Cub Scouting under Baden-Powell.
2. Do the following:
   
   1. Give a short biographical sketch of any TWO of the following, and tell of their roles in how Scouting developed and grew in the United States prior to 1940.
      
      1. Daniel Carter Beard
      2. William D. Boyce
      3. Waite Phillips
      4. Ernest Thompson Seton
      5. James E. West
   2. Discuss the significance to Scouting of any TWO of the following:
      
      1. Brownsea Island
      2. The First World Scout Jamboree
      3. Boy Scout Handbook
      4. Boys’ Life magazine
3. Discuss with your counselor how Scouting’s programs have developed over time and been adapted to fit different age groups and interests (Cub Scouting, Boy Scouting, Exploring, Venturing).
4. Do ONE of the following:
   
   1. Attend either a BSA national jamboree, OR world Scout jamboree, OR a national BSA high-adventure base. While there, keep a journal documenting your day-to-day experiences. Upon your return, report to your counselor what you did, saw, and learned. You may include photos, brochures, and other documents in your report.
   2. Write or visit the National Scouting Museum in Irving, Texas.* Obtain information about this facility. Give a short report on what you think the role of this museum is in the Scouting program.
      • *If you visit the BSA’s national traveling tour, Adventure Base 100, in 2010, you may use this experience to fulfill requirement 4b. Visit www.adventurebase100.org (with your parent’s permission) for the schedule and for more information.
5. Learn about the history of your unit or Scouting in your area. Interview at least two people (one from the past and one from the present) associated with your troop. These individuals could be adult unit leaders, Scouts, troop committee members, or representatives of your troop’s chartered organization. Find out when your unit was originally chartered. Create a report of your findings on the history of your troop, and present it to your patrol or troop or at a court of honor, and then add it to the troop’s library. This presentation could be in the form of an oral/written report, an exhibit, a scrapbook, or a computer presentation such as a slide show.
6. Make a collection of some of your personal patches and other Scouting memorabilia. With their permission, you may include items borrowed from family members or friends who have been in Scouting in the past, or you may include photographs of these items. Show this collection to your counselor, and share what you have learned about items in the collection. (There is no requirement regarding how large or small this collection must be.)
7. Reproduce the equipment for an old-time Scouting game such as those played at Brownsea Island. You may find one on your own (with your counselor’s approval), or pick one from the Scouting Heritage merit badge pamphlet. Teach and play the game with other Scouts.
8. Interview at least three people (different from those you interviewed for requirement 5) over the age of 50 who were Scouts. Find out about their Scouting experiences. Ask about the impact that Scouting has had on their lives. Share what you learned with your counselor.