Official online magazine of Scouting Ireland

Mountain Pursuit Challenge’sBackwoods Skills

Scouters ConferenceTraining Review

And much more inside

November 2014

Welcome to this month’s issue of Inside Out. This month’s issue covers all the great Scouting Activites that are taking place around the countryWe look at not one but two Mountain pursuit challengs where we capture both with super images from the hills. The Scouters Conference took place recently with over 200 Scouters in attendance. Check it out insideWe have our monthly section resources this month as usual and a 5th instalment from our Backwoods feature.

We look forward to some upcoming National Activities which are scheduled to take place over the next few months. So why not get involved.

This month as in every month we feature many articles and Pictures from all around the Country from groups just like yours. So why not send us in an image an a few lines about what you were up to and we will feature in next months issue.We have made it easier for you to submit your article and pictures. We now have a dedicated page set up to enable you to make a submission Just click here and fill in the details.

If you have any Queries please contact us at communications@scouts.ie.

Please forward this month’s issue to all Scouters and Youth Members in your group. Don’t presume they have got it. Deadline for next month’s issue is the 30th November.

The Communications Team

Communications Commissioner Intro

515263542

Quote of the Month

In this issue...

Cub ScoutsScouters ConferenceAdult ResourcesCamp 3MOP Heroes

“Spending today complaining about Yesterday wont’ make tomorrow any better”

P. 56 Clare County Hike

3

Connaught MPC

4

Connaught MPC

This Land of Adventure can be run on several themes such as a Roman

Legions & Centurions theme, Gladiators theme or a City of Rome theme.

Using the options below, pick and mix to compile programme ideas for

meetings:

5

Land of Adventure – Ancient Rome

Costume party – Gladiators, Centurions, toga party, Slaves

Movie Night – Spartacus, Gladiator, Ben Hur, Pompeii, The Three Stooges meet Hercules

Roman baths were like leisure centres. They were a meeting place for business as well as somewhere to cleanse. Make a visit to your local swimming pool. Discuss the importance of keeping clean

Fire lighting

Archery

Make a wash stand for camp just like the Roman army

Chariot racing – ask the Scout Section to help the Cubs to make a version of a chariot from pioneering spars. Have a chariot race

Gladiators were slaves who were forced to fight for the entertainment of the Romans.

They were trained to fight, and then put into the arena to fight animals or other gladiators. Some of the fights were to the death. Try arm wrestling or tug of war or relays (Six against Six)

Each soldier carried his weapons, shield, food and camping equipment, cooking pot and clothes from one camp to the next. Go on an expedition with full pack

In battle it was a disgrace if the flag or standard was captured. Play “capture the flag”

Pioneering: the Romans invented war machines like the catapults and the ballista. Have the Scout Section help the Cubs to make a ballista. Cubs to make their own handheld catapult and have a competition to test for distance and accuracy

Backwoods cooking – cook on an open fire like the legionnaires

First Aid: battle injuries - learn how to make slings and, dressings for cuts and wounds, burns & scalds from fires, and stretchers

The Romans knew the 7 brightest objects in the sky: sun, moon and 5 planets, and they named them after their most important gods. Make a paper mache model of a planet or visit the local observatory/planetarium

Fitness was essential for Legionnaires and Gladiators. Cubs to draw up a personal fitness plan prior to a long hike

Poor Romans has small homes without kitchens, so they often bought takeaways such as sausages and fried fish. Wealthy Romans held elaborate dinner parties prepared and cooked by slaves. Plan a balanced menu using the food pyramid for 1 day for a family or camp

6

Stars and constellations: used for navigation by Legions. Learn to recognize some of the major constellations as well as the North Star

Romans built good roads to last. They were built in as straight a line as possible. Using a map, Cubs to plan a new road from the Scout Den to their favourite hiking trail

Most Roman homes and buildings had mosaics floors – make a giant mosaic of the Fleur de Lys or Scouting Ireland logo from coloured pieces of paper and display it in the Scout Den

In Ancient Rome, there were no public schools; boys were taught to read and write by their parents. Cubs to ask their parents about their early school life to see how it differs from their own modern school curriculum

At the age of 16, some students went on to rhetoric school. Education at this level prepared students for legal careers, and required that students memorize the laws of Rome. Memorize the Cub Scout Law. Live the law.

Aqueducts were built to supply water to towns from springs, rivers and lakes. Cubs to find out the origin of the local public water supply

The names of the months of the year and the days of the week originate from Ancient Rome. Cubs to find out the origin of each

Weather – forecasts are essential for army expeditions & marches (hikes) - make a wind sock/weather vane

Map reading – essential for invading and conquering new lands

The Romans introduced coins as currency. Ask the Cubs to bring in old or foreign coins from home. Display and discuss their origin or age

The Roman Senate passed all laws and collected all taxes. Cubs to visit the local Council Chamber or Courthouse

Measurements- miles, feet and inches came from the Romans. Make a yard stick and take each Cubs height, take it again at the end of the Scout year

Military troops called Centuries made up part of the Roman foot soldier army. Centuries were led by a Centurion. The Centurion, like the Sixer was easily recognised by the badge he wore. He would also have Deputy Centurion similar to a Seconder. Each Six to design a flag or standard. The Sixer/Centurion to carry the standard on hikes or going to camp. The Standards will be raised and lowered each day on camp

Board game night: board games were popular for leisure time and during camp time for soldiers

Sketches – Romans enjoyed the theatre. Each Six to put together a sketch to be performed at camp

Markets were where merchants of all sorts sold items (including slaves) from around the Empire. Make a simple craft and sell it at your local farmer’s market along perhaps with your 12 Days of Christmas tickets

Strict Codes of Conduct dictated the life of a Roman soldier. Pack forum to draft a Code of Conduct

The Forum was one of the important centres of Roman life. The Forum had the marketplace, the banks and the baths. But the Forum had a purpose that we today might find unusual. It was in the Forum where anyone who felt like it could stand up and talk to the crowd and express their views on any subject. It was called “Orating” and the Romans loved it. Pack Forum to debate on a given topic to see who is considered the best “Orator”

2

Most religious rituals featured musical performances. Have a Scouts Own, Cubs to bring and play their own musical instruments

Leave No Trace Policy

Gods were worshipped in Temples where Romans could go and make offerings to the statues of the most popular gods. Roman Gods include Jupiter, Venus, Mars, Saturn, Neptune, Apollo, Mercury, Pluto. Make a list of the statues of saints most commonly found in churches or other places of worship, what offerings are made nowadays?

Please make sure that you clip the travel tickets for your journey as you go along to earn beads as you progress.

For the 12 Days of Christmas fundraiser your Tickets should be returned to Scouting Ireland on or before Dec 5th 2014For the 12 Deeds of Christmas your return sheet should be sent back to Scouting Ireland by the 30th Jan 2015

To get all the information on both fundraisers click on the posters on the next page.

As you are no doubt aware that our Annual 12 Days of Christmas Draw and our new initiative The 12 Deeds of Christmas are very important Fundraising opportunities in our calendar that help your Scout Group and Scouting Ireland to raise funds to develop your local Scout Group and the National Scout Centres.

A further presentation was given at the Scouters conference on ways to maximise your turonver with the fundraisers.

National Christmas Fundraising Initiative

8

Fire Safety Week

This Month’s Scout Resources just click on the images to view the

Resource.

Scout Resources

9

10

Fire Escape Plans Fire Starting Pods

Friction Bridge

11

12

Water Filter Waterproof Matches

13

Code of Conduct

Adventure Skills Resources

Below is a link (just click on the image) to a collection of links to available online resources. If the resource is used in conjunction with the Scouting Trail and with reference to Adventure Skills requirements the resource becomes extremely useful to all – scouters and scouts.

14

Scouters Conference 2014

The Scouters conference 2014 took place in Dublin recently. Over 200

Scouters decended on the venue to take part in this years event.

The Conference was opened by the Chief Scout and the opening session

was jointly presented by both Venture Scout Greg Anderson and Scouter

Kiernan Kildea. There was 26 sessions taking place over the weekend

ranging from E Safety, Chief Scout award, Youth Involvement - Listening to

the Youth Voice,and a great session on The Digital Security of Children.

We were delighted to have Senator Jillian van Turnhout and Scouter

Colum McCaffery do a session on the Sunday Morning.

The following pages contain a selection of Images from the conference but for many more images check out our Facebook page HERE

Also you can check the updates from the Scouting Ireland Twitter feed HERE

15

16

17

Content Creation Workshops for the

New Website

Work is continuing with the Various Scouting Ireland teams in putting

togther content that will be used for the new Website. Below are some

images from the Scout section one which took place recently in Limerick.

Also image of the Beaver Scout Section one which took place in Dublin

Recently. Next stop is Blackrock Scout Den in Dublin for the Venture

Scouts. This is taking place the same weekend as the Venture Scout Ball

so no excuse. Looking forward to having you there.

18

Scouting Ireland Training Review

2013 - 2015 Update

As you may have heard, Scouting Ireland is currently performing a

comprehensive review of adult training. We are now just past mid-way

through the process which is due to complete in the autumn of 2015.

The project is receiving guidance from the National Adult Resources

Committee. A midpoint report on progress and outlook was reviewed at

a recent meeting of the National Management Committee and this article

sets out what’s been achieved thus far and outlines the next steps in the

process.

1. The development of any proposed new broad based Training Programme for Scouting Ireland should be cognisant of:o The need for consultation with the wider membership of Scouting Irelando WOSM’s Woodbadge Frameworko The need for Continuous Adult Scouter Developmento The desirability of recognising prior learning and skillso Possible E-Learning models

2. The following, while important considerations for implementation, are not to be constraining factors in the design of the new Training Programme:o Minimising the cost of trainingo Designing a programme solely for the purpose of securing a form of educational accreditation

3. The review is to be completed by the end of 2015

The training review for Scouting Ireland was established at the end of 2012 by the Chief Commissioner Adult Resources to give effect to General Motion 13, carried at National Council that year. The aim of this project is to: “undertake a review of Scouter Training using the Adults in Scouting World Policy as reference, with the underlining principles of providing adult leadership training that is flexible and accessible, which acknowledges previous skills and focuses on the actual role specific

to each Scouter” (Ref: General Motion 13, National Council 2012). Following the appointment of Chris Kearns by the National Management Committee as Project Manager for the review, terms of reference were agreed between the Chief Commissioner Adult Resources and the Training Commissioner in consultation with the Project Manager in November 2012. In addition to the above motion, the terms of reference also specified three key conditions for the review:

23

A steering group was formed and work commenced in January 2013. The steering group comprises seven experienced trainers in addition to the Project Manager. The Training Commissioner is a member of the steering group.

An approach document for the review which included a Vision and Mission Statement was developed, agreed and shared with attendees at National Council 2013.

19 ‘Working’ Topics in Body of Knowledge

A period of consultation commenced within the association and externally. While the consultation was in progress a core team was formed to commence the work. The core team currently incorporates seven others in addition to the steering group and the Project Manager (15 in all). Individuals were appointed to the core team based on their interest and ability rather than topographical considerations.

Existing training programmes in Scouting Ireland and in a number of other scout (and guide) organisations were examined and a set of training areas or ‘Topics’ were determined for future adult training at Scouting Ireland. There are 19 Topics in all.

Vision and Scope

Educational aims and high-level learning objectives were developed for 17 of these Topics. Adventure Skills was deferred pending discussions between Adult Resources and Youth Programme and these discussions are progressing at this time. Work on the Child Protection Topic was delayed in anticipation of legislation changes, it recently became obvious that such changes are some way off and the National Adult Resources Committee has agreed that work should commence on that Topic immediately. The list of Topics along with associated educational aims and high level learning objectives form the Body of Knowledge for which a new training scheme will be developed. The Body of Knowledge currently contains approximately 200 high level learning objectives for the 17 Topics which are

24

developing the outline for specific learning opportunities or Learning Spaces to service each area throughout the learning journey. Once that is complete, work can start on specific learning / training materials for each of the Learning Spaces. This phase of the work will be led by members of the core team who will have review sub-teams to assist them in this work. A matrix management system has

elaborated up to this point.Work on the Body of Knowledge took place throughout 2013 and into the early months of 2014. With the Body of Knowledge becoming quite tangible, the core team set to considering how a Scouter’s experience of training (their ‘learning journey’) might look. Five specific areas were identified, from ‘New to Scouting’ to continuous / lifelong learning (‘Extending your Learning and Skills’). The 200 high level learning objectives were then distributed across each of the five areas to form progressive training paths for each Topic.

This phase concluded with an update and consultation meeting with key stakeholders in March 2014, as well as a workshop for attendees at National Council.An Educational Methods workshop took place in March 2014, as well as the core team all Scouting Ireland trainers were invited, 20 trainers attended that weekend and this resulted in a few additional volunteers joining the core team at that point.

been agreed to ensure that 1) each Topic is covered in a consistent and progressive manner while 2) each area throughout the learning journey works as a cohesive whole. For observations, comments, offers of help etc. contact the Project Manager at trainingreview@scouts.ie

25

Method

Resource materialo including information booklets/ sheets, fact sheets, hand books, DVD’sHands on Learningo including cross-training, demonstrations, coaching, apprenticeships, drillsE-learningo including web-based training, tele/video conferencing, web meetings, emailInteractive Methodso Including instructor led sessions, group work, case studies, role play

In recent weeks the core team completes the assignment of method to each of the high level learning objectives for each area throughout the learning journey. They have also considered to what extent each learning objective represents learning which each individual should have, which a Scouter team should have on the team, or which can be classed as useful to the individual or the team. The next phase will involve

29

Ulster MPC

30

Ulster MPC

The National Youth Forum

In January 2015, youth representatives from across Ireland will take over

Dublin City. The National Youth Forum will take place across Dublin on 17

& 18 January 2014.

Scouts (6 per province, elected at the Provincial Youth Forum) and Venture

Scouts (6 per province, elected at the Provincial Youth Forum) will get a

chance to listen to and learn from a guest speaker, collaborate and share

with one another, plan for the future and vote on resolutions, and then rant

and rave long into the night with a social event on Saturday. They will then

participate in a takeover wide-game on Sunday.

The venue for Roverfocus is still to be confirmed, but much of it will take place in Dublin City at the den of 1st Port Sea Scouts (Ringsend). More info to come in the December issue! All queries can go to nyrteamlead@scouts.ie .

The Rover Scout part of the National Youth Forum will be part of a broader event, Roverfocus. Roverfocus is one event with three parts, whose programmes crossover at various times:

• National Rover Scout Forum (open to all Rover Scouts); • National Rover Intervarsity (open to all Rovers who participate in third level Rover initiatives like Rover Clubs and Rover Societies); and • National Rover Advisor Workshop (open to all who advise, or who encourage Rover Scouts)

31

Community Celebration Projects Pictures from 34th/161st Balbriggan scout group beach clean as part of their community week! As well as cleaning the beach they also cleaned the martello tower area. Great job done by all the lads!

Below is just 3 projects that were completed recently as part of the Communinty Celebrations Week. If you completed a project send it to us and we will feature in next months issue.

19/36th Phibsboro taking part in the Community Celebration Week. The Project they choose was cleaning up royal canal bank and surrounding area near the den.

32

Some Images from a project from Raphoe Scout Group who Collected Books and donated to the Local Playschool.

33

License and Distribution Agreements

Scouting Ireland recently signed a License and Distribution Agreement with

the Outdoor Adventure Store (OAS) for the use of our Logo and Emblem.

A separate License and Distribution Agreement was also signed with the

OAS for the new Scout Brand and designs.

34

Upcoming National Activities

Venture Scout Ball

15/11/2014

The Royal Marine Hotel, Marine Road, Dun Laoghaire, Co. Dublin.

Mountain Moot III

21/11/2014 - 23/11/2014

Mount Melleray

See separate ArticlePeace Light Celebration18/12/2014 - 21/12/2014

Santa Day13th/14th DecLarch Hill

38

Santa Day 6th/7th Dec

Castle Saunderson

National Youth Forum (incorporating Roverfocus)17/01/2015 - 18/01/2015Dublin City Centre

Check Out article elsewhere in Inside Out

For More Info on all upcoming Activities check out the National Events Calendar at the Link right.

International Conference in Australia

The international Scout and Guide Fellowship Conference in Sydney has concluded.It was attended by three delegates from Ireland including Maurice Lapthorne and John Reid from Scouting Ireland.

The World conference is held every three years and on this occasion the venue was Sydney. There were forty four countries represented at the conference with a total of three hundred and fifty delegates. The Irish delegation consisted of Jake Reid coordinator of Scout Fellowship groups in Ireland, Addy Patterson of the Irish Girl Guides and Maurice Lapthorne, secretary of the Cork Fellowship group. The business side of the conference included appointing new members to the World Fellowship

committee, a development plan for 2014-2017, selecting Bali for the nextconference in 2017. The social side included a night cruise in Sydney Harbour, a trip to the Blue Mountains, a visit to Bondi Beach and tours of the city of Sydney.

One of the highlights of the conference was presentations made by the various national organisations on projects which they undertake to help the less fortunate people around the world. These included collecting toys and sending them to children in refugee camps in Jordan and other locations. The Irish Fellowship organisation will be following up on these ideas with a view to developing our own projects.

40

Messengers of Peace Heroes

Award 2014

Since its inception in 2012, the Messengers of Peace Heroes Award has

been recognizing Scouts, volunteers and professionals, as heroes for their

outstanding work towards a better world. The award is formally given by

the Ministry of Education of Saudi Arabia each year during the celebrations

of the Saudi National Day. We are delighted to announce that this year

2 Irish Scouters Paul Browne and Mike Loder where presented with this

Prestigious award.

each side of the sectarian divide in a tense Belfast. They strongly believed that their responsibility to their Scouts included helping to develop tolerance and understanding. They knew that if progress was to be made, people had to meet, prejudices had to be challenged, and friendships had to be forged. They knew this could put

Scout Leaders for more than 40 years, Paul Browne and Mike Loder took part in one of the several efforts of scouting to build peace in a divided country. Belfast in the early 1970’s was a difficult place to live – minority families in mixed communities were burned and bullied out of their homes, barricades were built preventing one community from encroaching on the other. Murders, bombings and intimidation were commonplace.Mike Loder and Paul Browne were Scout Leaders from groups on

their own lives at risk, but they knew it was worth it.

For more information on these awards check out the links below

42

Singing round the campfire

Singing round a campfire is a much loved scouting tradition and one that

is shared by all sections from the very young Beavers Scouts to the more

mature Rovers Scouts. Songs are passed from older sections down with

each troop having their favourites which range from all action Bananas of

the world unite to the identifying Irish Scout Yell.

Yet at each campfire it is the same faces seen singing with others using a

variety of excuses such as:

“I don’t remember all the words...”“I only know the chorus...”“I don’t know how to start...”Scouting Ireland Campfire Songs endeavours to banish the excuses with a collection of songs, with an Irish flavour, loved by scouts of all ages. Having over 150 songs available on your smartphone will allow you to plan, learn and practice a new song for your next campfire and when you step forward to sing at the next campfire you will have the confidence that the words are only a swipe away. Scouting Ireland Campfire Songs

offers a collection of traditional songs with favourite songs among scouts along with favourite Irish songs like Rathlin Bog and An tAmhrán Náisiúnta. Scouts of all ages can help their Lodge, Pack, Patrol & Crew strengthen and broaden their songs repertoire with the Scouting Ireland Campfire Songs App

(Available on Iphone & Android)

Android:

Iphone

43

Opportunity for Adventure and

Challenge with Mountaineering

Ireland

If you are between 16 and 19 years of age and have a passion for the

outdoors, you have the chance to become part of this exciting initiative

which aims enable 50 young people to prepare and then partake in a trip to

the Swiss Alps.

Lots of good work is happening in many clubs and other organisations

helping to introduce young people to our sport. Mountaineering Ireland is

eager to support young people to make the next step from the Irish mountain environment to the Alpine environment.

Over the coming month, Mountaineering Ireland will ‘recruit’ 50 young people into two development pathways and provide them with a series of development days and mentoring, which will prepare them to participate with confidence at Mountaineering Ireland’s Summer Alpine Meet 2015.

To see all the details on this project click HERE

Concurrently, Mountaineering Ireland will be recruiting volunteers to support this initiative and the other volunteers already committed to it. If you wish to volunteer please email your details to volunteer@mountaineering.ie and we will be in touch.

44

World Scout JamboreeMalainn Bull Island Camp

With the World Scout Jamboree in Japan only 10 months away the

excitement is really starting to build.

Please find below a link to the 5th in the series of newsletters with some

update information for those travelling to the jamboree.

Download this issue HERE or by Clicking on the Graphic above.

We, the Málainn troop had our first overnight trip in Dollymount Seascout Den on Bull Island. Everyone was really excited to be able to start to get to know and bond with our other troop members. Although people were hesitant and a little bit bashful in the beginning, by the time we were leaving none of us could imagine going to Japan with anyone else!

During our stay, we made quite a bit of progress in preparation for the Jamboree. The main decisions that were made were; who the Pls and

APLs were, what patrol everyone was in and finally the patrol names. We opted to name each patrol after a part of a Celtic legend e.g. The Salmon of Knowledge Patrol. Other than these main decisions we worked on our marching chants and we invested a new member into the troop.

Another paramount element of the overnight was to bond and to build a sense of team spirit. A large part of the two days was spent in our patrols discussing different topics related to the Jamboree. Working together in our small patrol groups allowed our teamwork skills to develop and allowed friendships to flourish. Together as different patrols

45

performed something, (even if it was just telling a joke) this is a tribute to how well we bonded over the day as everybody felt comfortable performing in front of their peers.

The overnight trip was organised with a goal in mind, to build our spirit of unity. That goal was achieved. Although we still have a long journey left to go before we arrive in Japan, the foundation has been laid for the best experience of our lives. After our stay on Bull Island we are not just excited to be attending the Jamboree, we are excited to be attending the Jamboree together.

we discussed the structure of our gate on site in Japan and completed a survival challenge.

The whole trip came to its climax during the evening when the troop sat in a circle and sang songs, played instruments, told stories and attempted to do the worm! It was a lot of fun to see everyone’s talents which included amazing guitar playing skills, a singing voice that sounded like caramel and the knowledge of every capital city in the world. While some were more talented than others everyone

46

47

PL Training for WSJ

48

PL Training for WSJ

Ballybricken Beaver Scouts

Ballybricken Cub Scouts

Rainbow Hike with Kilcock Scouts

Carrickmacross Beaver Scouts Tying Knots

Grandad Presents Beaver

Scout CSA to grandson

Out and About with Scouting

49

Chris McAuliffe who received

a 10 year service award

Chief Scout Helps Faithlegge celebrate 30 years

New Ross Scouts Civil Defence training

Lovely day on campus for the open day!

Tony Madigan who received 25 year service award

Out and About with Scouting

50

Happy 30th Faithlegg

Video from the Recharge Weekend

The Recharge team have put together a video which shows all the action

that took place over the weekend. Looking forward to next year already.

Please click on the Image to see the Video.

51

Register shortly for the

Recharge the Earth Challenge

Scouting Ireland is continuing its partnership with the European Recycling

Platform (ERP), again this year after its success last year. Many Groups

took part and helped in a positive way to Recharge the Earth, this initiative

designed to promote battery recycling and awareness among our Youth

Members. Scout Groups are invited to collect as many used batteries

as possible, and with every four boxes collected a tree will be awarded

and planted in the “nearest” Scouting Ireland National Campsite or if

your Group wish they can plant their trees (in a sustainable and suitable

location) in their community.

registration for this year)Here you will find more information on the initiative and you can download your activity pack. 2. The Recharge the Earth activity pack will include:• Information on the importance of battery recycling and reducing the carbon footprint of your Scout Group, allowing your Youth Members to incorporate the information into their programme during the planning stage.• Scouters notes and slides to help in the facilitation and mentoring of the Youth Members, in developing their programme.• Recycling activities, again which can be used among the Youth Members to motivate people within the Scout Group and the community.• Progress tracking poster.

One of the key objectives of our partnership with ERP, is to drive awareness by promoting a positive behavioural change throughout our membership (both Youth and Adult). ERP & Scouting Ireland believe that the Recharge the Earth campaign can do just that, resulting in diverting batteries from landfill. Remember that the Christmas period accounts for around 40% of all batteries purchased during the course of the year. This equated to approximately 32 million batteries or 800 tonnes of batteries. Many

Once registered ERP will send you four battery boxes so you can start collecting. (Please place your battery boxes in a responsible location away from younger children). Special collection dates for Scouting Ireland will be organised by ERP at prominent locations around Ireland where you can bring your batteries for recycling these will be advised later.Let’s Recharge the Earth, and register shortly. On behalf of Scouting, ERP and the better world deserved by everyone, best of luck, IAN DAVYChief Commissioner (Youth Programme)

of these batteries typically end up in landfill. Don’t wait until it’s too late, start talking to your Scouts and making plans. Register in a week or so as the activity will run for a number of weeks before and after Christmas so everyone can be involved…by following the steps below:1. Register your Scout Group online at www.erpcollect.ie/rechargetheearth ( after the 8th November – as we are awaiting a website update – we will send another reminder when it open for

52

Comet Making Workshop

The 11th Wicklow Cub Pack in Kilmacanogue took part in Action Comet.

This is a comet making workshop designed by Deirdre Kelleghan . During

the workshop the cubs learnt about the features of a comet by drawing

and making their own i.e. Coma,Nucleus, Gas tail, Dust tail. We looked at

the Rosetta Mission and its journey to a comet called 67/P Churyumov–

Gerasimenko. The European Space Agency will land a probe on this

comet on November 12th 2014. The Wicklow cubs were very enthusiastic

and had great questions. They also answered questions on the mission

Age group 8 –12 yearsDuration 1 hour All materials and equipment provided Contact skysketcher@gmail.com for details

at the end for which some of them received ESA stickers and other educational material. This mission is one of the most exciting European Space Agency missions ever undertaken. It will be the first time that a probe made on Earth will land on a comet created at the beginning of our solar system. Many thanks to Pamela and the other leaders for making it a smooth running evening.

53

Province News

LINK

Time flies when you are having fun!

9th Armagh Keady Scouts only opened its doors on April the 10th running

Beavers, Cubs and Scouts sections on Thursday nights in our local high

school. We have had a great time getting into the Scouting spirit and

cramming in lots of events and activities.

We held our inaugural Investiture Ceremony in June in the new Keady

Play Park when family and friends saw over 80 group members make

their promise to Scouting Ireland and become full members of 9th Armagh

Keady Scout Group.

including backwoods cooking and shelter building, muddy obstacle courses, night hikes and a traditional Scout camp fire.The Leaders who attended the fantastic Recharge event in September not only got into the spirit of the weekend by dressing up – they also got to meet Chief Scout himself who kindly posed for a photo.Three Leaders also took part in the Backwoods Training course at Castle Saunderson and spent the weekend getting to grips with feather sticks, shelter building and star gazing.

Beavers and Cubs Sections have both taken part in County Fun Days and the Scouts took part in a water-filled day at Craigavon Water Sports Centre. We participated in Keady’s St. Patricks Day Parade, and helped Keady town create a Welcome banner made of local children’s handprints as part of the celebrations for the Giro D’Italia. Great fun was had during our first group camp in Gosford Forest Park and not even the non-stop torrential rain could dampen our spirits. We took part in various activities

We have been overwhelmed with the support and interest our group has already received from the local community and are looking forward to the coming year. We want to thank everyone who has helped us get up and running over the last 6 months and big thanks to our County Commissioner Joe Corey all the Scout Groups in Brian Boru County for their guidance and support.

54

Province News

55

Province News

Our first hike with 89th Bremore

Clare County Cub Hike

It was a wet, wild but warm October morning and yet over one hundred

Cubs and scouters braved the elements and climbed the newly opened

Twelve O Clock hills walking route.

The hill Knockanuarha is located 5 km (3.1 miles) southeast of Kilkishen

village in East Clare. The main summit is marked by an Ordnance Survey

Trig Point or Triangulation Pillar. The height is 309 metres above mean sea

level. There is another peak about 10 metres lower and 400 metres away

to the west south west. The twin peaks are known locally as the ‘Twelve

was near John Torpey’s hurley factory. They followed the blue route an 8k Looped Walk taking in the 12 O’Clock Hills. It took them about 3.5 Hours including a lunch break. A great day was had by all. A donation was made to the 12 O Clock hills project at the end of the hike.

O’Clocks’. It is thought that the name derives from a tradition of telling the time by observing the position of the sun in relation to these landmarks.From the Twelve O’Clock Hills much of County Clare is on view including West Clare, the Burren and the Shannon Estuary while locally Kilkishen village, Cullaun Lake and Steele’s Turret are prominent.

The Cubs starting points for accessing the Knockanuarha area

56

Province News

Venture Scout Matt Gaynor reports

in on the Mini-Belt Log 2014

The De Le Salle Venture Scouts took part in the first Mini-Belt of it’s kind in

Waterford a few weeks back, read on to find out how they got on.

Friday: The Beginning

All the different groups gathered together at St. Pauls’ Scout Den at 6:00

on Friday evening, which was fairly ironic considering St. Pauls themselves

didn’t take part in the actual weekend itself, but that’s the way it was

• Get a leaflet of a local tourist attraction• Take a picture of every directional road sign you walk past• Get your egg back to Faithlegg without breaking it• Get a picture of a pre-1990’s car• Get a photograph with a parish priest• Video yourselves doing 10 push-ups in a public place• Find the price of sending a 10-kilogram package to Armenia• Using barter, swap your pen for more valuable objectsAfter our leaders had given us the vita; pieces of information, we were

anyway… Predictably enough, at least three or four consent forms were forgotten, but Neillers worked heroically to track them down and make sure that all were recovered before it was too late. We were given our briefing by the powers that be, when we were given the necessary equipment to survive the next 2 days, including a map, a set of tasks, a pen and an egg. The tasks were as follows: • Keep a route card of your journey• Get a picture taken with a local tourist attraction

57

Province News

blindfolded and thrown into a car, before being dropped at our starting point which would turn out to be some 34 kilometre trek from our final destination (Faithlegg). Philip and myself were bundled into a car, and after what seemed like hours (it turned out to be 25-minutes) of not seeing where we were going, we were eventually told to remove our blindfolds. As we stepped out of the car and watched it speed off, we were left wondering where we had been landed. A quick stop

who were still asleep. We set off down the road through Kilmacow village and past the sports complex, remembering to photograph every signpost along the way. While pausing for a break at a garage in Newrath, we saw Ben and Paddy, two of our Abbeyside counterparts, and it was here, while we were catching up on everything that happened since the previous evening, that our egg finally gave way. The four of us, minus an egg, walked the rest of the way into town together, reaching Waterford at around 12:30, where we spent a couple of hours completing the various tasks which had been set for us in accordance with our leaders’ commands. We swapped our pen for a broken toy lightsaber, and for those of you who are interested, it’s €65.60 to sent a 10kg package to Armenia, or €70.50 if you would like express delivery, although the woman in the Post Office would recommend you send a 20kg one as it works out to be cheaper, which I wouldn’t view as great salesmanship on her part. After a quick stop for a photo at Reginald’s Tower, we continued the hike towards Faithlegg at a slower pace, knowing that time was on our side, we had 3 hours to get there. We trudged along past the schools; Waterpark, De La Salle, Newtown, through Ardkeen.

into a local farmhouse told us that we were indeed walking towards Mullinavat. This was confirmed after about another 15-minutes of walking, when our first signpost told us Mullinavat was a further 3 kilometres away. Walking through it and down the Old Dublin Road, down miles and miles of house-less road, we turned off into Kilmacow, looking for a garden in which we could camp for the night, which was easier said than done. After all, we were in Kilkenny the night before the All-ireland final, and sure enough the first few houses we called to were full of people who’d be leaving early for Dublin the next

It occurred to me as a result of the tiredness setting in that the Dunmore Road had never seemed this long before. Eventually, we reached the fork in the road that splits Faithlegg and Dunmore, and the realization that we were within 5km of our goal gave us renewed energy; we got to the campsite as the 6th and 7th teams back. We pitched our tents, lay down on the grass and as if it was his duty to make my day even better, Neillers arrived with the news that Kilkenny had won the All-Ireland! Although for some reason he didn’t look as happy with this news as I was. When all the teams had finally arrived, we had a massive barbecue which was even better than the breakfast we’d cooked ourselves. After the dinner, a campfire and a movie, we all dispersed into our tents, all wrecked.

Sunday: The end. We all woke up late on Sunday morning, there was barely enough time to take down our tents, clean up our mess and have a competition to see who could drink a pint of milk the fastest, before we went home.

58

Province News

morning. Eventually however, we found people willing to let us camp in their back garden, and after a quick supper of noodles, we went to bed, fairly exhausted.

Saturday: Getting there. We woke up early on Saturday morning, eager to build on the immense progress of the previous night. By 9:30am, we’d packed away our tent, cooked ourselves a most excellent breakfast of bacon, sausages and black pudding, and left a thank you note for our hosts

Duke of Edinburgh’s Award

HRH the Earl of Wessex pictured at the Belfast Harbour Commissioners’

Offices for his final engagement of the day - a reception to celebrate Duke

of Edinburgh’s Award and Joint Award Initiative Leaders. He also had

the opportunity to meet and present Bronze awards to a small number

of recipients who had completed the programme under the Joint Award

Initiative with the Northern Ireland Fire and Rescue Service

59

Province News

Donneybrook Rover

Scouts

60

Province News

Malahide Cubs visit Dunsink

Observatory

Malahide Cubs had the Opportunity of visiting Dunsink Observatory on

the North Side of Dublin City recently. On the night they were there which

was a lovely clear night the was a New Moon and many of the major

constellations could be seen. They were treated to a talk on how a star was

made a (bit like baking a Christmas Cake) All the right ingredients mixed

together and cooked for a couple of Billion years and hey presto a new

star. Then they went outside to see the big telescope which has been there

for over 150 years and learned that in the 1800’s, Ireland was the leading

manufacturer of telescopes in the world and pioneered the way in the development of the Submarine periscope.

Dunsink Observatory welcome Scout groups to their Observatory which is just off the M50 Exit at Blanchardstown and will by arrangement have scientists visit your Group in your den to enlighten them on the wonders of astronomy..Contact Dublin institute for Advanced Studies www.dias.ie or http://www.astronomytrail.ie

61

Province News

Monaghan Town

62

Province News

11th Louth Monasterboice Scout Group

Why don”t you do what one of our newly formed Groups did recently and

ask your local TD for a tour of the Dail. Might be a great move in getting

Scouting Ireland noticed in the corridors of power as the largest uniformed

youth organistion in the Country. Below are images of the 11th Louth

Monasterboice Scout Group who went to the Dail (the Irish House of

Parliament - for those abroad!) and were looked after very well by Fergus

O’Dowd, their local TD (Member of Parliament). So Come on Vote Number

1 Scouting Ireland!

63

Province News

Mountpelier Cub County Hike

The Mountpelier Cub County Hike took place recently on the 5th October.

Over 160 cubs / ventures and leaders took part. The county hiked from the

Blue Light Pub beside Lamb Doyle’s and made their way up across Three

Rock / into the Pine Forest and down into Cruagh Wood. The weather held

off even though it got a bit cold on top. Well done to all who participated

and took part.

64

Province News

North Cork Scouts County Mountain

Challenge

County Mountain Challenge 26th to 27th Oct 2014 which was held on the

Galtee Mountains a total of 72 participants attended this event which was a

great success thanks to all who attended

65

Province News

North Cork Scout Forum

The was a good representative turnout last weekend for the annual scout

forum for the North Cork County held at Rathcormac. A total of 30 Scouts

attended from all the North Cork Scout Groups. There was a very full

agenda and a lot of issues were sorted on day. There were break out

sessions and the young scouts had no difficulty in voicing their opinions

on various aspects of the programme. Strangely enough they were very

quiet about the uniform which often brings out some off the wall ideas for

change.

Quite some time was given over to ideas for the coming year and the drawing up of a calendar of events for 2015. A number of scouts were proposed as county representatives for the year and following an election Joe Steele and Dathal Kent both from 82nd Cork (Rathcormac) and Evin Walsh 29th Cork (Mitchelstown) were elected.

66

Province News

Northern Province Programme

Support Day - Growing and developing Scouting

Whether you are looking for guidance to help offer more young people the

opportunity to enjoy Scouting or explore different ideas to develop local

Scouting, there are lots of useful resources and information on the day.

Date - Sunday 30th November 2014

• Understanding the strengths & opportunities that young people bring to assist in programme design& Leadership opportunities.• Reviewing programme with a view to continuously improve the delivery and outcomes• Understanding and developing scouter team competencies

Venue - Strabane and Lifford Scout Den

Cost - Fee € 10 / £10 per head must accompany the booking form and is non- refundableTarget Audience

• Beaver scouters• Cub scouters• Scout scouters• venture scouters• Rover Advisors• Rovers

Workshop Structure & Outcome

• Registration is 10am, 10.30am start. Finish time is 18.00.• Bookings via Mo in Lisburn office. Places are limited.• This is a practical support day, providing you with a range of ideas and section specific workshops to help support you in your role as a beaver, cub, scout, venture scouters, rover advisor or Rover.

This Northern Province Programme Support day has been identified as a local need from Scouters and Youth members’ feedback within the Northern Province. These workshops are Section specific. This is the first of two Provincial Programme Support days. The second practical workshop day will be held in 2015 in the North Eastern side of our Province.

My team and I hope by the end of the day you will have gained a better understanding of the Programme to further enhance the Programme being delivered in your sections.

67

Province News

Northern Provincial backwoods

survival event

11th & 12th October 14,

Muff woods, County Donegal.

I must thank Aoibhainn Moyne, Provincial Venture rep for her true

leadership and organisation skills of the twinned backwoods event with

the Provincial Youth Team and Carndonagh ventures. We covered Shelter

building, gutting and cooking rabbits and enjoyed singing at the campfire.

We even had an unexpected emergency evacuation with one of our

ventures.

This is the third of these twinning events in the year and came from an idea from the youth members to keep group, county and provincial youth members connected.

The feedback was very positive and the hard work and commitment of the youth members paid off, with everyone staying dry till the morning, the shelters looked amazing. Thank you to Collwyn, Karen, Annabel, Gary, Annemarie, Maeve, Maria but most of all thank you to the youth members who joined together as crews and committed effortlessly to the weekend. Youth members travelled from Draperstown, Lifford, Carndonagh, Strabane and Duncannon.

68

Province News

Group Water Day 2014

Each year we try to do a different group activity in the 73rd Raheny Group.

A few years ago it was the turn of water activities and we had such a great

time that every September we now start the Scouting year with a visit to

the ICU in the Strawberry Beds. Over the past 3 years we’ve gone from

strength to strength, so much so that we had to turn our water day into a

full blown weekend.

Our Beavers led the charge on Saturday morning taking 2 of the

2 hour sessions and learning a lot along the way. For some it was an

introduction to the water but for other, old hands, it was a chance to try

plenty of skill sessions as well as games and fun to be had by all. Overall this was our busiest water activity yet, with over 100 people on the water over the 2 days. Thanks to all the leaders who helped make everything run smoothly.Over the past few years the group has been reintroducing kayaking skills and this summer saw 10 leaders and a further 10 Venture and Rovers achieve their ICU level 2 kayaking award. This was due to the hard work of our leaders Aidan and Cathal and also with the invaluable help of Ivan and Robert and the rest of the Malahide Sea Scout Group. As we continue to invest in our own kayaks and gear we look forward to many more smiles on the water.

some new skills. The Cubs followed after lunch building on their previous years experience with the kayak centre. Paddling under the M50 bridge is not something they get to experience too often. The 2 Cub sessions closed out Saturday. On Sunday we returned with our 2 Scout sections and Ventures taking over the centre. Our nascent Rover section and of course the Leaders all joined in over the course of the weekend.Over the weekend the water levels were unfortunately low so there were not weir run’s but there were

69

Province News

Rathcormac Scouts Go Wild in

Wet’nWindy Wales.

The objective was to explore less travelled mountains in Snowdonia as

part of the Welsh Sionnach Adventure. Fifteen four person patrols each

with a leader along with the hardy Sionnach Organising Team assembled

as a noisy happy bunch at Dublin Port on Friday the 24th October. We

were heading for North Snowdonia for three days of hiking and camping

on a linear route which would require us to carry full packs at all times. We

crossed our fingers and hoped for fine weather. We didn’t get it. We were to

The landscape was strange for those of us used to the distinctive East-West lie of the Galtees and Knockmealdowns which have smooth gentle southern slopes and craggy steep northern slopes made up of glacial valleys and lakes. Snowdonia was different, the rock was different, the aspect of slopes did not seem to determine whether they would be gentle or craggy, it was hard for the amateur geographer to figure out what was the result of glaciation, river erosion or quarrying for the famous Blue Bangor slate. The summit of Moel Siabod could be approached by a long ridge which had an initial steep ascent and then a more gentle rise to the summit. The terrain on the

get more or less three days of high gusting winds and heavy rain. We needed the old Scout Adage that, “it is the wet ones they remember best”, to hold true. Friday night, we camped in a rustic campsite with stone outhouses and a standing tap, it was luxury in comparison to what lay ahead. On Day 1, we set of from near Capel Curig with the summits of Moel Siabod at 875 metres and Moel Gid at 733 metres as the targets, with a plan to drop afterwards to Lake Diwaunydd to camp for the night.

ridge was rough undulating craggy rock and would need constant attention and effort, the wind was high and it looked a tough prospect. Our patrol, which had been the last checked out from base camp decided to take an alternative route around the base of the ridge and to ascend Moel Siabod on what looked a more gentle face. We had doubters who wanted to follow the consensus up the ridge. Mighty Kilbrittain left for the summit ahead of us by the ridge route, we would see which of us made the summit first. Our ascent was gentle until the last 150 metres, then it got tough, steep and slippery, South Westerly gusts were throwing us about badly, however in spite of it all we kept our

70

Province News

over the only level camping areas. The tents could just about cope with wind and rain but were not made for surfing. The camp area was moved down the valley to an abandoned sheep fold, where we nestled around the tumble down walls of the old sheep pens. The hour had changed and it was dark at five o’clock. The rain was non stop, we were weary, we went to bed and the whole camp was asleep by seven o’clock. Teenagers who can sleep for ever did not mind, the adult leaders invariably woke at 1am to spend the night listening to the wind, but the night was mild and there was a lot to think about so it wasn’t a problem. On Monday morning we packed up without a worry for keeping our tents, and sleeping bags dry, tonight we would sleep in our own beds and imagined we would be welcomed home with three course meals. We skipped down the mountain for two hours to our bus rendezvous. The bus drivers looked at us and made us strip before getting on the buses, we smelled like the worst sports changing room ever, and we were all as happy as could be. We had been to Wales, however, we

nerve and made it to the summit. Had Kilbrittain been through the summit? Yes, we were told. With that Rathcormac Patrol lost all respect and trust in their leader’s navigation and route planning. A photo at the trig point was only possible by holding onto it for dear life, no matter, it was all down hill from here and a warm supper lay ahead. We arrived into high camp to be told we were the fifth team in, despite having been the fifteenth to start, and there was no sign of Kilbrittain who had set off for the summit before us. Then it dawned on us, there were two Kilbrittain patrols and we had indeed got ahead of our Kilbrittain friends by avoiding the ridge. Respect for the navigation skills of the leader was restored but at the same time we had missed out on the thrills of the ridge which fearless Kilbrittain and the others had experienced. Huge gusts hit like tornadoes through the night but the tents somehow held up. Day 2 was supposed to be a stroll after Day 1, the targets were Carned Y Cribau

had not seen or spoken to a Welsh person or anybody in the whole three days, parts of Snowdonia may be popular tourist hotspots, but we had genuinely explored the remoter parts and more importantly we had proven the Scout Adage true, it is indeed the wet ones you remember best. Thanks from all in Rathcormac to the Sionnach Team for a great trip, and greetings to all the new Scouting friends that we made in Wales, we look forward to seeing you there again next time.

The Welsh Dragon Conquered.

71

Province News

at 591 metres dropping to Rhediad Coll at 375 metres followed by an ascent to Cerrig Cochion at 550 metres and then on to Moel Mirirch at 607 metres. These summits were fun, the winds were high but not terrifying, the downpours were heavy but not cold. The only threat was posed by large areas of sphagnum bog where the unwary sank to their waists and would suffer the indignity of being laughed at heartily until being pulled out by they rest of their patrol. The plan was to camp at Lake Edno but the advance party radioed back that South Westerlies were throwing waves up

18th (Dublin) Santry Friday Cub Pack

comes of age with the One programme.

Three years ago a group of Scouters, Ventures, PLs and Sixers stepped

out of our den after going through the One Programme training with a

collective facial expression that can only be described as a giant question

mark. That morning, we had little in common other than Scouting but by

tea time we could add confusion and bewilderment to the list. However we

went away digested the information, got our heads around the books and

set about implementing the programme.

his Scouters but it marked a major milestone for the Pack as we now know we’re capable of delivering the One Programme from start to finish. Congratulations & Well Done Ben!! May you have as much fun and success with the adventures / challenges that Scouts and the Crean Awards hold in store for you. Hopefully in another three years we’ll see you with a Polar Badge and maybe even a Chief Scouts Award on your sleeve! With two more Cubs well on track to be awarded their Tagann Badge early in the New Year and a raft of Cubs nearing completion of their Taisteal badge the future for Cubs in Santry looks very bright indeed.After three visits to each land in

the Cub Adventure Quest book which involved cracking Celtic codes, hieroglyphics, constructing leaky aqueducts, medieval quests, fort building + pioneering + dodge ball (everybody should try this at least once!!!), hikes, weekends, campfires, a multitude of games (that’s just the tip of the iceberg),

72

Province News

and side splitting fun beyond quantifying we eventually reached the point where we could award a Tagann Badge.

On the 23rd Oct 2014 Ben Whelan became the first Cub ever in the 18th to be awarded the Tagann Badge. Not only was this was a moment of great pride for Ben and

14th Clare

Sixmilebridge

73

Province News

South Kildare Cub Scout

Leadership Forum

We held our Cub Scout leadership forum on the 19th October in

Newbridge. It was attended by 53 sixers from ten groups in our county. We

had lots of activities and all Cub Scouts were very active. At the end of the

day the Cub Scout reps were voted in and they can’t wait to have their first

get together to help in the running of the Cub Scout programme throughout

the year. Well done to all of them. Also a big thank you to the outgoing

Cub Scout reps who worked so hard on the previous events etc. We are

all looking forward to another great Cub Scout year both Cub Scouts and

scouters.

74

Province News

75

St Michaels Belfast Hiking in the Mournes

Togher Cub Scouts have Variety

Weekend

The Cub Scouts/Macaoimh from the 37th Cork (Togher) had a great and

varied fun packed programme last weekend. Arriving at the Scout Centre

at 11a.m on Saturday morning, they were soon off to the ambulance base

on the Kinsale Road. Learning all about how they deal with patients and

accidents it was very much hands on and going through all the motions of

arriving at a real simulated accident scene.

It was then onto the Fire Station at Anglesea where they had a very

different taste of an emergency base and what happens when a call comes

leaders said they must have been exhausted because there was not a sound after 1 a.m. and they had to be woken upon Sunday morning and believe me that it most unusual for that age group.

After a fry up on Sunday morning it was off to Farran Woods for the outdoor side of the weekend. The Leader of the section Pat Spillane wishes to thank all the leaders for their support, especially Seán O’Sullivan for driving the bus for the weekend.

in. There was a great discussion on how simply fires start and how they can be prevented. Hopefully there have a better awareness of what to watch out for especially coming into the winter and the Christmas period.

After a light lunch back at the Scout Centre it was off to ‘Bounce’ the indoor play centre at Wilton. After a good two hours there it was back to the scout centre for a little relaxation before dinner was served and then a non stop evening of fun and games. The

76

Province News

Waterford County Beaver Comeragh Hike

DATE: 27th Sept 2014

Waterford county beavers took part in the Jack and Jill climbed up a hill

campaign on Saturday morning the 27th of sept. It was a beautiful morning

to be up in the Comeragh mountains as can be seen from the photos. We

had 5 groups take part which consisted of 75 beavers and 15 scouters.

We left from the Mahon falls car park headed over the mountains to Ned

Currans Cottage where we had lunch and swapped friendship peg. It was

a challenging hike for our new beavers but exhilarating and fun. We raised

134 euro for Jack and Jill charity which they were delighted to receive.

77

Province News

78

Province News

31st WEXFORD SCOUT GROUP

in Association with

WEXFORD COUNTY VENTURERS

presents

THE BLACKSTAIRS CHALLENGE

October 10th-12th 2014

79

Province News

80

Province News

A New Way to Submit Your

Articles for Inside out

Because of the Volume of Articles we are getting from Groups and

Counties each month we have decided to make it easier for Groups and

Counties to submit their Articles and Photos each month. And we love to

get them all.

We now have designed a dedicated page where you can upload your

Article and your Photos with no hassle and get a message back straight

away to let you know that your article has been received.

If you just Click on this image to the right it will take you to a form where you enter your details and then attach your article and photos. Then when you have all done press submit. If your article is received you will get an automatic reply to say we have received your article and a thank you.

See right a screen Shot of the Form.

If you need any help at all with this contact me at communications@scouts.ie and I will endeavour to help.

Now wouldn’t it be great if we got a small article from every group in the country just to let everyone know that you are there!

Communications Team

81

November 2014

Contacts

Public Website:- www.scouts.ie

Members:- my.scouts.ie

Email:- communications@scouts.ie

Facebook:- http://www.facebook.com/scoutingireland

Twitter:- @scoutingireland