The Path to Eagle Tips from Experience I. Focus on getting to First Class a. Practice your scout skills b. Be an active participant in weekly meetings AND monthly outings (requirements for 2nd class [5 outings] and 1st class [10 outings] require participation) c. Each week or two you should be asking yourself, “What is the next set of requirements I should be focusing on” d. Keep in mind that fitness requirements for both 2nd class and 1st class each take 4 weeks and cannot be done concurrently. YOU MUST KEEP A LOG TRACKING YOUR FITNESS ACTIVITY. e. Rank advancement i. If you are active, attend meetings, outings and focus on learning/completing requirements – expect 18 months ii. If you play a sport and cannot regularly attend meetings and outings – expect it to take a year longer II. Star, Life, and Eagle a. Merit Badges i. Participation is part of your rank advancement – ‘be active’ in Troop 252 is defined as 75% of meetings, 50% of outings ii. Attend Summer Camp each year and after the 1st year, focus on taking Eagle Merit Badges that are not easily taken elsewhere (Cooking, Lifesaving/Emergency Preparedness, Environmental Science/Sustainability, First Aid, Swimming) iii. We offer group classes for the following merit badges within the Troop in a 2-3 year rotation • Citizenship in the Community • Citizenship in the Nation • Citizenship in the World • Personal Fitness iiii. Merit badges with time consuming requirements, i.e. don’t wait until you are 17 to start these • Camping – 20 nights in tents (if you don’t have a blue card started for this one already, do so now) • Personal Fitness – 3 months of activities • Family Life – 3 months of activities • Personal Management – 3 months of activities (recommendation to do this when scouts are older – 14 or older) • Family Life and Personal Management are done individually, we have merit badge counselors in the troop b. Leadership – unique opportunity in scouting to take on different leadership roles and training (National Youth Leadership Training - NYLT) i. Consider serving in a leadership role ii. Understand the expectations for the role iii. Be willing AND ABLE to carry out the role iiii. Leadership forms should be signed off monthly (think about what you’ve done that demonstrates you’ve executed the role) v. You cannot fulfill your role as a leader by just showing up c. Service – i. 6 hour requirements for Star and Life ranks ii. Opportunities with the Troop and helping other organizations, i.e. Kennesaw Mountain Trail Work, Pancake Breakfast iii. Eagle Service Projects – • Can be started as soon as you reach Life rank • Lots of paperwork for your scout to complete so do not procrastinate III. Trouble spots and Extra Tips a. Desire – should come from the scout (not the parent) b. Set your own pace – don’t measure your progress by others c. Parent involvement is key i. Transportation to weekly meetings ii. Support attendance on monthly outings iii. Encouraging active engagement iiii. Asking your scout what they are working on d. Maintain your Scout Book and Blue Cards i. Periodically turn in your scout book and blue cards to be recorded in Scoutbook.com ii. Take pictures of your Scout Book and Blue Cards – these do get lost on occasion e. Work on requirements now … don’t wait until you are older (it gets harder and there are more distractions) f. Set goals for reaching Eagle (if you shoot for 16, even if it takes longer, you’ll have set the right pace) g. Partial Merit Badges – the bane of all older scouts trying to finish their Eagle before they reach 18. Don’t let unfinished merit badge requirements linger. Actively work to finish those out!
top of page
bottom of page