Webelos Meaning:
We'll Be Loyal Scouts

Webelos Goal:
Prepare a Cub Scout to be a Boy Scout

Webelos is a 20 month program for 4th and 5th grade boys to prepare to join a Boy Scout troop while learning outdoors skills and participating in 20 different activity badges. A well-run group of Webelos is a gradual change from being an 'adult-run' den to being a 'boy-run' patrol ready to fit right into an adventurous scouting troop. This migration requires the parents and den leaders to give the scouts more and more control, decision-making power, and responsibility as they progress in skills, abilities, and maturity. A good program also provides the scouts with many opportunities to grow in the Webelos Virtues.

Webelos Program:
The Webelos program has two major milestones - the Webelos rank badge to be earned around February of 4th grade and the Arrow of Light to be earned around February of 5th grade. The final part of Webelos is bridging over into a Boy Scout troop selected individually by the scout.

Once the goals of Webelos are understood, the methods of the program make a lot of sense! There are a few major changes between Cub Scouts and Webelos scouts that are very important to the success of your program. Some adult leaders and parents find it difficult to adjust to these changes so a Parent Meeting to discuss expectations and changes from Cub Scouts is critical to your success. Use parents to plan and lead individual activity badges. The Webelos den leader will have more paperwork and tracking than the wolf or bear den leader.

Important differences from Cub Scouts to Webelos:

1. Advancement Sign Off - each Webelos scout is supposed to take his handbook to the den leader or assistant den leader for sign off when a requirement is completed. This is a change from having a parent sign off every activity. This change prepares the scout to have a ScoutMaster sign off each advancement requirement in Boy Scouts. There is more responsibility put on the scout to remember and bring his handbook to meetings and get it signed. 

2. Webelos Activity Badges - Webelos awards move closer to the Boy Scout merit badge system with a recognizable pin for each activity badge earned. Individual scouts may earn different badges at different times and there are only a couple badges that are mandatory to earn ranks. This change gives the scout more control over his advancement and lets him choose areas he enjoys more.

3. Camping - Webelos dens should camp! Cub Scouts can camp as a pack, but Webelos should go out as a den as much as possible to give the scouts opportunities to learn and use their Outdoorsman, Naturalist, Forester, and Readyman skills. Each Webelos scout needs to have an adult responsible for him on each camping trip. Campouts in the backyard with dinner and s'mores made on a gas grill can be a great way to ease your scouts into the world of camping. A Packing List is helpful for a short campout.

4. Patrols - a patrol is just another name for the den but it does have some significance. Boy Scouts are organized into Patrols, each with their own name, flag, yell, leader, and emblem. As Webelos, a den can begin to operate as a patrol and select an emblem for their uniform, make up a yell, name, and flag. This can really get the scouts to become a team. Taking their flag along on a campout or hike and announcing themselves with their yell is pretty fun.

The highest award in Cub Scouts is earned by Webelos that have been active participants in their den and are ready to join a Boy Scout troop. Many of the requirements for the Arrow of Light are intended to familiarize the scout with a local troop and hopefully show him that crossing over into a troop is the next step to take in scouting. A scout that earns his Arrow of Light patch has also completed nearly all the requirements to earn the Scout badge in the troop so he has already begun his Boy Scout trail.

1. Be active in your Webelos den for at least six months since completing the fourth grade (or for at least six months since becoming 10 years old), and earn the Webelos badge.

2. Show your knowledge of the requirements to become a Boy Scout by doing all of these:

   • Repeat from memory and explain in your own words the Scout Oath or Promise and the 12 points of the Scout Law. Tell how you have practiced them in your everyday life.
   • Give and explain the Scout motto, slogan, sign, salute, and handshake.
   • Understand the significance of the First Class Scout badge. Describe its parts and tell what each stands for.
   • Tell how a Boy Scout uniform is different from a Webelos Scout uniform.
   • Tie the joining knot (square knot) 

      

   See the Boy Scout Study Guide.
   Use this handy Memorization Wheel to learn and review the Scout Oath, Law, Motto, Slogan, and Outdoor Code.

    

3. Earn five more activity badges in addition to the three you already earned for the Webelos badge. These must include:
   • Fitness (already earned for the Webelos badge)
   • Citizen (already earned for the Webelos badge)
   • One of your choice (already earned for the Webelos badge)
   • Readyman
   • Outdoorsman
   • At least one from the Mental Skills Group
   • At least one from the Technology Group
   • One more of your choice

      

4. With your Webelos den, visit at least
   • one Boy Scout troop meeting, and
   • one Boy Scout-oriented outdoor activity. (If you have already done this when you earned your Outdoorsman activity badge, you may not use it to fulfill requirements for your Arrow of Light Award.)

      

5. Participate in a Webelos overnight campout or day hike.
   (If you have already done this when you earned your Outdoorsman activity badge, you may not use it to fulfill requirements for your Arrow of Light Award requirements.)

    

6. After you have completed all five of the above requirements, and after a talk with your Webelos den leader, arrange to visit, with your parent or guardian, a meeting of a Boy Scout troop you think you might like to join. Have a conference with the Scoutmaster.

    

7. Complete the Honesty Character Connection.
   1. Know: Say the Cub Scout Promise to your family. Discuss these questions with them. What is a promise? What does it mean to keep your word? What does it mean to be trustworthy? What does honesty mean?
   2. Commit: Discuss these questions with your family. Why is a promise important? Why is it important for people to trust you when you give your word? When might it be difficult to be truthful? List examples.
   3. Practice: Discuss with a family member why it is important to be trustworthy and honest. How can you do your best to be honest even when it is difficult?