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Ok. So this will be our packs first fall round up. So as many of you I am looking for fun ideas. We are going to be at "back to school night", at our towns Labor Day events, and will be doing a special sign up for scouting night. We are going to be working with our local Girl Scouts. I know it may seem like a lot but we are hoping that the more we are out there the better. So I will had this off the the next scouter. 
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Committee Chairwoman for pack 35
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8:19 am
August 9, 2010
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JTHoppe
| | Northern Kentucky/Cincinnati | |
| PTC Tiger | posts 16 | 
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In our council, the DEs do a "Boy Talk" at the schools where we recruit out of during the first or second week of school. Then the next evening or so, we have a "School Night For Scouting" event where interested families can register and join the pack. That program essentially is a 30-45 min high level, Reader's Digest version of Cub Scouts and what the pack has to offer. We introduce the program to the boys and parents talk about the fun activities we have planned then dismiss the boys outside to play a few games or activities while the parents fill out applications and ask questions. Everyone fills out an youth application for their boy (regardless if they actually pay the registration fees/dues). This allows for follow up for those "on the fence" who don't immediately commit.
The following week we have a Parent Orientation night where we go into more depth of how the pack and dens run, we explain the budget and popcorn funding, assign boys into their dens/introduce to den leaders, etc., take uniform orders and get them off and running. That meeting ususally lasts about an hour or so. The first part is geared for the boys and parents, then we dismiss the boys to begin work on Bobcat stuff (or do an outside activity) while we give more parent specific info, then have the groups reconvene and finish up.
All of this will happen in the last week in August and before Labor Day (school starts here on 8/18) so the new boys get hooked in to September den meetings as soon as possible.
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8:41 am
August 9, 2010
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ScouterAdam
| | Portland, OR | |
| PTC Webelos | posts 86 | 
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Hi there:
Posted the same question via Twitter and got directed here by JTHoppe. Thanks!
I like the answer, and we have done that to some extent. The DE has come by and spoken about Cubscouts and what to expect in the past. This will be my third year in the Pack and 2nd as Cubmaster. Last year, I was so GREEN, the CC who is the DE of another District, former Cubmaster and then current Scoutermaster of a troop gave the talk.
This year, it's all me and a fresh crop of Committee Members! I wanna do something different. I blogged about it here: http://scouteradam.wordpress.c…..pressions/
Since I am new to Join Night (The performance of it on my own) I wanted to see what others are doing. In my estimation if we hook the boys and make them want to come back that's the ticket. Having a Pack Meeting the week after where we kick off the year, popcorn and get into the meat of Cubscouts thats where we can talk to the new parents.
I am figuring that on the second meeting, the new parents who have detailed questions, can be answered then when they are doing the joining activity and gametime. I can have the Den Leaders be active in the game while the Committee and I talk to parents as needed.
I will say that this year, I am going to have more parent meetings as well as extend a open invitation to them during Committee Meetings.
My question & CC Nancy's overall is what activities are people going to do during Join Night to hook the boys?
Thanks.
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Cubmaster Pack 221 Portland, OR WE1-492-09 Beaver Patrol, Staff WE1-492011, Blog:http://scouteradam.wordpress.com/
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12:09 pm
August 10, 2010
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smwalker_oh
| | Middletown, Ohio | |
| PTC Star Scout | posts 592 |
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Our School Night's usually run like this:
Folks arrive, sign in, get a youth app, leader app and mini Boys Life magainze, plus a one page handout on our pack (if our pack is the only one at the recruiting event) and sit down.
When we start depending upon the school the principal may introduce us (we have a few principals who are very pro-Scouting and love having us around, others we never talk to but they make sure that the staff knows we'll be there and leave the doors unlocked for us).
Then the DE usually talks for a few minutes and then turns it over to someone from the Pack (me). Generally we have the boys who are new Tigers growl like a Tiger, then Wolves howl, then Bears roar, then Webelos make a tarzan noise. Little icebreakers like that.
We talk about the fun stuff (in brief undetailed versions) for the boys, then have several den leaders take the boys next door to the gym. While in the gym they play some games and learn the Cub Scout sign, salute, handshake and motto (1/2 of the Bobcat requirements and all the requirements for the Tiger Totem).
While the boys are playing, we go over more details with the adults. Their expected level of involvement, money, popcorn, uniforms, meeting dates & times, etc. Do some Q&A and then let parents fill out apps and turn them in if they want. Then we bring the boys back in, they demonstrate for their parents what they've done, and we wrap up and leave. No more than an hour tops.
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PT – Pack 19 Middletown
CR/CC – Pack, Troop & Crew 801 Middletown
MC, Packs 321, 418 & 468, Middletown
Hopewell District Cub Roundtable Commissioner
Hopewell 2011 Fall Recruitment Coordinator – Middletown
Dan Beard Council Certified Trainer
GSWO NOVA #449 Service Unit Camping Coordinator
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10:47 am
August 20, 2010
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Scouter Doug
| | Kenilworth, NJ | |
| PTC Webelos | posts 91 | 
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This year our Council is doing a School Night For Scouting (SNFS) – ((apparently done before but not in our area to my knowledge)) https://alumni.scouting.org/scoutsource/Marketing/Tools/27.aspx – The objective is to have a presence at EVERY school within the Council that has a First grade (and up) class.
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11:56 am
August 20, 2010
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Ken
| | Scranton, PA | |
| PTC Bear | posts 70 |
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I don't know exactly what the plan is for round up night, but we are doing a few things to get new kids there.
In addition to the DE coordinated Boy Talks in all the elementary schools, we're also giving the "My Best Friend is a Scout" cards to our scouts to give to their friends. They're basically an invitation from a Scout directly to one (or more) of his friends.
Also, this weekend is a local church picnic, and our pack has a table set up. In addition to passing out sign up flyers, we're showing a slide show/video of things our pack has done. It includes a couple of the national Cub Scout PSA's, a video of our pack water rocket launch, LOTS of pictures from various camp outings and other events, and just for fun, a little Mike Rowe.
It's long, 18 minutes, but it's meant to just play in a loop, not to sit and watch all at once. I put the video on our website to show to our leaders before I burned the DVDs. If you're interested in seeing it, it's here: http://www.pack16scranton.org/slide-show
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7:50 am
August 21, 2010
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Veretax
| | Hinton, WV | |
| PTC Bear | posts 68 |
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Well here is what I know. We are having our DE go into several schools in the county. We know one area that used to have a pack that may have plenty of interest in either coming to ours, or eventually starting another, but for the moment I expect they will come and see how things are done here first. He'll give his talk, and the hope is that on Thursday of that week or the next we will have a Round Up Pack Night. The boys returning from last year will get to help out with a few activities with put together to just show the boys some of the kinds of fun we may do throughout the year, while the parents and cubmaster talk and register the boys who come.
Hopefully this will work out, but its our first roundup and I'd be lying if I didn't admit to some nervousness about how this process will go.
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7:08 pm
August 23, 2010
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MISS Liberty
| | California | |
| Admin
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Two things:
1) Get signatures ASAP. What I mean by that is: the kids don't care about the paperwork or the $15 registration fee, but the parents do. If you don't get that from the parents, they don't have any skin in the game and may well back out even if their kiddo does want to come back. It's like gym memberships, people are more likely to come back if they have invested money in advance.
2) We've had "just for fun" roundups and they were great fun for the kids, but I think it gave the wrong impression to some of the new folks who joined. They sort of thought that every meeting was going to be a great huge party and when it wasn't, they bailed. (Hey, every meeting COULD be, if someone was willing to organize it, I suppose.) Try to stick to a little bit of structure (opening, closing, recognition, etc.) even if you're doing a "just for fun" event, so that the formula looks familiar, even for the less eye popping, thrill riding meetings down the road.
Some events we've done:
- Raingutter Regattas (super easy/cheap if you use meat trays as boats – we actually have a grandpa who cuts a ton of boats out for us to use and donates all the wood)
- Bike Rodeo – we had our local bike shop guy come and do bike inspections and some older scouts teach bike safety
- Weenie/Marshmallow Roast potluck – pack provides the hot dogs, ask each existing pack family to bring a salad or dessert – great way to open with a "Campfire" themed meeting.
- Ice Cream Social (this fell flat, in my mind, but maybe other folks have had better luck)
- Track and Field Day – when we did this, our den leaders and cubmaster took all the Cub Scouts and recruits out to do activities with them within line of sight of the parents, and I did a parent orientation/explanation of Scouting at picnic tables. This way, the parents needs and the boys needs were addressed simultaneously.
That's the extent of my experience, but it gives you an idea of stuff you can do. :)
Whatever you do, make sure you have handouts, pamplets, brochures, fliers, whatever you need for parents to take with them. Even if it's a half sheet bright pink flier with basic info, it's something they can take home and use as a resource later.
We actually buy the cheapy folders with brads that Walmart sells for 15 cents when school supplies go on sale and we put together "Welcome" packages with Pack Information (who we are, where/when we meet, our Charter Organiziation, contact names and numbers, etc.), a cost worksheet, a sample Boys Life magazine, a youth AND adult application, a list of useful websites, a uniform inspection sheet (so they know what they're kiddo is aiming for), and a welcome letter. (Eh, and maybe other stuff, but that's what I'm remembering off the top of my head.
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"[S]He attacked everything in life with a mix of extraordinary genius and naive incompetence, and it was often difficult to tell which was which." ~ Douglas Adams
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3:48 pm
August 27, 2010
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smwalker_oh
| | Middletown, Ohio | |
| PTC Star Scout | posts 592 |
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Our first school night was Wednesday and it went fairly well. I got two apps, two more families who wanted to fill out the apps and bring them back to our new family orientation (one tried to give me money without an app!), and several other interested families including one with 4 (FOUR!) boys, all Cub Scout aged.
We still have at least 4 more school nights to go, and hopefully a fifth for the one elementary school that gives us problems with access for boy talks and recruitment nights.
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PT – Pack 19 Middletown
CR/CC – Pack, Troop & Crew 801 Middletown
MC, Packs 321, 418 & 468, Middletown
Hopewell District Cub Roundtable Commissioner
Hopewell 2011 Fall Recruitment Coordinator – Middletown
Dan Beard Council Certified Trainer
GSWO NOVA #449 Service Unit Camping Coordinator
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11:36 am
September 17, 2010
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japhmi
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| PTC Tiger | posts 9 | |
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We didn't even have one this year. 
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Cubmaster, Pack 65 – Portland, OR | Committee Chair, Troop 65 – Portland, OR | Campmaster – Camp Meriwether, CPC | Years until I have a child in the program – 2
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