What a Weekend: Extra! Extra! uses for newspaper

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Here’s
a new spin on recycling the news: Keenan Klos and Pack 249 used hundreds of
newspapers to celebrate the March Cub Scout theme, “Jurassic Pack.”

Pack
leaders asked the boys to roll newspaper tubes with their parents at home.
Then, each one brought at least 50 tubes to the pack meeting. With these homemade
building blocks, they were given 30 minutes to create dinosaurs using only the
tubes, extra newspaper, and tape.

Klos
says that some dens practiced their creations during den meetings prior to the
monthly pack meeting. Smart plan.

During
construction, parents and visiting Boy Scouts observed and judged the team’s performance,
while making diligent mental notes. After time was called, a Scout from each
den described his team’s design, and the judges handed out awards in categories
such as Best Teamwork, Best Adaptation of Theme, and Best Design.

Then
the real fun began. Leaders gave the boys 10 minutes to destroy all of the
structures, toss the paper into the air, and “basically just act crazy,” Klos
says. This short diversion was followed by—you guessed it—a massive group
cleanup.

What
can you learn from Klos and Pack 249? It’s easy to adopt this same activity and
apply it to practically any Cub Scout monthly theme. It encourages teamwork
within the den, builds creativity, and lets the boys have a ton of fun. Also,
it’ll cost you almost nothing to execute—great for cash-strapped pack budgets.

Follow the jump to check
out two more photos from the Jurassic Pack event and see if your boys might enjoy such
an event.


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About Bryan Wendell 3282 Articles
Bryan Wendell, an Eagle Scout, is the founder of Bryan on Scouting and a contributing writer.