If you loved exploring the ideas in our “Five games for virtual den meetings” post, the Cub Scout volunteer Facebook community is about to make your day!
Cub Chat Live, our weekly Cub Scout-focused Facebook Live show, recently challenged viewers to create a list of 25 virtual den meeting ideas in 30 minutes. In true Scouter fashion, they went above and beyond. They beat that 25-idea goal and provided some of the most creative activities we’ve ever seen — for virtual or in-person meetings.
Check out the list of meeting ideas below, and help us add to this list by commenting with your own ideas for leaders looking to keep their Cub Scouts engaged and learning.
Virtual activity ideas you can use at your next den meeting
- Virtual pizza parlor tour! Get each Scout a “kit” with enough stuff to make a personal pizza at home. Then, set up a Zoom meeting with your local pizza place to do a virtual tour of their kitchen. Finally, walk the Scouts through how to make a pizza at home.
- Rocket academy! Have Cub Scouts make rockets out of recycled materials around the house in advance of the meeting. Let them share their creations during the Zoom meeting.
- Make an agenda and use polls! Lead 30-minute Zoom meetings with very specific agendas that you send out beforehand. Send the Scouts online polls/surveys and scavenger hunts and let them send in their responses beforehand. – From Kim
- Do-it-at-home small projects! Drop off building supplies (using kits from places like Home Depot or Lowe’s) at Scout families’ front doors or have them pick up supplies from your front door. Share instructions during a meeting.
- Make dessert! Start the meeting by prepping the dessert and putting it in the oven. While it’s cooking, do a scavenger hunt based on the Scout Oath and Law. If you have time, do a skit. By the time you’re wrapping up, the desserts will be done.
- Dancing cranberries! Put Sprite (or the store-brand equivalent) in a clear cup and add cranberries to it. The carbonation forces the cranberries to go up and down and move on their own. This meeting can be cheap and easy!
- Virtual Pinewood Derby car carving and painting! – From Jacob
- Cubmaster hike! Have the Scouts send your Cubmaster on a hike based on directions they give him or her.
- A snowman-building contest! Have Scouts build a snowman on their own time and show it off during a Zoom meeting. – From Heather
- Virtual tour of police or fire station! Contact your local police or fire station and see if they’ll give you a tour while you Zoom it with the rest of your pack. Or maybe they’ll host it themselves!
- Make bird-feeders! Drop off supplies for your Scouts to build pinecone bird feeders. (Check for allergies before using peanut butter. Lard is a substitute.) – From Gwen
- A Scavenger Hunt! Have Scouts look for the six essentials to create their hiking pack. Afterwards, provide a backpack to each of them with the correct essentials already in it to see if they got their list right.
- “Favorites” quiz! Ask each Scout to submit a picture of their favorite food/pet/activity. Use Kahoot! to make a virtual quiz to see if they can correctly guess who submitted each picture. (Kahoot! is a game-based learning platform used as educational technology in schools and other educational institutions.)
- Lead a Camp-In! Drop off a camp pack to each family with supplies and a timetable of when to be online. Include snack suggestions, scavenger hunts, compass making, navigation, and trail signs. Have the Scouts build a fort in their living room or put a tent in their backyards. There will be lots of family photos to share after this one! – From Michelle in Australia
- Make ’em Laugh! Someone gets the microphone and tells jokes — perhaps choosing from the 4,300-plus available on the Scout Life website or the dozens found in the back of each issue of SL. For an extra twist, each Cub Scout could take turns on “stage,” but instead of having the Cub Scout appear, they could find a favorite stuffed animal, doll or action figure and have that character tell the jokes.
- Create a design challenge! Task Scouts to create an animal or Scout-themed item out of paper maché or with pencil and paper. Then, have a show-and-tell at the meeting. Their creativity can be amazing! – From Heather
- Kim’s Game! It turns out that this fun activity, first published in Robert Baden-Powell’s book Scouting Games, makes the move to Zoom quite nicely. An adult gathers a number of articles — knives, spoons, pencil, pen, stones, book and so on — and places those items on a tray and covers everything with a cloth. The cloth is removed, and the Scouts have one minute to memorize what’s on the tray. When the cloth returns to conceal the collection, the Scouts try to remember as many of the items as they can.
- Mad libs! – From Eric
- Talent show or skit night! Have Scouts “apply” to perform their talent, write up a program, and see all the unique and wonderful things our Cub Scouts can do. Everyone is welcome and all can participate as performers or audience. – From Gwen
- Virtual escape room! Check this example out!
- A “how-to” class on drawing! Drop off a package before the meeting with paper, pencils, eraser and a marker. Draw something together! Check out Scout Life’s drawing tutorials from Art-O-Ree.
- Learn about compasses! Have Scouts prepare by memorizing the cardinal directions. – From Jennifer
- Scout Law scavenger hunt! Hide rocks with the Scout law around town and give clues on where to find them. Each can be in a location that connects with the word (“Reverent” at church, “Brave” at a war memorial, etc.).
- Virtual Insect Zoo from Iowa State University! From the den that tried it: It was engaging, entertaining and educational! Our Scouts loved it! If anyone is looking for a virtual program, I can’t recommend it more! They are on Facebook if you search for ISU Insect Zoo. https://m.facebook.com/ISUInsectZoo/
- Read a story! Everyone can take turns reading.
- Take a walk, separately but together! Have everyone take a walk in the backyard and share what they see.
- Digital Dino Dig! Drop off supplies before the meeting (supplies include a Tupperware bowl with dirt and plaster mixed together, with a toy dinosaur in the middle, toothpicks, toothbrushes, etc.). At the meeting, discuss different dinosaurs, how fossils are found, have a dino quiz and then let them each dig up their own dinosaur.
- Guess what game! Describe an item that is out of view of the Cub Scouts and see if they can guess what it is.
Note: Be sure to reference these guidelines for keeping virtual events safe before you plan any online activities with your unit.
Let’s keep this list growing!
Comment with your own den meeting ideas to add to this list. And if you try one of the ideas above, let us know how it goes.
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