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Scouting at Home

GET READY FOR CAMPING!

How can you get ready for your next camping adventure while at home?

Come up with a fun exercise routine so that you’re fit and prepared for your next camping adventure! Create a camping challenge for your friends and family, then see how they do carrying wood, pitching tents and whatever other fun tasks you come up with. Take stock of your camping gear and discover how to care for things and make repairs all on your own!

These are just some of the ways you can get ready for camping at home—read on to discover more!

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Looking for more inspiring activities to try? Catch up on all Scouting at Home editions here!

Personal Achievement Badge of the Week

SUMMER FITNESS

There’s a  Personal Achievement badge that can be connected to any interest!  This week’s Personal Achievement badge to Get Ready for Camping is  Summer Fitness.

How can you keep your ‘camping muscles’ strong and ready for summertime adventures? What active skills might you need to stay healthy and fit for a camping adventure?

Do This Badge! 

  1. Develop an active routine that includes hiking, walking or bicycling each day of your summer. Where will you explore? Create your summer adventure bucket list with this active routine in mind.
  2. Practise paddling skills and strokes indoors! A cardboard box canoe is a great way to practise inside.
  3. To stay healthy and fit, we need the proper food to fuel our bodies. Create your favourite healthy camping recipe to keep you energized on your adventures!
  4. What new games, activities or sports could you learn to keep yourself busy while camping? Take a look at spikeball or Molkky for some inspiration on what you can learn for your next adventure.
  5. Create a Get Ready for Camping relay, with challenges like safely carrying firewood. Put your family or friends to the test!

Use the Personal Achievement Badge Planning Template to get started on your adventure!   

We Recommend

There are lots of other great organizations creating resources for doing activities at home, so why not share them? Here are a few of our favourites!

BC Parks Backyard Camping Guide

The BC Parks Foundation has created a guide to backyard camping. Try out these tips, tricks and other great ideas so that you can have the ultimate backyard camping trip!

DISCOVER MORE

Leave No Trace

Why is it so important to follow the principles of Leave No Trace while out in the wilderness? Learn more about the impact humans have on the environment and how you can reduce your impact!

LEAVE NO TRACE

#ScoutsDoStuff

Tag @scoutscanada in your #ScoutsDoStuff pics—let Scouting youth across Canada and around the world know how they can continue Scouting at home!


Youth from 138th Toronto learned to roast veggies as part of the 1st Mount Albert Virtual Campout!


Beavers from 7th Whitby shared a visit with an Australian scientist online to learn about #megafauna!

1st Binbrook and 1st Winona got together online to visit an apiary and learn about bees and beekeeping!


A Beaver Scout from 1st Haney is making crafts to sell so that another Canadian youth can join in the fun of Scouting!

Backyard Scouting

Take on this Backyard Scouting challenge and see what you can build for outdoor camping adventures with only limited resources.

Share what you build online with #ScoutsDoStuff.

You’re stuck in the great outdoors and you only have four resources: 

  • Rope
  • Twine
  • Wood (sticks, logs, etc.)
  • Tarp (you can always use a blanket, too!)

Take a look at the Camping and Scoutcraft Outdoor Adventure Skills and see what you can build, and skills you can practice, to be prepared for your camping adventure!

Can you build something:

  • To keep you sheltered?
  • To keep you safe from all of the elements?
  • To sit on?
  • To help you cook?
  • To keep your food safe from animals?
  • To keep you warm?
  • New that you’ve never built before?

Activities to Get Ready for Camping!

Top Five Camping Skills to Practise at Home

Camp-out Training. Never been camping before? Try camping in your living room or backyard! Pack a bag, do some camping activities like going for a walk or cooking over a fire, then spend the night in a tent or fort. Sweet dreams!

Try putting up your tent… blindfolded! It may seem silly, but sometimes you’ll get to your site after dark and may not have your flashlight easily accessible. See how fast you can pitch your tent with your eyes closed!

Learn how to care for and repair your gear. Before heading out on a trip, you should check your gear and make sure that it’s all in good working order. Check out Eureka’s tips for the proper care of and storage for your gear.  

Leave No Trace. A huge part of Scouting is making sure that we always respect the environment. Learn the seven principles of Leave No Trace and plan how you can make sure to follow all of them on your next trip.

Learn how to properly pack a backpack. Whether you’re packing for a few hours or a few days, having your backpack loaded correctly with the right gear is important. Learn more about where to pack your items, as well as what should go in your backpack.

Exploring STEM

Where does STEM fit in on a camping trip? Well, everywhere!

Staying warm is important, even in the summer. Depending on where you are, it can get very cool overnight, or even during the day, and nothing ruins your camping trip like being cold! Experiment with different materials and combinations and discover the best way to stay warm!

Learn about wild edible plants (called ‘bush tucker’ in Australia) in your local area. Be careful and do not eat anything that you are not sure about!

Finally, we use STEM while camping to watch the weather and make sure that we can prepare for incoming storms. Learn more about thunder and lightning, and how to stay safe during a storm.

Staying Safe

We recognize that a change to online and at-home activities creates a vulnerability for some children especially those in difficult or at-risk living conditions. In line with our safety culture and values, Scouts Canada continues to prioritize safety and offers support by providing access to various experts and resources. We encourage kids to reach out to Kids Help Phone (1-800-668-6868) for 24/7 counselling. You can also visit Cybertip.ca for best practices on internet safety or review Scouts Canada’s Safety Tips on cyber safety and social media.

As always, be sure to keep the Two-Scouter Rule in mind, whether engaging in online conversations through email, virtual conversations with other Scouts or on social media, and by phone.