PART 2: Program and Ages & Stages Ockanickon Scout Reservation

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2008 Program and Leader Guide

WE ARE PROUD of the many Scouts and adult Scouters who serve on our staff.  Listed here are the program departments of our summer camp and links to schedules and more information. We hope that you will have time to acquaint yourself with our Camp Program Director and the Department Heads as they are key to the camp program.

Ages & Stages

It is the goal of the Boy Scout program to offer appropriate challenges for each age group. Our camp program is designed to make sure we are offering activities that meet the needs of all age groups.  We want your Scouts to succeed in its rewarding activities.  Participating in an activity well above or well below a Scout’s ability level often leads to disappointment. When advising your Scouts on which merit badges and activities to participate in at camp, please keep in mind this Ages & Stages format. Our departments offer programs appropriate for the different age groups in your troop. For example: The Dan Beard Program, some Handicraft and Scoutcraft badges are appropriate for first year campers. Second and third year campers may still be involved in the offerings of the Dan Beard, Handicraft and Scoutcraft Departments, but they should be ready for the new challenges in the Aquatics and Shooting Sports Departments. Third and fourth year campers may be ready for the more challenging activities offered in the Ecology, Eagle. Rock Climbing, Mountain Biking departments. Your older Scouts should be ready for just about anything we have to offer, including the required Eagle badges and the unique offerings of the Science Center. Ages & Stages has not been designed arbitrarily. It involves constant feedback from Scoutmasters and members of our own staff as to what age Scouts tend to get the most fulfillment out of a specific program or merit badge. Ages & Stages has been designed to act as a guide. A particularly gifted or challenged Scout may move outside the normal range of activities of their peers.  For some physically challenging areas like Aquatics, Spoke n’ Rope or Climbing, the staff may request that a Scout not participate for the Scout’s and other participants' safety.
A Special Note about Science Center Badges Age requirements in the Science Center are mandatory.  Many Science Badges assume a pre-requisite background knowledge for most badges that even the brightest Scout may find daunting.  Scouts who've stayed with Scouting should be rewarded for their continuing participation in Scout as well as their advancement in school, and the challenging, involved, and fun activities of the Science Center are specifically designed for those Scouts.  Please consider this format when advising your Scouts about their plans for summer camp. We also recommend that Scouts not attempt more than THREE merit badges during a single week of camp. Make sure your Scouts have time for fun in their Summer Camp Plan!	Scoutmaster Tool
	Camp has many things to offer besides badge work. Check out the pool, visit the rifle range, go on a hike with friends, explore the camp, do a service project, go boating, try archery, go rock climbing, join a mountain biking trip, or visit wood burning.

Other Areas with Other Ability Considerations

Aquatics - Scouts attempting lake activities must be able to reasonably handle their canoe, kayak or row boat with little assistance.  Badge sessions are 1.5 hours and can prove physically strenuous.  Instructional Swim is available for Scouts who have not passed the swim test but is not recommended for Scouts with a severe aversion to swimming.

Dan Beard - The majority of Scouts in Dan Beard are 12 or under.  Older Scouts who've entered Scouting lately can greatly benefit from the Dan Beard program but only if they believe they'll work well with a younger group.

Handicraft - Leatherworking and Woodcarving require both good hand strength and control.  Scouts with poor knife or tool control can prove dangerous to themselves and those around them.  Scouts that may have control should look into less tool-centered badges like Art, Composite Materials, Fingerprinting or Textiles.

Rock Climbing - All campers that want to do any climbing at camp must get an okay from the Health Officer.  The Health Officer may turn down any participant not believed to be healthy enough to climb.  The recommended age for climbing is 13 but smaller or weaker Scouts may need to wait.  Scouts under 13 can climb if they have both Health Officer and Climbing Director approval.

Shooting Sports - Scouts must be large enough and mature enough to safely handle bows and firearms.  Any Shooting Sports Staff Member may remove a Scout from the Shooting Sports Ranges if they believe the Scout may threat the safety of the staff or other participants.

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Ockanickon Program Overview

Each department offers activities in addition to merit badges.  Each department header is clickable and will direct you to more information about that department.  Below these lists are also individual activities that aren't offered by a specific department followed by Patrol and Troop Activities.  By Appointment badges for each department are not listed and information about By Appointment badges is available in the Appointment badges section.

Each department name is hyperlinked to the program details for that area.

Department	Merit Badges	Other Activities
Aquatics	Canoeing Lifesaving Rowing Small Boat Sailing Swimming	BSA Lifeguard Discover Scuba Evening Sailing Instructional Swim Kayaking BSA Mile Swim Open Boating Open Swim Polar Bear Swim Safe Swim Defense Training Safety Afloat Training Scuba BSA Snorkeling BSA
Dan Beard	Through Full Day Dan Beard: Fire Safety Mammal Study Swimming	Totin' Chip
Eagle	Citizenship in the Community Citizenship in the Nation Citizenship in the World Communications Emergency Preparedness First Aid Personal Fitness Personal Management
Ecology	Bird Study Energy Environmental Science Fishing Forest Geology Landscape Architecture Mammal Study Nature Oceanography Reptile & Amphibian Study Soil & Water Conservation	First Class Requirement 6 Leave No Trace Training Night Hike Second Class Requirement 5 Tenderfoot Requirement 11
Handicraft	Art Basketry Indian Lore Fingerprinting Leatherworking Pottery Textiles Woodcarving
Photography	Photography
Rock Climbing	Rock Climbing
Science	Astronomy Chemistry Electricity Electronics Nuclear Science Weather
Scoutcraft	Camping Cooking Orienteering Pioneering Wilderness Survival	Geocaching Lashing Competition Map and Compass Courses Orienteering Courses
Shooting Sports	Archery Rifle Shooting Shotgun Shooting	Open Archery Open Rifle Shooting Open Shotgun Shooting
Spoke 'n Rope		High COPE Low COPE Mountain Biking Mountain Boarding
Woodburning		Woodburning
No Specific Area or Offsite	DROP Program Golf Horseback Riding Music Photography	Ajapeu Award CPR Training Duty to God Program OA Social Magic Tournament

Troop and Patrol Activities

Activity	Description
Airband Competition	As youth, everyone has probably sung in the shower, played air guitar or played air drums on a desk in school.  Now your troop can showcase their faux-musical talents rocking out to the best hits of the 70s, 80s and 90s.  Each troop may enter a youth and an adult airband consisting of no more than eight people.  The list of available songs will be provided on the website before Summer Camp begins and each unit will select four songs as your list of possible performance pieces.  We will try our best to choose the highest item on your list but greats like "Everybody Wants to Rule the World" or "Achy Breaky Heart" will be in high demand.  More information is available here.
Bamboo Lashing Competition	Lashings have served as a basic Scout skill since Brownsea Island but rarely have they been used as more than mere tools.  On Friday, in the Scoutcraft Field, units will have from 9:00 AM to 5:00 PM to lash a bamboo structure scored on artistry, lashing integrity and complexity.  Constructs must fit with the theme that will be announced in the Daily Times on Monday of each week.  Units may use any accepted lashings including the American Tressel and the Pacific Rim Tressel to construct their pieces.  Bamboo will be provided and is the only allowable construction material except for rope that each unit must provide.  Judging will occur Friday evening and units must take down their structures before the Friday Evening Campfire.
Clean Campsite Award	An award is available that recognizes your Troop’s cleanliness in camp.  Units will appraise their own performance under the guidance of the camp commissioners and units that maintain standards of cleanliness and safety will receive glory and praise.
Closing Campfire Program	The Sunday Opening Campfire's program is provided by the Staff, the Friday Closing Campfire's program is provided by the units.  Each unit may submit both a song or cheer and skit.  Original or creative skits will be added to the program where unoriginal or repetitive skits will be excluded and units will be asked to do their cheer or short song.
Golden Skillet	A Scout is Hungry has always been the 13th point of the Scout Law, and executing this imperative has always been vital to Scouting.  Now you can pit your cooking abilities against other units in camp and fight for the coveted Golden Skillet which has been passed down from generation to generation in celebration of the venerable tradition of competitive gastronomy.  Your Troop may prepare and submit on entree and one dessert for review by our celebrity panel of experts, gadflies, commissioners, and fellow campers that will rate your culinary acumen against those others submitted.  All entries must be prepared entirely during your stay at camp and ingredients may be brought or purchased at a local food store.  If you are interested, please set inform the Program Director or respond in the entry form you will receive in your Check-In Packet.  Please size your entries such that six (6) reviews could have a small sample of the dish.
Honor Camper	The basic unit in Scouting is the patrol and the basic unit in camp is the troop.  Still, within these frameworks there is space for exceptional Scouts to rise and be recognized
Honor Patrol	The Honor Patrol Award recognizes patrols that participate in a variety of camp activities.  The Honor Troop Award application is available in the handbook supplement.
Honor Troop	The Honor Troop Award recognizes troops that plan and carry out a full Scouting program at summer camp. The Honor Troop Award application is available in the handbook supplement.
Inter-troop Games	Troops are encouraged to participate in our weekly staff challenges. We look forward to repeating the volleyball tournaments of last year. Details of such events will be available upon your arrival to camp.
Map and Quiz Course	Ockanickon is a big place with lots of areas supplying lots of activities.  The Map and Quiz course leads Scouts of all knowledge levels around Ockanickon and familiarized them with both the layout and offerings of each area.  The course can be completed with a little investigation and be done at any time during the week by both youth and adults.
Ockanickonidarod	This Scout skills challenge is open to all troops who may send up to two teams of four to six Scouts on this camp-wide race to prove their Scout mettle.  Stations will be placed throughout camp and over the course of Friday morning and afternoon teams attempt to complete as many leader-run stations as possible.  Adults from each unit will be asked to man stations and will be given all required materials and high scoring participants will receive recognition for proving their abilities.
Open Games	The volleyball court and parade field are always open, weather permitting, for games allowed by the Guide to Safe Scouting.  Two tetherball poles are located next to the gazebo in front of the pool and the paved area in front of Eagle hosts two basketball hoops.  Volleyballs and basketballs will be available at camp.
Orienteering and Compass Courses	The orienteering and compass courses provided by Scoutcraft can be used my anyone staying at Ockanickon.  Maps and orienteering courses are available through Scoutcraft.  Compasses will not be provided.
Service Projects	Service and conservation projects that benefit our camp are always available. Troops, Patrols, and individual Scouts are encouraged to seek out opportunities to do a good turn and check with the camp management to approve an idea
Troop Boating	Small groups interested in an evening activity can speak with the Lake Director the week of their stay to arrange evening boating.  This activity is available Tuesday and Thursday
Troop Games	Units wanting semi-organized competition may sign-up for volleyball and ultimate frisbee games on the sign-up sheets outside the main office.  Units may only sign up for one of each type of game session each week and all games are weather-permitting.
Volleyball Tournament	Each unit with under 50 Scouts may field a single team for the Volleyball Tournament and units with more than 50 Scouts may field two.  These teams of up to six people compete in a single elimination tournament for the final match-up against the staff.  This activity is run concurrently with the Airband Competition and units may participate in both.
Water Carnival	Activities for Scouts of all swimming skill levels let everyone get wet at the Water Carnival.  Fun is the emphasis so the best swimmers winning is pure coincidence.  The events are ridiculous and fun to watch so non-participant campers can have fun too.

Other camp activities can be done as troop or patrol activities with proper arrangement such as the orienteering courses and Mountain Biking.  Some activities cannot reasonably be done as a troop, most notably shooting sports.  The ranges have limited capacity and there's simply too much demand to exclude other shooters and merit badge participants.  There's nothing preventing a unit from visiting the ranges all at once but their is neither a guarantee of capacity nor availability.

Continue to Part 3: Your Week at Camp

You may also want to see the expanded department schedules