Scout Jamboree

[Queenofthesilverdollar]

DS 13 has recently started scouts and loves it. Has come hogwarts with info re international Jamboree in uS 2019 and he wants to go. There's an assessment weekend later this year. I appreciate it's a competitive process but does anyone know what sort of things they assess on.

I remember someone saying that when she went on an assessment weekend for a previous one, they were looking at things like how open they were to other cultures - including things like trying unusual foods (of course, that could be because that trip was to Japan, where they might well come across foods they didn't know). I don't know what else, but I remember that one, because I was thinking how I'd have failed on it at that age, even if I was otherwise OK with different environments!

DS should pass with flying colours if American food...😁😁😁😁

I know for Guiding it is also things like whether they will be a good representative for Girlguiding and the UK and, frankly, whether the leaders would want to spend 1 - 2 weeks abroad with that young person!

its lots of team building games, seeing how they get on with others and how well they listen to instructions and yes, whether the leaders want to go abroad with them and whether they can behave.

Do you want your son to go queen? My son is going to his county selection event next weekend. I’m hoping he doesn’t get picked, but I haven’t told him that!

He had his 2 weekends ago. He is a bit disappointed but fairly cool, he's been told he'll go somewhere else - as yet to be announced. He's more put out that a girl in his troop who moaned for the whole weekend got on!

I, however, am outraged that they didn't choose my boy and am tempted to write to Bear Gryll's and demand a recount!

Seriously, there were 200 kids for 60 places so not great odds. The thought of him doing the fundraising for £3300 was daunting/PITA.

Also, my DS has mild dyspraxia which affects his co-ordination, stamina, planning skills and fine coordination. So I wasn't sure the outdoor activity focus of the Jamboree was ideal but at no point has any scout leader asked me about it or the impact on him.

More generally I think scouts seems to focus almost entirely on outdoor activity and not community activity and contribution. That's not what I think the balance should be.

I am generally just fed up with being constantly told what a lovely, intelligent, interesting boy DS is but he never gets picked for anything much. It would boost his confidence so much.

Anyways sorry that was a bit of a rant.

Oh bless him. I think it’s akways the loud confident ones that get picked, which makes me think mine won’t either. Apparently it’ll be a one in three chance for ours.
I so don’t want to have to fundraise £3k!!!!! Scout camps in this country are fun enough!!!!

I mean three scouts for one place!

I hope he has a great weekend at selection camp, DS had a ball and fell asleep on the way home and came hogwarts on the Sunday in the clothes he'd left in on the Friday 😱.

I wish your DS all the luck, let me know how he gets on

I'm a leader, slightly involved in selection weekends. I don't just want 40 loud kids, I like the ones who muck in, smile and try their best, even if it's hard or not a task they'd enjoy.

For instance, we asked ours to clear a mud-filled brook, which the big lads found easy, and the little ones found tough. But the littlest Guide made had a really good stab, didn't moan, and chatted to the others whilst a couple of physically more capable ones whined at being wet/muddy/cold, and why did they have to do this?

Guess who got selected?!

I'm glad to hear that Green and can only assume you are in a different County.

My ds is going on a reactionaries in a couple of weeks . Don't know how he will get on on but hope he enjoys himself and learns some new things as that is all that mattets.
I was selected for a jamboree years ago. I was tiny, quiet and had few traditional guiding skills so had no idea why I was picked. My much more able friend was furious that I was picked over her ! Years later i met my old guide leader and we were talking about it. She said that I was quiet but interested in others and just got stuck in without a fuss. So it isn't always the loud ones who get picked !

Two other of DS friends have been picked who are great kids not quiet nor loud. Real troopers and thoroughly deserve to go.

Another kid we know has "anger issues" but manages to keep it under control when necessary, so won't have shown that on selection.

Most scouts and guides will be good kids, it's bit of a self selecting group. The number of applicants to places mean people will be disappointed, C'est la vie.

So all you people in the know. I’d love to know how onerous the fund raising is? We really don’t have much money and though I say I don’t want our son to go, I know how much he’d love it. But I have two jobs and not much time.my husband helps coach our other child’s rugby team. I can’t imagine how much commitment it would take to raise that much money. It totally freaks me out...

Mismoneypennies I hope you get a reply but to my reckoning it's roughly £200 per month. I know here that previous jamboree attendants found it hard but managed and the troop did a fundraiser for them.

Interesting

Ds1 is on selection camp at the moment, apparently 80 applicants for 45 places which is much better odds than I'd imagined.
7 have applied from our group.

That is good odds chasingsquirrels. Hope he enjoys it

DD went on an international camp with Guides. She is quiet, introverted, not particularly confident and is nervous about speaking to new people, so she is definitely not an obvious candidate for a selection process.

I think it helped that she was a very young applicant and they needed younger Guides for that particular camp (due to the age range of the hosts). She is also willing to try new foods and activities, is kind to everyone, and rarely complains, all of which work in her favour.

She had a brilliant time, made several friends from the host country and has stayed in touch with them. She even managed to speak at an international meeting, representing the UK.

A contingent of Guides from our county is going to the 2019 WSJ, but DD felt that fundraising that amount would be too much to take on.

Just got the email, my son didn’t get s place either. He’s disappointed. I’m sad for him.

DS didn’t get in either
I’m not sure how I feel given that both DH and I are heavily involved in scouting- partly I’m pleased that this hasn’t conveyed any special privileges on him, then I’m annoyed that he hasn’t got to go despite all we do
To others who didn’t get in, our county works on ratios to fill its numbers so generally it’s not a reflection on your DC. So the % that come from each district in the county get that % of places. It’s then split between age ranges and a boy/girl mix, if not then logically the “best” candidates at selection would mostly be the oldest explorers.
In any case you should look around. Our county is doing an alternative international trip to Europe for a similar length of time for the princely sum of £1100 It has to be said that DH and I managed to get over our disappointment very quickly when we realised

Faintly, I felt similar when dd wasn’t put through from the division selection process (I wasn’t part of the selection process) for our county’s upcoming guide international selection. Both dh and I are both involved heavily with both guiding and scouting and it felt like a bit of a kick in the teeth that this wasn’t recognised (what made me extra specially cross was when I found out that the girls who were selected didn’t actually turn up to the county day, they changed their mind and neither of them thought to let anyone know prior to the event, so our division weren’t represented at all on the county day).
It’s a difficult one, we don’t want special treatment, but sometimes we work so hard not favouring guiders children that they miss out completely.

My son got in. I was surprised as he can be very introverted but he apparently aced his interview. They asked him at selection if he would be prepared to miss out on things for the preparation and he said he was already missing out on a large parade in London that day. I think that helped him.
He isn’t 14 yet but has been helping out with the younger sections for the last 18 months and has really come on well.
Now we have to raise £168 per month until they go 😱

maryann I think that’s it in a nutshell really, DH and I are always so careful not to favour DS in any way (he’s recently become a patrol leader and is a good one. If he had been one of two candidates for the position I’m fairly sure I wouldn’t have awarded it to him so as we weren’t seen to be favouring him)
It would have been nice if someone else had done him a favour on our behalf

My son was initially not selected for a previous jamboree but then got in when they added an extra group. We met up with the other 4 parents/ scouts who were local and planned our fundraising together. We wrote to local companies, Boise was people asking for raffle prizes and donations, researched local grants. Put letters through local doors offering to do odd jobs (in pairs, safety considered etc) bag packed at supermarkets, put on a night at the dog track, a night at a local Indian restaurant (they charged us£10 per head for set menu and we sold tix for £20) wrote to local rotary clubs and similar. Did cake sales and craft stalls at as many fairs and large work places as would let us in! Basically brainstormed all the contacts we knew between us. Families and friends also donated. The kids really got into it. Japan was amazing and worth all the hard work.