Cadets - did it make a difference to your teenager?

[GnomeDePlume]

DS is wanting to join army/air cadets very soon. I am all in favour of this. I am hoping that this will help him mature a bit and be less droopy. At the moment he spends all his time on the computer/xbox. He has friends but they all seem to be games focussed as well. The cadets is his idea by the way.

If your teenager has done something like cadets how did they change, did they change?

Well, we are off to look at air cadets this evening. We will then take a look at army cadets and see which if either DS wants to join.

I shall look forward to demonstrations of formation ironing and boot polishing and will be disappointed if there is anything less!

Many thanks all for the comments. I appreciate that this is sometime a difficult topic for some.

My son hasn't been going long, but so far it is the only environment with his peers where he HASN'T been bullied. School is terrible for him, and to be honest Scouts was completely horrendous as far as bullying goes, but so far the other Air Cadets have been kind to him and supportive.

DS is nearly 14 and has gone to Sea Cadets for the past year and a half. I LOVE it (get a whole Sunday to myself). DS likes it too. He has made some great mates. It also instills a bit of discipline which is no bad thing and teaches them to be team players.

It's also light on the purse. Uniforms are totally free unlike the Scouts. DS also went to summer camp this year and did all manner of activities which cost a mere £120.

I can't praise it enough to be honest and would totally recommend it.

DS now wants to be a marine (won't hold my breath on that one though as wanted to work in Sainsburys a while back)

Well, we went and looked at air cadets this evening. I am amazed by how organised they are given the age of the cadets. There was zero mucking around, not a single utterence of backchat. Plenty of girls there as well which I think is a good sign.

They certainly do a lot of activities. Lots of fieldcraft type stuff. They also do lots of target shooting but interestingly no blank fire exercises.

I was also very impressed by the quality of the ironing and the shineyness of the shoes!

Next up, army cadets!

My eldest DS (18 now and off to uni), joined the Army Cadets about 3 years ago then left after two years. He joined Police Cadets last year and has left for uni now. He really enjoyed the Police Cadets as he wants to become a policeman eventually. He quite enjoyed the Army Cadets, although he did find them a bit "rough around the edges!" Loved all the guns and stuff - but boys will be boys! It did put him off joining the army however, which I wasn't too sorry about! I think the experience you get depends a lot on the particular detachment you join. His lot were brill at marching, but didn't really organise many activities. I firmly believe that many of today's youth could do with a couple of years of cadets to instill a little bit of hard training and discipline.

I did cadets. I did it because it meant you met boys but in the event it was really good for me - fitness, toughness and so on. I was at an all-girls school where it's easy to be a bit wet so cadets was perfect to counteract all that.

I was never so interested in the weapon side - I got most out of the outward bound stuff - but we handled weapons with live and blank ammo from the age of 13. We used live ammo on firing ranges and blanks in the field. The army are very good at teaching cadets to treat weapons safely and with respect. There was never any messing about, the cadets don't "play" with guns. There's something to be said for giving teenagers things you have to be responsible with and teaching them how to be so.

Moreover - perhaps in response to seeker - I remain no lover of war and I stopped cadets in the sixth form because I didn't personally enjoy the battle drills, but: it did teach me to understand the army and to respect what they do.

My two brothers were in the air cadets. There was something about the camaradrie and the fun they had in challenging situations which lead to the other cadets becoming lifelong friends- more so than those they met at uni because they were all local lads.They still meet up regularly despite now being scattered over the country and stiill laugh together! (I know this joined them in the pub the last time they met and it was side splitting the stories they came out with!)

Both my DS's joined the army cadets at 13. They were in the same unit for about two years; this wasn't a problem as DS1 was a senior cadet while DS2 was a junior on the whole the instructors put them in different groups during regular trg sessions, because of their different ranks/level they often did different things for camps.

They have on the whole both have enjoyed cadets and learnt a number of skills; first aid, map reading, radio skills/morse, field craft etc, with the opportunity to specialise in skills if they wish.
They have both used guns, but it has been a minor part of their experience, also when DS2 was scared of shooting, he wasn't forced to use one, so it's not as though it is a major part.

The camps are subsidised by the Army; £75 for 10 days full of activities such as motorbiking, rock climbing/abseiling, canoeing, trekking, D of E etc

Being in Cadets was viewed as a positive when DS1 began applying for jobs.

DS2 has dyspraxia/learning difficulties, the staff have been fantastic and very supportive with him.

DS does Sea Cadets and has been doing it for nearly 2 years - in that time the only time he touched a gun was to use a decommissioned rifle to perform a guard of honour for the funeral of their Chairman.

Cadets has really turned DS around - he has mild SN and was bullied a lot at school and was going through a particularly aggressive stage - DD could not be left in the same room as him among other things. It has really helped with with respect for others, discipline, behaviour etc as well as teaching him some important life skills - not saying that we hadn't tried to help him with all of these but you know how teenagers don't listen to their parents

He has learnt to take care of his uniform (again issued free from the MOD); he has learnt to cook, sew, run a fire drill, manage a drowning situation, use a two way radio, learnt the phonetic alphabet, read maps, navigate and orientateering, light a fire, beat hypothermia, tie knots, service marine engines etc etc

He has spent several weekends wild camping and has acquired several sailing qualifications. He can also do a BTEC in public services via Cadets which will give him the equivalent of (I think) 4 GCSEs.

His peers seem to want to spend their time on consoles or hanging round town / the park being pita. I would far rather he was taking part in cadet activities.

Thanks Patty, that is very reassuring. DS is mildly dyslexic and very quiet. I am hoping that cadets will help to bring him out of himself a bit and give him a bit of confidence.

DS (15) is in the air cadets and loves it. He polishes his boots and irons his own uniform. He has had weapons training (I was worried at first) but actually it has given him a respect for guns and made him sceptical about the ways guns are portrayed on TV.
He has also had the chance to fly planes. He is now doing the NCO training and will be reponsible for instructing the younger ones (will need to plan and deliver sessions). The focus on taking responsibilty for your actions seems to be rubbing off on other areas of life.

Slightly different story here. My DSD joined army cadets and i've seen a change in her for the worse. She loves it of course, but has gone from being a likeable, kind young lady to an arrogant, cocky one who thinks you should throw bricks at people who need their confidence building (she who, herself, did not have much confidence for many years). Her change in behaviour roughly coincided with her joining the army cadets and gaining favour with older boys. It could just be that she's 14 and that's the way 14 year old girls behave. I was one, but was never spiteful to my parents like she is.

Thank you all for taking the time to comment. DS joined army cadets tonight. Over the weekend we will sort out boots for him. He certainly enjoyed his first evening and we have told him that now he has to commit at least for basic training. Undoubtedly there will be evenings which he doesnt enjoy but I believe that if he gets through basic then he will get a lot out of it.

Thanks again!

My DS is currently in Army cadets and has done so for the last two years. He thoroughly enjoys it. He loves the camps and all the activities they get involved in. His favourite part is the shooting, there is a heavy focus on safety and have to do alot of training before being allowed to shoot them. They also fire blanks. DS has just completed his bronze duke of ed, is a skilled first aider and is part of the cross country and tug of war teams for his detatchment. When he first started he was a bit of a rebel and the whole point of us encouraging him to join was to hopefully instill some discipline and respect. I can safely say he is heaps better than he used to be, but still a teenager to cant be perfect!! DS does want to join the army once he has completed his a-levels so gives him a little insight to the army side of things. It isnt for everyone (my eldest ds wouldnt be seen there!) but can be helpful and lots of fun.

DD aged 15 is in army cadets; loves it; does handle guns probably a couple of times a term on a range but enjoys that too; I think the girls find it great fun and she polishes her own boots! Also in a year has been to a couple of camps including a week in Scotland, including camping for two nights by a river. I am all for it.