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Volunteering at Scouts is changing to help us reach more young people

Volunteering is changing to help us reach more young people

Volunteering is changing at Scouts. Read more

Discover what this means

Inspiration station

Hold a Log Chew to remember the exciting activities you’ve done, then visit inspiration stations to plan future fun.

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You’ll need

  • Pens or pencils
  • A4 paper
  • Sticky notes
  • Old magazines
  • Greeting cards
  • Badge books

A Log Chew is a chance for Beavers to talk about all sorts of things. They’re often used to talk about important topics such as which activities people have enjoyed most, or what they’d like to do in the future. They could also be about friends, school, or anything else. The important thing is that everyone is able to have a say. This activity is one example of how to run a Log Chew. Beaver Scouts should take part in two Log Chews as part of their Teamwork Challenge Award. They give everyone a chance to express their opinion on activities and get involved with planning the programme. Everyone can take part in a Log Chew, including anyone with any additional needs.

Before you begin

  • You may be able to gather more old greeting cards and magazines if you ask parents and carers to help collect them and bring them in.
  • You may find it helpful to have a helper at each station to help with things like reading. This is a great opportunity to invite parents and carers to help and find out more about what you get up to.
  • Create a sign for each of the four inspiration stations by writing ‘Sports and games’; ‘Arts and crafts’; ‘Discovering the world’; and ‘Special occasions’ on four big pieces of paper.
  • Create four inspiration stations by putting the signs up in four places in the space. Put a selection of magazines, badge books, Post-it notes, pens, and sticky dots at each station.
  • You may want to put some craft materials at the ‘Arts and crafts’ station and some sports equipment at the ‘Sports and games’ section.

Get ready to Log Chew

  1. Everyone should sit in a circle. The person leading the activity should explain that Log Chews are all about listening to each other, sharing ideas, and making sure everyone has a say about what they’d like to do.
  2. The person leading the activity should help everyone to remember some of the activities, crafts, and games they’ve enjoyed together. They could ask what people have enjoyed the most, and what they’d like to do again.
  3. Everyone should split into four groups.

Log Chew

  1. Each group should start at a different inspiration station. They should spend five minutes talking about activities in that category they’d like to try, using the magazines, books, and materials to inspire them.
  1. The group should choose their top few ideas, and write or draw them on the Post-it notes. They should stick the Post-it notes to the sign.
  1. After five minutes, the groups should move around to the next station. They should repeat step one and talk about their ideas.
  2. If their top ideas have already been written down, they should show they agree by adding a sticky dot to the Post-it note. They don’t need to add another Post-it note saying the same thing. They should add Post-it notes with any new ideas they have.
  3. Groups should repeat steps three and four until each group has visited all four stations.
  4. Everyone should gather back together. The person leading the activity should gather the completed signs so everyone can look at them.
  5. The person leading the activity should help some people to explain to everyone else why they chose their idea and what inspired them. They should talk about the most popular ideas, any ideas that are similar and could be combined, and any that are exciting but difficult to achieve—maybe someone will have ideas about how to make it happen.
  6. The people who plan the activities and programme should use everyone’s suggestions and thoughts when they plan what everyone will do together.

Reflection

This activity was a chance for everyone to communicate, express their views, and listen to others. While everyone’s sitting in the circle looking at the signs, they should think about how they communicated in this activity. How did people share their ideas with their group? How did they make their meaning clear? People may think about giving examples, letting people ask questions, or using simple words that everyone could understand. Was it also important to listen? People may think about how they listened to other groups’ ideas as well as listening to the people in their group.

This activity was also a chance for everyone to develop and be confident in their beliefs. Everyone had their own opinions about what they wanted to try. Everyone should think about why it’s good for everyone to have their own opinions. People could share their ideas. What did everyone need to do to be confident in their beliefs? People may share ideas like doing some research, thinking carefully, and talking to others. The person who led the activity should remind everyone that they’ll look at all of the ideas and try to plan them into the future programme. They could remind everyone that if anyone has any more ideas, they can always talk to them—maybe they could even help organise an activity or game.

Safety

All activities must be safely managed. You must complete a thorough risk assessment and take appropriate steps to reduce risk. Use the safety checklist to help you plan and risk assess your activity. Always get approval for the activity, and have suitable supervision and an InTouch process.

It’s up to you how much helpers take part in discussions. They may just be there to support people with reading and writing, or they could help people think through their ideas.

You could adapt this activity to learn more about voting, elections, and democracy. Each group could become a party that creates a simple manifesto for fun. You could hold hustings where people can ask groups questions, and even make rosettes. Give everyone a voting slip, and hold a secret ballot.

Make it accessible

All Scout activities should be inclusive and accessible.