Beavers – 6 to 8 years

Discover Beaver Adventures

Our Beaver Scouts are young people aged 6 to 8 who meet on Thursday evenings between 6.15 to 7.15 pm. Some meetings are outdoors, mainly in the Morningside area, but our base is in the Morningside Parish Church.

Beavers:

• Have fun and go on adventures
• Make new friends
• Try new things
• Help others
• Play fun games

Every week, we gather in a group called a Beaver Colony to take part in lots of interesting and challenging activities and learn skills that will last a lifetime.

What do Beavers get up to?

Going to Beavers is very different from going to school. Instead of learning from books, you’ll learn about the world by exploring, playing and doing. You will also develop a respect for nature and other people while exploring the world around you.

The most important skills you’ll learn at Beavers are the ones that will make you feel super strong, standing on your own two feet. We call these character skills. They include things like:

• integrity – which means being honest and doing what you think is right
• initiative – which means knowing how to take the lead on something without being asked,
• self-confidence – which means believing you can do something and having the courage to do it
• problem solving – which means working out how to make something work when it looks impossible

It’s all about having the courage to try new things and learn from them.

How are Beavers Organised?

Our Beaver Colony is made up of up to 24 young people aged 6 to 8, led by trained adult volunteers who plan exciting programmes of activities and keep everyone safe. They often meet outdoors and in smaller groups.

Within our Beaver Colony, Beaver Scouts are part of a Lodge – a group of around 6 Beavers who look out for one another, help each and work together.

Helping our adult leaders to manage the Beaver Colony on a weekly basis are several Young Leaders. These are young people aged 14 to 18, members of local Explorer Scout Units, who are working towards their Duke of Edinburgh or Chief Scout’s Awards and come along to the Cub meetings to help run activities. They are a fantastic support to the adult leaders and can be identified by their darker brown uniform shirts.

Promises and ceremonies

As well as enjoying plenty of adventures, being a Beaver is about going on a journey to understand who you are and what you stand for. When you join the Colony, you’ll explore these ideas by making a promise. A promise is a set of words that mean something to you, which you try to follow every day.

The first few weeks after you join Beavers is about finding out if it is right for you. As part of that, you will chat about the promise with a leader. Beavers promise to do their best to be kind and helpful.

Joining Beavers

Our Beaver Colony is very popular and so we keep a waiting list for young people who want to join. You can join the waiting list at any age and the longer your name is on the list, the higher up the list you will be. We have a written policy on offering places and a copy can be requested by contacting the Group Scout Leader or Waiting List Co-ordinator.

Once you are offered a place in the Colony, on your first night at Beavers, you’ll be taking part in lots of activities, and should just wear something you feel comfortable in. Once you’ve had time to settle in, you’ll be asked to buy your own uniform jumper to wear during meetings and on trips away. We will present you with the Group neckerchief (scarf) of red and grey and the cloth badges that demonstrate that you are a member of the 25th Braid Scout Group.