Bear Elective Adventures
To earn the Bear Badge a Scout must
complete the six required adventures and at least one elective adventure of
your den or family’s choosing completion
Although
the Scout is welcome to earn as many electives, the Pack dues will include the
elective awards completed as a Pack or Den. Electives earned outside of these
activities will need to be purchased by the family. The Advancement Chair can
secure these for the Scout, but the Pack will require
reimbursement.
Remember, there are NO
performance requirements for a boy. Simply participating and doing one's best in
an activity constitutes completion.
Note: Be sure to sign off on each elective in the
handbook and report it to your Den Leader at least one week before the Pack
Meetings. It is up to you and your Den Leader to ensure the scout gets the
proper recognition at the Pack Meetings.
Baloo the Builder 
- Discover
which hand tools are the best ones to have in your toolbox. Learn the rules for
using these tools safely. Practice with at least four of these tools before
beginning a project.
- Select,
plan, and define the materials for the projects you will complete in requirement
3.
- Assemble
your materials and build one useful project and one fun project using
wood.
- Apply
a finish to one of your wood projects.
A Bear Goes
Fishing 
- Discover
and learn about three types of fishes in your area. Draw a color picture of each
fish, record what each one likes to eat, and describe what sort of habitat each
likes.
- Learn
about your local fishing regulations with your leader or a parent or
guardian.
- List
three of the regulations you learn about and one reason each regulation
exists.
- Learn
about fishing equipment, and make a simple fishing pole. Practice casting at a
target.
- Go on
a fishing adventure, and spend a minimum of one hour trying to catch a fish. Put
into practice the things you have learned about fish and fishing
equipment.
Bear Picnic Basket
- Do the
following:
- Create
your own Bear cookbook using at least five recipes you can cook or prepare
either on your own or with some adult help. Include one page with information
about first aid. You should include one recipe for a breakfast item,
one for lunch, and one for dinner, and two recipes for nutritious snacks.
- Prepare for cooking by explaining the
importance of planning, tool selection, and cooking safety.
- Go on
a grocery shopping trip with your den or with an adult. Check the price of
different brands of one single item, and compare the price of a ready-made item
with the price of the same item you would make yourself.
- Do the
following:
- With
the help of an adult, select one food item and follow a recipe to prepare it for
your family in your kitchen. Clean
up after the preparation and cooking.
- With
the help of an adult, select one food item, and follow a recipe to prepare it
outdoors for your family or den. Clean up after the preparation and
cooking.
- Select
and prepare two nutritious snacks for yourself, your family, or your
den.
Beat of the
Drum
- Learn about the history and
culture of American Indians who lived in your area at the time of European
colonization.
- Write a legend.
- Make a dream catcher.
- Make a craft.
- Make a drum. Once your drum is
complete, create a ceremonial song.
- Visit an Order of the Arrow
dance ceremony or American Indian event within your community.
- Learn and demonstrate ceremonial
dances and learn dance steps.
- Create a
dance.
Critter Care
- Care
for a pet for two weeks. Make a list of tasks you did to take care of the pet.
If you do not have a pet, research one that you would like to have and write
about the care it needs.
- Learn
more about your pet or a pet you would like to have. List three
interesting facts
that you learned about your pet.
- Make a
poster about your pet or a pet you would like to own. Share your poster with
your den, pack, or family.
- Do
your best to train a pet to perform a trick or follow a simple command, and
explain how you trained it. (If your pet is a hermit crab, fish, snake, or the
like, you may skip this requirement.)
- Tell
three ways that animals can help people.
- Tell
what is meant by an animal being “rabid.” Name some animals that could have
rabies. Explain what you should do if you are near an animal that might be
rabid.
- Visit
with a local veterinarian or animal shelter caretaker. Find out what types of
animals he or she might see on a regular basis. Ask what type of education is
needed to become a veterinarian or shelter caretaker and why he or she choose to
pursue this career.
Forensics
- Talk
with your family and den about forensics and how it is used to help solve
crimes.
- Analyze
your fingerprints.
- Learn
about chromatography and how it is used in solving crimes. Do an investigation
using different types of black, felt-tip markers. Share your results with your
den.
- Do an
analysis of four different substances: salt, sugar, baking soda, and
cornstarch.
- Make a
shoe imprint.
- Visit
the sheriff’s office or police station in your town. Find out how officers
collect evidence.
- Learn
about the different jobs available in forensic science. Choose two, and find out
what is required to work those jobs. Share what you learned with your
den.
- Learn
how animals are used to gather important evidence. Talk about your findings with
your den.
Make It
Move
- Create
an “exploding” craft stick reaction.
- Make
two simple pulleys, and use them to move objects.
- Make a
lever by creating a seesaw using a spool and a wooden paint stirrer. Explore the
way it balances by placing different objects on each end.
- Do the
following:
- Draw a
Rube Goldberg–type machine. Include at least six steps to complete your
action.
- Construct
a real Rube Goldberg–type machine to complete a task assigned by your den
leader. Use at least two simple machines and include at least four
steps.
Marble Madness
- Discuss
with your family and den the history of marbles, such as where and when the game
began. Talk about the different sizes of marbles and what they are made of and
used for.
- Learn
about three different marble games, and learn to play the marble game “ringer.”
Learn how to keep score. Learn and follow the rules of the game. Play
the game
with your family, friends, or your den.
- Learn
four or five words that are used when talking about marbles. Tell what each of
the words means and how it relates to playing marbles. Share this information
with your den.
- With
the help of an adult, make a marble bag to hold marbles.
- With
your den or family, make a marble obstacle course or marble golf course. Share
what you create. Invite everyone to go through your course.
- Create
your own game using marbles, and design rules for playing the game. Share the
game you created with your den, family, or friends. Explain the rules and how to
play the game.
- With
your den or family, create a marble race track. Have at least two lanes so you
can race your favorite marbles against each other.
- Make a
marble maze.
Roaring Laughter
- Think
about what makes you laugh. Write down three things that make you laugh.
- Practice
reading tongue twisters.
- Create
your own short story. Remove some nouns, verbs, adjectives, and adverbs from the
story, leaving blanks. Without telling the story, have a friend insert his
or her
own nouns, verbs, adjectives, and adverbs in the story you created.
- With a
partner, play a game that makes you laugh.
- Share
a few jokes with a couple of friends to make them laugh.
- Practice
at least two run-ons with your den, and perform them at a pack meeting or
campfire program.
Robotics
- Identify
six tasks performed by robots.
- Learn
about some instances where a robot could be used in place of a human for work.
Research one robot that does this type of work, and present what you learn to
your den.
- Build
a robot hand. Show how it works like a human hand and how it is
different from a
human hand.
- Build
your own robot.
- Visit
a place that uses robots.
Salmon Run
- Explain the safety rules that
you need to follow before participating in boating.
- Identify the equipment needed
when going boating.
- Demonstrate correct rowing or
paddling form. Explain how rowing and canoeing are good exercise.
- Explain the importance of
response personnel or lifeguards in a swimming area.
- Show how to do both a reach
rescue and a throw rescue.
- Visit a local pool or swimming
area with your den or family, and go swimming.
- Demonstrate the front crawl swim
stroke to your den or family.
- Name the three swimming ability
groups for the Boy Scouts of America.
- Attempt to earn the BSA beginner
swim classification.
- Make
static electricity by rubbing a balloon or a plastic or rubber comb on a fleece
blanket or wool sweater. Explain what you learned.
- Conduct
a balloon or other static electricity investigation that demonstrates properties
of static electricity. Explain what you learned.
- Conduct
one other static electricity investigation. Explain what you learned.
- Do a
sink-or-float investigation. Explain what you learned.
- Do a
color-morphing investigation. Explain what you learned.
- Do a
color-layering investigation. Explain what you
learned.
A
World of Sound
- Make
an mbira.
- Make
a sistrum.
- Make
a rain stick.
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