Bleeding at Scouts or Never Try

Webelos scouts has lots of information the boys need to learn and show you they know.  There are two ways you can do this: Either lecture them like a college class, or have hands on activities that teach them the same thing.  Having activities is infinitely more time consuming, but lecturing just doesn't work too well with 10 year old boys.

In order to get the Arrow of Light the boys need to earn Readyman which is basically first aid.  We sang songs about calling 911, wrote down emergency phone numbers, watched kid friendly videos about how smoking affects the lungs, but they also had to tell me how to treat 15 different injuries. I decided that could get horribly boring and decided we would have an emergency drill.

I asked for help from Young Women in the ward, asked the other 3 leaders if they wanted their dens to participate, and spent over 20 hours preparing for the activity.

I made:

Fake wounds using flexible caulk and paint

3 different types of fake blood, trying to get consistency and color right for various injuries.  I even made it using washable marker ink instead of food coloring so it wouldn't stain the skin of the nosebleed and poisoning "victims"

I made prosthesis for cuts and scrapes, large gashes and snake bite. I made individual skin mounds for the boys to remove bee stings and ticks.  I packed gelatin powder to make 3rd degree burns and blisters. I brought an entire table of supplies the boys would have to pick from to "treat" their "victims."  I packed makeup to make bruises, frost bite, burns and poisoning. I made scripts for the victims to tell the boys about the situations they received their injuries so the boys could look up what the problem was and how to treat it in their scout books.  I felt pretty good about this activity.

The table of supplies

The only problem: relying on other people.  1 of the Young Women showed up.  2 of the 3 leaders showed up and told me they decided they weren't going to participate like they had said they would.  One leader even said his boys wanted to do another activity (I saw them later doing pushups in the hall.  Because pushups are more appealing to boys than blood and gore...right)

So I did what any leader would do in this situation: conscript her family.

Eric had to do lots of the injuries like 2nd and 3rd degree burns.  He is currently being treated for shock. He also did heart attack and choking.

Livi played our poisoning victim.  I couldn't put the makeup on her that I had wanted, but she did a good job of ignoring the boys as they asked her questions.

Ella loved being able to help.  I think she secretly loved being the center of attention of so many boys!

Ethan looking in his book to diagnose Eric's burn.

Ella showing off her prosthesis I made of the gash in her leg.

I was stressed out, and discouraged.  I hate when I have a picture in my head of how things are suppose to go, and it turns out nothing like that.  I think the boys had a good time, and Ella had a blast.  I know they took in more of the information than if I had just talked at them, so it was a success.