by Toni Smith
Exploring the bush and the countryside is one of the great joys of being a Joey Scout. All Australian children should have a basic knowledge of how to avoid danger in the bush and how to survive if they become lost in the bush. Joey Scout Leaders can help our Joey Scouts to gain this knowledge and at the same time take part in fun filled programmes in the outdoors. These activities and ideas are designed to help you start the Joey Scouts on the trail to exploring our outdoors with enjoyment and safety.
Activities
Have you ever given a magnifying glass to your Joey Scouts and let them look around for themselves? This activity is lots of fun, but Leaders should stress to Joey Scouts not to touch anything dangerous. It is a good idea to have plenty of parent helpers to assist.
For a different perspective use a cardboard cylinder and look through it closing one eye and observe an object or scene. If you walk around looking through the cardboard cylinder it will give you a different view of the bush.
Give the Joey Scouts a shaving mirror and get them to look in the mirror as they travel along and see what is in the treetops. Most Joey Scouts don’t look up when they are walking!
Leaf shake
Equipment: Plastic bags.
Formation: Joey Scouts divided into teams of four or five.
Method: Have a parent helper or Leader select an overhanging branch from a shrub or a tree. Place a large plastic bag over some leaves and shake the leaves. Gently pull the bag away and look at the “catch”. Then allow the catch to return to the leaves.
Animal homes
Formation: Joey Scouts in teams of four or five.
Method: Specify a safe area and send the Joey Scout teams to look for “homes”. (STRESS these are not to be disturbed.) After a specified time limit of about 15 minutes, the Joey Scouts return and then take turns conducting the others on a hike to see what they have found.
Tree feelings
Have the Joey Scouts play-act the feelings a tree would have when these things happen to it. How would a tree feel with a gently breeze blowing, a bush fire burning it, a violent storm, being chopped down, someone climbing up it, being planted in the ground, birds nesting in its branches, an animal eating its leaves, a person smelling its blossoms and insects climbing up its trunk?
Activities which Joey Scouts can enjoy while walking.
Collecting things
Collect twigs and bark along the way and when you stop make a model of a Gunya (an Aborigine’s home). If you have a theme to your outing, the Joey Scouts could construct a model or picture using the collected items, eg, if your theme was ants, the Joey Scouts could build a picture of an ant using their collections.
Draw a flower on an A4 sheet of paper with different shaped petals (see illustration). Give each Joey Scout a copy of the flower and have them write their name in the centre on the dotted line. The Joey Scouts collect leaves for the flower petals as they are walking, when finished have them ‘blu tak’ the petals to their flower.
Colours of the rainbow
Formation: Joey Scouts divided into teams of four or five.
Method: Specify a safe area for the Joey Scout teams to collect as many shades of a specific colour as possible. At the end of a specified time limit, each player returns and arranges their collection in order from dark shades to light.
Nature sounds
The Joey Scouts sit quietly in the bush. A time limit is given during which the Joey Scouts try to identify as many different sounds as possible. When the time is up, each tells what they heard.
Twist: This may also be played in the city. You will be amazed at the number of sounds around us, many of which we are totally unaware.
Sound maps
During a walk, find an appropriate area and instruct the Joey Scouts to find themselves a special place to sit down on their own. Give each Joey Scout a piece of paper and a pencil. Have them mark an X in the middle of the page to represent where they are sitting. Get them to be quiet with their eyes closed and listen to the sounds around them. With the paper on the ground in front of them mark the positions of sounds, eg, in front, to their right, near or far. Make up your own symbols for each sound. To start with try L-loud, S-soft, H-harsh, M-musical, L____-long, S_-short, P-pleasing.
Craft
Colour collage
Equipment: ‘Blu-tak’ and paper.
Formation: Joey Scouts divided into teams of four or five.
Method: Specify a safe area and send the Joey Scout teams to collect leaves of as many shades as possible, but give each Group a different colour to find. When teams return ask them to cooperate in creating a collage (on any topic decided) using their shades. Some beautiful artwork will result!
Creepy crawly creatures
Equipment: ‘Blu-tak’ and pipe cleaners.
Method: Have the Joey Scouts find gumnuts and leaves etc to make their creepy crawly creature from. Give them some ‘blu-tak’ and pipe cleaners and let their imagination work overtime creating their creatures.
Leaf mobile
Equipment: Twigs, leaves, wool and ‘blu-tak’ or glue.
Method: Joey Scouts collect leaves and twigs to make a mobile. Use twigs tied together and suspend leaves of different shapes and sizes with lengths of wool, blue-tacked or glued to the back of the leaves and tied to the twigs. Try to copy the natural shimmering movement of the leaves.
Scavenger hunt
Draw pictures of the items you wish the Joey Scouts to collect in their scavenger hunt on an A4 sheet of paper. Eg, A feather, something yellow, a thin leaf, a gumnut, etc. Don’t forget to take plastic bags for them to put their treasures in.
Story
Clothes-peg adventure
Equipment: Clothes pegs, textas or crayons, story.
Formation: Loose.
Method: Give each Joey Scout a clothes peg to decorate with the markers or crayons. Have the Joey Scouts draw faces on their pegs. Explain that you’ll read a story about the clothes-peg friends. As you read the story, have the Joey Scouts run to the places you mention and clamp their clothes-peg onto whatever you name. Continue with the story; when you mention the next place the Joey Scouts unclip their peg and run to the next place and clip on their peg, and so on. Adapt the story to your surroundings.
A group of clothes-pegs were best friends. They always stuck together. One day they decided to investigate a tree (pause). They all ran to a tree and sat on the leaves (pause) and branches (pause). After they rested for a while, they decided to visit the grass (pause) to see who lived there.
The clothes-pegs liked walking around the grass, but then they saw a playground (pause). They all liked going down the slide (pause). But after going down the slide, they were tired and decided to take a short nap.
After sleeping for a short while, the clothes-pegs yawned and stretched to wake up. They were happy about all the wonderful things outside that God had given them: trees (pause), grass (pause), the playground (pause), but best of all they liked each other (pause).
GAMES
Hidden dangers
Equipment: Pictures of dangerous and non dangerous animals, reptiles and insects you would find in the bush.
Formation: Loose in a designated area.
Method: Hide pictures in a designated area and have the Joey Scouts go and search for the hidden dangers. They may collect the non dangerous pictures but must leave the dangerous ones where they are. When they come across the dangerous pictures they must call a Leader or helper to collect the picture. Ask the Joey Scouts why they think the animals, reptiles or insects are dangerous and how they think they should avoid them.
Packing supplies
Equipment: Day packs, lunch boxes, drink bottles, first aid kits, hat, jumper, raincoat, sunburn cream and a few unrelated items. Have enough for each team.
Formation: Divide the Joey Scout into four equal teams.
Method: Pile all the equipment in the middle of the hall. Have teams line up in each corner. In relay fashion each team is to collect a day pack, and all the items they think they may need to go on an expedition for a day.
Note: You may like to discuss why they have chosen the items they have after the game.
Lost in the bush
Set up a course in the busy, eg, around some trees, over some rocks or logs, behind some bushes, etc., or whatever the area you are taking your Joey Scouts lends itself to.
This game is designed to teach two things.
1. That Joey Scouts should occasionally look behind themselves so that if they become lost they will recognise where they have been.
2. If Joey Scouts are lost they should not panic. They stop, sit down and think quietly on which way they came from.
Joey Scouts navigate the course, when the Leader calls “LOOK BEHIND” the Joey Scouts stop and turn around and face the direction they just came from, the Joey Scouts then observe the surroundings that they have just walked. When the Joey Scouts have looked back they continue the course and when the Leader calls “LOST” the Joey Scouts stop, sit down on the ground where they are and think about where they came from. When they are certain, they retrace their steps and navigate the course in reverse.
This principle could also be used if the Joey Scouts become lost in a big shopping complex.
Make a shelter
Equipment: Blanket or sheet.
Method: Let the Joey Scouts use their imagination to make themselves a shelter or cubbyhouse from the blanket or sheet in the bush using whatever is available. Make sure beforehand that the area to be used is safe. After the Joey Scouts have completed the shelter, provide and share a snack with all the Joey Scouts while sitting in their shelter. Over the snack discuss the benefits of this sort of shelter and would it help them if they became lost.
Slip Slop Slap
Equipment: Over-sized tee shirts and hats, obstacles, eg, umbrella, inflated toy, esky and zinc cream.
Formation: Divide the Joey Scouts into teams. Teams line up at one end of the hall.
Method: On a given signal the first Joey Scout puts on the over-sized tee shirt and hat, runs around the obstacle course to a Leader at the other end of hall, who dabs the zinc cream on their nose. The Joey Scout runs back around the obstacle course, removes the tee shirt and hat and passes it to the next Joey Scout in the team who takes their turn.
Band-aid relay
Equipment: Band-aids.
Formation: Divide the Joey Scouts into teams.
Method: Give each Joey Scout a band-aid. One Leader or helper a few metres away and in line with each team. The first Joey Scout runs down to the Leader or helper, the Joey Scout unwraps and applies the band-aid to themselves, then runs back to their team, tags the next Joey Scout and goes to the end of the line. The Joey Scout tagged then takes their turn.
(Note: Please check that Joey Scouts are not allergic to adhesive dressings before playing this game. Editor)
Bush Safety board game
Equipment: Board game for each two or three Joey Scouts. This could be as a very large board made from plastic which the Joey Scouts could stand on themselves. Make a large dice from foam rubber; plasticine for Joey Scouts to make their own game piece to move around the board.
Method: Joey Scouts throw dice and move that number of squares. If the square states something that is good for the bush (eg, keep quiet to not scare the birds) then they move forward a couple of spaces. If it is bad (eg, walks off the walking track) then they move back one space. The Leader should emphasise the positive as the Joey Scouts land on good points.
Explorers appeared in the February & March 1996 issues of Australian Scout. Compiled by Helen Strutt; written by Toni Smith; contributors were Helen Strutt, Rona Smith, Leonie Plummer, Lynn Mann and Barry Mason.
JOEY SCOUT BOARD GAME