While you don't need to use meeting time for a snack or clean up, you can still do some or all of the other parts of a traditional meeting.

The Arrival Activity: (5 minutes)

Consider having a WELCOME QUESTION on the screen to answer in the chat box or on screen if you enable to annotation tool.

Opening Ceremony: (1 minute)

Have a Patrol Leader or Unit Leaders welcome everyone to the meeting and start of the night.

Updated: (5 minutes)

You can share any new here

As you get used to Scouting virtually, this could be a good time for your scouts (collectively) to share what Scouting they have done since you last met, and how they are going with some of the bigger challenges they might we working towards. 

An Activity: (12 minutes)

This is a great time to get started or work on program and achievements! think about what you can send the day before or the morning of the meeting so that they can come in prepared to interact. That helps you make the most of the time.

Here are some ideas to get started:

• Get silly: Play charades, Taboo or Pictionary. Have a scavenger hunt for silly items that might be around the house
• Get the wiggles out: Do yoga or have a dance party together.
• Get artistic: Draw portraits of one another and share.
• Explore STEM: Create a race car from found materials. Share favourite recipes and send then to each other to try. Create a cookbook. Have a Top Chef Challenge. Share science experiments.
• Learn more about each other: Share best and worst things that happened today (Roses and Thorns)
• For Scouts: Watch a TED talk and discuss. Create your own videos.

Remember: You can screen share, so anything that you can put on your screen can be shared - like videos, pictures and more.

Closing: (5 minutes)

Be creative! How would you and your Scouts like to end the night? Is it a moment of reflection, to be thankful, to appreciate what we have and what we can do? Ask ahead and allow each Scout the opportunity to contribute - maybe you have two Scouts who do this each wee, rotating through the Section.

Source: https://scouts.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/running-an-online-meeting-idea-1.pdf

While you don't need to use meeting time for a snack or clean up, you can still do some or all of the other parts of a traditional meeting.

The Arrival Activity: (5 minutes)

Consider having a WELCOME QUESTION on the screen to answer in the chat box or on screen if you enable to annotation tool.

Opening Ceremony: (1 minute)

Have a Patrol Leader or Unit Leaders welcome everyone to the meeting and start of the night.

Updated: (5 minutes)

You can share any new here

As you get used to Scouting virtually, this could be a good time for your scouts (collectively) to share what Scouting they have done since you last met, and how they are going with some of the bigger challenges they might we working towards. 

An Activity: (12 minutes)

This is a great time to get started or work on program and achievements! think about what you can send the day before or the morning of the meeting so that they can come in prepared to interact. That helps you make the most of the time.

Here are some ideas to get started:

• Get silly: Play charades, Taboo or Pictionary. Have a scavenger hunt for silly items that might be around the house
• Get the wiggles out: Do yoga or have a dance party together.
• Get artistic: Draw portraits of one another and share.
• Explore STEM: Create a race car from found materials. Share favourite recipes and send then to each other to try. Create a cookbook. Have a Top Chef Challenge. Share science experiments.
• Learn more about each other: Share best and worst things that happened today (Roses and Thorns)
• For Scouts: Watch a TED talk and discuss. Create your own videos.

Remember: You can screen share, so anything that you can put on your screen can be shared - like videos, pictures and more.

Closing: (5 minutes)

Be creative! How would you and your Scouts like to end the night? Is it a moment of reflection, to be thankful, to appreciate what we have and what we can do? Ask ahead and allow each Scout the opportunity to contribute - maybe you have two Scouts who do this each wee, rotating through the Section.

Source: https://scouts.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/running-an-online-meeting-idea-1.pdf

Child Safe Scouting at Home

Nothing is more important than the safety of the young people in our care.

Child safety in an online meeting is similar to regular meeting in the hall.

We follow the same protocols.

Parents are always welcome. Nothing is a secret in Scouting.

Parents will be curious to sit in on early online meetings. This is good!

One-on-one communications between Leaders and youth members are not OK.

Use a shared Section Leaders’ email to send out activity sheets and reminders to your Section, and for them to send in any inquiries or examples of their badge work or activity challenges,

Communications – like emails about the next online meeting, or phone calls to parents – should be in normal Scout hours, not late at night or too early.

Our Code of Conduct and guidelines on unacceptable behaviour govern how we act as Leaders, whether in the hall, on camp, or running an online meeting.

You might remind your youth members:

To keep language and behaviour nice – it may not be apparent who is watching, like parents or younger siblings. The Scout Law and Promise still work in a virtual world.

To share their emails, photos and videos of their work with their parents before sending them to the Leaders.

Normal rules apply to behaviour between Scouts. No-one should make another youth member feel unsafe or excluded.

A youth member who feels unsafe, or unsure of what to do, should talk with a trusted adult as soon as possible.

 

Idea

Get a temporary email address to support online meetings.

For example, 1stwindyvalleycubs@gmail. com

All Section Leaders need the login and password to add this account to their emails.

When a Cub writes to a Leader, s/he is writing to the whole team.

When a Leader replies, they Reply All, so all Leaders see the response.

[Most Cubs will write from their parents’ account, but this is still good practice.]

 

Supporting our youth

Staying home may limit our youth members from the usual support they get from teachers, sport coaches, etc.

It is possible that a young person may ask you for help over a concern.

Just like regular Scouting at the hall, please for assistance by reporting this to our Child Safety Team who are available 24/7 on 1800 870 772 or childsafe@scoutsvictoria.com.au

 

Source: Scouting at Home - Manual

Technology

Learning new skills is exciting – for adults as well as youth.

There are many options:

• Zoom
• Google Hangouts
• Or whatever else you choose to use

 

Zoom

Across Scouts Victoria, Zoom has quickly become the standard for meetings across a range of formations, including weekly Section meetings, as well as Group Councils, District meetings and more.

Zoom costs US$14.99 (about AU$25) a month for a Group to set up an account for the weeks or months ahead.

Check https://zoom.us/pricing

But the free version would also be adequate if your meetings are less than 40 minutes:

• You can host up to 100 participants (that’s a big Joey Mob)
• Unlimited 1-to-1 meetings
• 40-minute limit on group meetings
• Unlimited number of meetings

You can meet through Zoom by phone, iPad, laptop, desktop.

To join a Zoom meeting, you don’t need to have Zoom installed on your computer.

However, if you’re the host, you’ll need to download and install the software package.

The host sets up the meeting, and the invitation list.

The host needs to be familiar with many options available, such as muting all speakers, or allowing one to speak, letting us share their screen (eg a PL or Leader) or being the only one to share screen:

• For those who would like more assistance with using Zoom, we’re creating a Leaders Guide to Zooming. But here are some tips …

We need to be aware of how to use the equipment safely, just like everything is we do in Scouting.

Here are some ideas of things to think about when running a Zoom meeting. For more information, include specific instructions, check out our Leaders Guide to Zooming.

Some functions to check out:

• Use the password function to avoid unexpected people joining you.
• Use the waiting room, so you only let Scouting people in.
• Set screen share to “host only”
• Disable “join before the host”. It’s a bit like letting the kids into the hall before you arrive!
• You could disable the chat function, including private chat between participants
• Share the work: the host Leader can make a fellow Leader a ‘co-host’ so they can help manage muting and the supervision of the room. Just like at the hall, they can help with sharing content when appropriate. It also means, if you use “break out rooms”, Leaders can move between “rooms” just like you do in the hall to check in on Patrols or Sixes.

 

Also:

• Be aware anyone could be recording your meeting, without permission.
• For younger sections, send meeting invitations to parents. For older sections, send to both parents and youth.
• Remember you are always visible.

       ‐ Don’t eat or drink anything you wouldn’t eat or drink in the hall.
       ‐ Keep your background blurred.

Leaders are learners too:

• Understand some Leaders and youth members will be better at this than others - allow time for everyone to learn
• Look after yourself as Leaders too – this is a new world for you, ask to visit other Groups to learn and share your experiences (as travel isn’t required this should be easier to do)
• Enable Leaders to share their experiences good and bad – learn by doing!

 

Idea

Leaders can’t run their Zoom meeting from the hall.

But you can use photos inside your hall as your virtual background in Zoom.

Leaders are actually supporting the program from their homes but it looks like they’re in the hall as normal.

 

Source: Scouting at Home - Manual

During this challenging time, it is vital that Scouting continues for our young people. Scouting provides:

• social connection
• support for positive mental health
• supervision (Scouting and schools are better than shopping centres)
• a degree of normality in difficult times

 

We offer a number of things that schools can’t – more fun, leadership opportunities for all, etc Many other activities like sport, dance and cheer are fully shut. We’re not. Here are some thoughts on:

• Holiday program
• Regular weekly program
• Activity sheets
• Technology
• Child safety
• Preparation

… in an online world.

Program Now…

School is on holiday - Scouting isn’t.

Traditional weekly program – online – mightn’t start till the first week of Term 2.

But Joeys, Cubs and Scouts need things to do now.

We can help.

Some ideas that Sections are already doing on line:

• Making pizza
• Origami lessons
• Sleepovers (in own homes)
• Dance parties
• Virtual hikes (digital map & coordinates, images)
• Virtual family camp – 24 hours of activities to do, post, share
• Home-based scavenger hunts
• Section Councils
• Magic tricks
• Guest speakers

 

Celebrate Scouting!

Is this a uniformed meeting? Or a scarf?

Or does your program require something special?

 

Idea

Badge presentations and investitures can still happen on line, but what next? Badges can be snail-mailed to youth members with a short note from the Leaders. Youth members hate waiting for badges. You can check their shirt, to see if it’s sewn on, next time you’re online. Investitures can be repeated later when we’re again meeting face-to-face – and preferably somewhere memorable: not in the hall, but on camp or Pack Holiday, or an urban hike, or beach night.

Source: Scouting at Home - Manual

The weekly video provides some interesting activities and also shows how cubs could put together some pre-recorded segments for the following week's program.

Be Prepared

When Robert Baden-Powell assigned Guides and Scouts the motto of Be Prepared, he could not have anticipated that it would have been implemented in relation to social distancing requirements.

In true Guiding spirit, Girl Guides have adapted to the current situation of suspended social activities by swapping to a form of virtual Guiding. And we’re very excited about it.

Girl Guides Victoria have been working with our Guides to introduce several virtual Guiding elements:

• GGTV: A weekly video series airing each Sunday morning with episodes featuring all our favourite segments: STEM, Arts, Outdoors, Life Skills and Service
• GGTV Hub: A space for Girl Guides to connect and share ideas, activities, and challenges.
• Virtual Unit Meetings: Guide groups will still continue their weekly meetings but these will be held online via video conferencing.

Janelle Howell, Guides Victoria State Commissioner says:

“We are thrilled to be able to share GGTV episodes created by girls, for girls. We are working with our volunteer Leaders to provide virtual meetings to ensure that Guiding continues uninterrupted for our youth members.”

This is an exciting time for Guiding and we’re ready for virtual Guiding.

Episode 1. 28 March 2020   https://youtu.be/FwJfMVGZ_co

Launch. 21 March 2020 https://youtu.be/x8CdMhfndPw

 

Source: https://girlguidesballarat.org.au/news/virtual-guiding/ 

 

Girl Guides Victoria published this special “Code of Conduct for Hosting Virtual Unit Meetings” is designed to provide guidance to Girl Guides Victoria volunteers, adult members, youth members, and parents/guardians of youth members, when organising and participating in Virtual Unit Meetings" on March 27, 2020, on their site https://www.guidesvic.org.au/category/resources/leadership-resources/.

I have copied it to her as I think it provides some good guidance.

It is not intended to be a comprehensive set of rules, but rather should provide a foundation for the conduct of Virtual Unit Meetings. Girl Guide Units are encouraged to develop their own Virtual Unit Meeting traditions, as they navigate the world of Virtual Guiding together.

Organising a Virtual Unit Meeting

1. Organising and participating in Virtual Unit Meetings is optional.
2. Virtual Unit Meetings should be held on the day and at the time the Unit would typically meet.
3. Virtual Unit Meetings could also be held during school holidays, on weekends, or at another time, as agreed between the Leaders, Guides, and parents/guardians.
4. Virtual Unit Meetings should not start until a Leader is present. Parents should not leave girls unattended in a Virtual Meeting until a Leader is present in the Virtual Unit Meeting. Participating in a Virtual Unit Meeting
5. The same rules that apply at a regular Girl Guide Unit Meeting, activity, or event apply to Virtual Unit Meetings. This includes complying with all Girl Guides Victoria policies, procedures, guidelines, and child safe standards.
6. Parents/guardians are welcome to be present in the room during a Virtual Unit Meeting, but are encouraged to sit out of view of the camera and not participate (as they would during a normal Unit meeting) unless providing tech support to their Guide, or if asked by the Unit to join in.
7. If possible, siblings should not attend Virtual Unit Meetings, unless they are interested in becoming a member of Girl Guides Victoria, or unless they have been requested by the Unit to join in.
8. Leaders, or a nominated Guide, should send a message to all participants before the Virtual Unit Meeting starts, setting out an agenda for what will be covered during the meeting and how long will be spent on each matter. This could include matters such as:

• opening and closing ceremony;
• discussing rules for the Virtual Unit Meeting; and/or Guiding in Your Pocket - Code of Conduct for Virtual Unit Meetings v1.1 27 March 2020 Created by Tess Birch
• setting out the Virtual Unit Meeting program, activities, or conversation topics. These could align with the GGTV episode for that week and activities off the GGTV Hub, or could be independent activities as decided by the Unit.

9. Units should develop their own rules and traditions for the Virtual Meeting, including:

• values (remembering the Guide Promise and Law, in particular being respectful, considerate, friendly and thoughtful);
• what to wear to the meeting (Girl Guide Uniform? Unit uniform?); and/or
• taking turns to speak and listen, and how you know when it’s your turn to speak.

10. Due to the potential for issues with feedback/echo, participants are encouraged to keep themselves on mute unless they are the person speaking.

Sourced from https://www.guidesvic.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/Code-of-Conduct-for-Virtual-Unit-Meetings.pdf

Plan the structure of the meeting. Make it as similar as possible in format to a normal face-to-face cub meeting. Keep focusing on cub led.

• Opening
• Games and Activities
• Closing

Try to get all the cubs participating.

Keep the parents informed of the approach.

Don't forget to schedule and run Pack councils too.

Basic content about Zoom.

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