Learn It, Earn it! Badges Offered in Art, Nature, Cooking and Science
Local scout troops have partnered with the Naperville Park District over the years to beautify parks through initiatives such as Eagle Scouts constructing benches, Cub Scouts harvesting prairie seeds and Brownies helping with spring spruce up in their neighborhood parks.
The Naperville Park District, in cooperation with area scout leaders, is expanding the educational experiences available to scouts. The District’s new Learn It, Earn It! program offers a wide variety of 60-120 minute programs for scout troops that fulfill badge requirements for Girl Scouts (Brownies through Cadettes) and Cub Scouts (Tiger, Wolf, Bear and Webelo ranks).
The Learn It, Earn It! Brochure that details all available programs can be found on the Park District’s website at www.napervilleparks.org/LearnItEarnIt, at the Park District Administration Building at 320 W. Jackson Ave. and at the 95th Street Center at 2244 W. 95th St. Each of the programs is designed for groups and is ideal for a troop or den activity. With the exception of a few programs, such as the Creating Pottery and Cartooning programs for Cub Scouts, each of the 1-2 hour programs fulfills an official scout badge requirement.
“The Park District has put together an exciting menu of badge programs for scouts,” said Director of Recreation Brad Wilson. “Scouts can choose from four areas, including Art, Nature, Cooking and Science. There’s also a Millennium Carillon Tour available with a special patch for each scout.”
Examples of nature programs include Let’s Go Hiking, Bug Bonanza, and Life of a Night Owl. One of the science programs, Be a Detective, will teach skills such as observation, experimentation, analysis of evidence, and collaboration. Cooking topics will cover international cuisines, healthy snacks and preparing simple meals.