Both Walpole and Pitshanger Scouts began their evening with a game of table football this week, but then took on very different activities. Walpole spent Wednesday building contraptions out of junk, whilst Pitshanger spent Friday making films.
For Walpole's Junk Yard Challenge, each patrol was given junk such as newspapers, cardboard, dowels and tape, and half an hour to make something that could knock a tennis ball off a cone. The patrol that could do it from furthest away would win.
One patrol's answer to the problem
The competition was run high jump style. Each patrol used its device to knock the ball off from behind a rope. Once everyone had tried, the gap was made bigger, and so it went on until one patrol was left. Whilst the patrols were building, our new Scouts took part in investiture training.
Lining up on the tennis ball
On Friday, Pitshanger turned to stop-motion animation. The briefing covered the golden rules: keep the camera completely still, make small movements between frames, and be consistent. Each patrol then planned a storyline of 10 to 15 seconds and set it down as a storyboard before touching any of the materials, which were Lego, clay, whiteboards and paper.
Filmmakers at work
Then came the filming, with Scouts taking turns to move their figures and capture each frame. The evening finished with the leaders going round each patrol to watch the results.
Making the scene
Ready for filming
Parents, some of those films may be shown at the 1EN Scouts 2025/26 and Summer Camp Review. Pitshanger's is on Friday 9 October and Walpole's on Wednesday 14 October, both at the 1EN HQ. On both evenings, Scouts should arrive at 19:30 for their regular meeting and to help with setup, and parents and families are welcome to join from 20:00. It is a chance to see what the Scouts have been up to this past year, summer camp included, and to get a feel for the year ahead, even if your Scout is new or didn't attend the activities.