• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to content
  • Skip to primary sidebar

Scouter Mom

A resource Scouts and Scouting

Follow Us on FacebookFollow Us on TwitterFollow Us on InstagramFollow Us on PinterestFollow Us on RSSFollow Us on E-mail
  • Home
  • Cub Scouts
    • Lions
    • Bobcat
    • Tigers
    • Wolves
    • Bears
    • Webelos and Arrow of Light
    • Cub Scout Outdoor Activity Award
    • Cub Scout Nova Awards
    • Other Cub Scout Awards
    • Pack Committee
  • Scouts BSA
    • Scout Rank
    • Tenderfoot
    • Second Class
    • First Class
    • Star
    • Life
    • Eagle Scout
    • Eagle Palms
    • Merit Badges
    • Scouts BSA Nova Awards
    • Other Scouts BSA Awards
    • Youth Leadership
    • Troop Committee
  • Venturers
    • Venturing Award
    • Discovery Award
    • Pathfinder Award
    • Summit Award
    • Venturing Ranger Award
    • Venturing Quest Award
    • Venturing Trust Award
    • Venturing Nova Awards
    • Other Venturing Awards
  • Ideas
    • Ceremonies
    • Games
    • Gathering Activities
    • Crafts
    • Craftsman Projects
    • Cheers and Audience Participation
    • Prayers and Graces
    • Scoutmaster and Cubmaster Minutes
    • Recipes
    • Songs
    • Skits
    • Puzzles
    • Stories
    • Tricks and Stunts
    • Humor
    • Instruction Aids
  • Program Themes
    • Cub Scout Themes
    • Boy Scout Program Features
    • Program Ideas by Holidays both Serious and Silly
  • About
    • Contact Me
    • Advertise on this Site
    • Sponsored Articles / Guest Posts

Fire Safety with Cub Scouts

3 Comments

One of the things scouts love about camping is the campfires. Sitting around a fire, toasting marshmallows, and talking. I really enjoy a nice fire also. What I don’t enjoy is sounding like a broken record with my Webelos. “Stop poking the fire. Stop throwing stuff in the fire. What goes in the fire stays in the fire.”

Its not that I want to be a killjoy, but they like to put sticks in the fire until the ends are on fire and then pull them back out. Something else catches their attention, they turn, flaming stick in hand, not really paying attention to the danger factor. They also enjoy throwing things in the fire and poking the fire to get some sparks going. That’s not so much fun for the guy downwind of the sparks!

So I like to review some fire safety rules with my Webelos before the fire is built. That way they all know the expectations. Yes, they still poke the fire a little – they are 10 year old boys – but if I remind them and they continue to do it, then the consequence is that they need to move 5 feet further from the fire for a period of time.

In some books you will see recommendations to put a ring of rocks around the fire. We have a rule against rocks near the fire. Limestone is very common in our area. A limestone rock which has water trapped inside will explode if it gets hot enough. I have not seen this myself, but I have heard the stories from older Scouters who have seen it happen and it is not worth taking the chance. I can’t count on my Webelos to be able to tell if a rock is limestone, so we just don’t put rocks in or near the fire.

These are my fire safety rules for my Webelos. Adjust them to meet your own needs.

Fire Safety Rules

  1. Follow the rules of your campsite. Some places do not allow ground fires. Ask if you don’t know the rules.
  2. Before building the fire, clear an area 10 feet in diameter. Remove leaves, sticks, and other burnable materials. Remove any rocks bigger than a fist.
  3. Don’t build a fire under a shrub or low hanging branches. Don’t build it on tree roots.
  4. Don’t light the fire until you have permission from an adult.
  5. Never leave the fire unattended.
  6. Don’t make the fire too big. A small fire is perfect for toasting marshmallows and sitting around talking.
  7. Stay at least three feet away from the fire unless you have to get closer to cook something.
  8. What goes in the fire, stays in the fire. Don’t put something in the fire and then take it back out. The end will be very hot and somebody could get burnt.
  9. Don’t poke the fire needlessly or throw things in the fire. This could cause sparks to fly out. Nobody wants sparks in their face.
  10. Have a means to extinguish a fire nearby. If some sparks fly off your fire and start another fire, you might have to act quickly. A shovel and a bucket of sand or a bucket of water  is ideal.
  11. Make sure the fire is dead out before you leave it. This means that you can put your hand where the fire was and not feel any heat. Use a shovel to disperse the ashes and coals and then sprinkle them with water until they are cool.

Filed Under: Scoutcraft
Cub Scouts: Wolf Adventure: Call of the Wild, Webelos Adventure: Cast Iron Chef



Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Rob Bartlett says

    November 26, 2012 at 8:27 PM

    this is a great tutorial — we plan to use it in our troop in Houston Texas (an inner-city troop where we will be learning fire building at an urban park)

    Reply
  2. Karl Shelton says

    June 5, 2017 at 11:43 AM

    You have a lot of great ideas here. I should point out that the “Age Appropriate Guidelines for Scouting Activities” limits fire building to Webelos (as you describe) and up. Therefore Tigers, Wolves and Bears should only observe.

    Reply
  3. Fredric says

    November 26, 2019 at 9:12 AM

    Thank you for posting this, I get my teeth grinding in frustration when I see photographs of people with unsafe fires getting posted to social media, with combustible fuels surrounding their fires. The basic fire safety rules of the Boy Scouts and Girl Scouts get taught to kids, yet looking at photos of adult fires on social media, I have some wish that basic fire safety gets taught before SOME adults can be trusted with matches in the forest.

    Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Primary Sidebar

Ask Scouter Mom a question or share your ideas with others

Add your ad here
Re-gifting Day – White Elephant Gift Exchange
Thursday, December 19
The Thursday before Christmas is national Re-gifting Day. This would be a fun day to play Rob Your Neighbor with your Scouts. When we have played it at troop or crew meetings we have had the rule that the gift must be a re-gift or less than $5. We had some crazy regifts and it was a lot of fun
Christmas
Wednesday, December 25
If your unit celebrates Christmas, here are a few ideas for gifts, activities, games, and songs for you.

More Holiday Ideas



Recent Comments

  • User AvatarLeslie We are the same. There is a budget report monthly and an annual budget plan annually as per BSA. If you are doing it correctly... – on What Can Be Done to Ensure That Unit Finances Are Handled Correctly?
  • User AvatarJane Adams We were able to finish it in 3 meetings. I feel like it's an important part of being a scout and I wanted to make... – on How Many Meetings Does It Take to Complete the First Responder Achievement?
  • User AvatarPeter Duston I love scouts and am an Eagle with a 50 year pin. It's now been a year with girls in both our Pack and Troop... – on My Opinion on the BSA's Decision to Provide a Path to Eagle Scout for Girls
  • User AvatarFredric Thank you for posting this, I get my teeth grinding in frustration when I see photographs of people with unsafe fires getting posted to social... – on Fire Safety with Cub Scouts
  • User AvatarJames Craig Link above is broken, but most of this can now be found here: https://www.scouting.org/programs/cub-scouts/pack-committee-resources/ – on Cub Scout Pack Committee
  • Older »

Featured Links

Add your link

A2ZWare - Web Design and Development

Website design for your scouts, team, club, church, school, or organization.

Campmor Camping Gear

For all your camping needs. Your quickest link to the outdoors

This site is not sponsored or endorsed by the Boy Scouts of America. All opinions expressed belong to Scouter Mom and her readers.

© A2ZWare LLC and Scouter Mom, 2019 . Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from the site author and/or owner is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Scouter Mom with appropriate and specific direction to the original content.