Any boy may earn Bear achievements and electives if he is in the third grade, or is nine years old. To earn the Bear badge, a boy must complete 12 of the 24 specified achievements listed below. He can select the ones he wants to do from four different groups: God, Country, Family, and Self. The Progress Towards Ranks badge is available as an incentive during the Bear program to encourage a Cub on his achievement work. Details regarding the completion of the achievements and associated electives can be found in the BSA Bear Cub Scout Book (No. 33107, 1998.)

 

When a boy finishes an achievement, he will need to have an adult member of his family sign and date his book. He will then take the book to the next den meeting and his den leader will record it on the Cub Scout (Den) Advancement Chart and initial his book. When he has done 12 Bear achievements, he becomes a Bear Cub Scout. A boy may count any extra achievement requirements he earns as arrow point credits.

If a Bear-aged boy is new to Cub Scouting, he must complete the Bobcat trail before beginning work on the Bear achievements.

THE BEAR ACHIEVEMENTS

GOD (do ONE of the following)

1. WAYS WE WORSHIP - Practice your religion as you are taught in your home, church, synagogue, mosque, or other religious community.  

    

2. EMBLEMS OF FAITH - Earn the religious emblem of your faith.

COUNTRY (do THREE of the following)

3. WHAT MAKES AMERICA SPECIAL? (Do requirement "a" AND 3 of the rest - (4 total)
   1. Write or tell what makes America special to you.
   2. With the help of your family or den leader, find out about two Americans. Tell the things they did or are doing to improve our way of life.
   3. Find out something about the old homes near the place where you live. Go and see two of them.
   4. Find out where places of historical interest in or near your town are located. Go and visit one of them with your family or den.
   5. Choose a state; it can be your favorite one or your home state. Name the state bird, tree, and flower. Describe its flag. Give the date it was admitted to the union.
   6. Be a member of the color guard in a flag ceremony for your den or pack.
   7. Display the U.S. flag in your home or fly it on three national holidays.

    

    

4. TALL TALES - Do ALL 3 requirements.
   1. Tell in your own words what folklore is. List some folklore stories, folksongs, or historical legends from your own state or part of the country. (See handbook for ideas.)
   2. Name at least five stories about American folklore. Point out on a United States map where they happened. (See handbook for ideas.)
   3. Read two folklore stories and tell your favorite one to your den.

    

    

5. SHARING YOUR WORLD WITH WILDLIFE - Do 4 of the following.
   1. Choose a bird or animal that you like and find out how it lives. Make a poster showing what you have learned.
   2. Build or make a bird feeder or bird house.
   3. Explain what a wildlife conservation officer does.
   4. Visit one of the following: Zoo, Nature center, Wildlife refuge, Game preserve.
   5. Name one animal that has become extinct in the last 100 years. Tell why animals become extinct. Name one animal that is on the Endangered Species List. (Revised for 1998)

    

    

6. TAKE CARE OF YOUR PLANET - Do 3 of the following.
   1. Save 5 pounds of glass or aluminum, or 1 month of newspapers. Turn them in at a recycling center or use your community's recycling service.
   2. Plant a tree in your yard, or on the grounds of the group that operates your Cub Scout pack, or in a park or other public place. Be sure to get permission first.
   3. Call city or county officials or your trash hauling company and find out what happens to your trash after it is hauled away.
   4. Do a water usage survey in your home. Note the ways water is used. Look for any dripping faucets.
   5. Discuss with an adult in your family the ways your family uses energy.
   6. Find out more about your family's use of electricity.

    

    

7. LAW ENFORCEMENT IS A BIG JOB - Do 4 of the following.
   1. Make a set of your own fingerprints.
   2. Make a plaster cast of a shoeprint.
   3. Check the doors and windows of your home.
   4. Visit your local sheriff's office or police station.
   5. Be sure you know where to get help in your neighborhood.
   6. Be sure fire and police numbers are listed by the phone at your home.
   7. Know what you can do to help law enforcement.

    

    

FAMILY

8. THE PAST IS EXCITING AND IMPORTANT - Do 3 of the following.
   1. Visit your library or newspaper office. Ask to see back issues of newspapers or an almanac.
   2. Find someone who was a Cub Scout a long time ago. Talk with him about what Cub Scouting was like then.
   3. Start or add-to an existing pack scrapbook.
   4. Trace your family back through your grandparents or great grandparents; or, talk to a grandparent about what it was like when they were younger.
   5. Find out some history about your community.
   6. Write in a journal for 2 weeks.

    

    

9. WHAT'S COOKING? - Do 4 of the following.
   1. With an adult, bake cookies.
   2. With an adult, make snacks for the next den meeting
   3. Prepare one part of your breakfast, one part of your lunch, and one part of your supper.
   4. Make a list of the 'junk' foods you eat. Discuss "junk" food with your parent or teacher.
   5. Make some trail food for a hike. (New for 1998)
   6. Make a dessert for your family.

    

    

10. FAMILY FUN - Do BOTH of these requirements.
    1. Go on a trip with members of your family. (See handbook for ideas.)
    2. Have a "family-make-and-do" night.

     

     

11. BE READY! - Do the first 4; the last one is recommended, but not required.
    1. Tell what to do in case of accident in the home. A family member needs help. Someone's clothes catch on fire. (See handbook)
    2. Tell what to do in case of a water accident. (See handbook)
    3. Tell what to do in case of a school bus accident. (See handbook)
    4. Tell what to do in case of a car accident. (See handbook)
    5. Have a health checkup by a physician (optional).

     

     

12. FAMILY OUTDOOR ADVENTURE - Do 3 of the following.
    1. Go camping with your family.
    2. Go on a hike with your family.
    3. Have a picnic with your family.
    4. Attend an outdoor event with your family.
    5. Plan your outdoor family day.

     

     

13. SAVING WELL, SPENDING WELL - Do 4 of the following.
    1. Go grocery shopping with a parent or other adult member of your family. Compare prices of different brands of the same item. Check the prices at different stores. Read the ads in your newspaper.
    2. Set up a savings account.
    3. Keep a record of how you spend money for 2 weeks.
    4. Pretend you are shopping for a car for your family.
    5. Discuss family finances with a parent or guardian.
    6. Play a board game with your family that involves the use of make-believe money.
    7. With an adult, figure out how much it costs for each person in your home to eat one meal.

SELF (do FOUR of the following)

14. RIDE RIGHT - Do requirement a and THREE more. (Total of 4)
    1. Know the rules for bike safety. If your town requires a bicycle license, be sure to get one. (See handbook for rules.)
    2. Learn to ride a bike, if you haven't by now. Show that you can follow a winding course for 60 feet doing sharp left and right turns, a U-turn, and an emergency stop.
    3. Keep your bike in good shape. Identify the parts of a bike that should be checked often.
    4. Change a tire on a bicycle.
    5. Protect your bike from theft. Use a bicycle lock.
    6. Ride a bike for 1 mile without rest, and be sure to obey all traffic rules.
    7. Plan and take a family bike hike.

     

     

15. GAMES, GAMES, GAMES! - Do 2 of the following.
    1. Set up the equipment and play any two of these outdoor games with your family or friends.

       Backyard Golf Badminton Croquet Sidewalk Shuffleboard

       Kickball Softball Tetherball Horseshoes Volleyball

    2. Play two organized games with your den.
    3. Select a game your den has never played. Explain the rules. Tell them how it is played, then play it with them.

     

     

16. BUILDING MUSCLES - Do ALL of the following.
    1. Do physical fitness stretching exercises. Then do sit-ups, push-ups, the standing long jump, and softball throw.
    2. With a friend, compete in at least six different two-person contests. (See handbook for examples.)
    3. Compete with your den or pack in the crab relay, gorilla relay, 30-yard dash, and kangaroo relay.

     

     

17. INFORMATION, PLEASE - Do requirement a and THREE more of the following.
    1. With an adult in your family, select a TV show. Watch it together.
    2. Play a game of charades at your Den meeting or with your family at home.
    3. Visit a newspaper office, or TV or radio station and talk to a news reporter.
    4. Use a computer to get information. Write, spell check, and print out a report on what you learned. (Revised for 1998)
    5. Write a letter to a company that makes something you use. Use E-mail or the US Postal Service. (Revised for 1998)
    6. Talk with one of your parents or another family member about how getting and giving facts fits into his or her job.

     

     

18. JOT IT DOWN - Do 5 of the following.
    1. Make a list of the things you want to do today. Check them off when you have done them.
    2. Write two letters to relatives or friends.
    3. Keep a daily record of your activities for 2 weeks.
    4. Write an invitation to someone.
    5. Write a story about something you have done with your family.
    6. Write a thank-you note.
    7. Write about the activities of your den.

     

     

19. SHAVINGS AND CHIPS - Do ALL of the following.
    1. Know the safety rules for handling a knife.
    2. Show that you know how to take care of and use a pocketknife.
    3. Make a carving with a pocketknife. Work with your parent or den leader in doing this.
    4. Earn the "Whittling Chip" card.

     

     

20. SAWDUST AND NAILS - Do ALL of the following.
    1. Show how to use and take care of four of these tools. (See handbook.)
    2. Build your own tool box.
    3. Use at least two tools listed in requirement 'a' to fix something.

     

     

21. BUILD A MODEL - Do 3 of the following.
    1. Build a model from a kit.
    2. Build a display for one of your models.
    3. Pretend you are planning to change the furniture layout in one of the rooms in your home.
    4. Make a model of a mountain, a meadow, a canyon, or river.
    5. Go see a model of a shopping center or new building that is on display somewhere.
    6. Make a model of anything - a rocket, boat, car, or plane.

     

     

22. TYING IT ALL UP - Do 5 of the following.
    1. Whip the ends of a rope.
    2. Tie a square know, bowline, sheet bend, two half hitches, and a slip knot. Tell how each knot is used.
    3. Learn how to keep a rope from tangling.
    4. Coil a rope. Throw it, hitting a 2-foot square marker 20 feet away.
    5. Learn a magic rope trick.
    6. Make your own rope. (Se handbook for ideas!)

     

     

23. SPORTS, SPORTS, SPORTS - Do ALL of the following.
    1. Learn the rules and how to play three team sports.
    2. Learn the rules and how to play two sports in which only one person is on each side.
    3. Take part in one team and one individual sport.
    4. Watch a sport on TV with a parent or some other member of your family.
    5. Attend a high school, college, or professional sporting event with your family or your den.

     

     

24. BE A LEADER - Do 3 of the following.
    1. Help a boy join the Cub Scouts, or help a new Cub Scout through the Bobcat trail.
    2. Serve as a denner or assistant denner.
    3. Plan and conduct a den activity with the approval of your den leader.
    4. Tell two people they have done a good job.
    5. Leadership means choosing a way even when your choice is not liked by all.

When a boy has completed twelve of these twenty-four achievements through all four parts of the Bear trail, he has earned the right to wear the Bear badge.

The badge should be ceremoniously presented as soon as possible at an upcoming Pack meeting.

After earning his Bear badge, a boy can begin working on his Bear electives to earn his gold and silver Arrow Points.