Painting an outdoor scene is a requirement for the Webelos art activity badge.
Webelos, a program of the Boy Scouts of America, helps fourth- and fifth-grade boys transition from cub scout to boy scout. The 20-month program allows boys to earn 20 different activity badges on topics such as fitness, art, sports, education, citizenship, family, communication, and science. In the Cleveland area, scouts can easily fulfill their field-trip requirements for these badges.
Nature Center at Shaker Lakes
Take your scouts on a trip to the Nature Center at Shaker Lakes in the Cleveland suburb of Shaker Heights, where they can paint outdoor scenes for the art activity badge. Have each boy bring art supplies on a hike to one of six natural habitats at the park: lake, ravine, forest, marsh, stream, or field view. Set up a spot along the trail where the scouts can paint or draw a nature scene. The All People's Trail is suitable because it has a seating area with benches.
Nature Center at Shaker Lakes
2600 South Park Blvd.
Shaker Heights, OH 44120
216-321-5935
shakerlakes.org
The Cleveland Museum of Natural History
Take your scouts on a field trip to the Cleveland Museum of Natural History to fulfill the badge requirement that calls for a discussion about the experience of visiting a museum of natural history, zoo, or nature center. The Cleveland Museum of Natural History has replicas of dinosaurs, an outdoor gallery featuring native Ohio plants and animals, an observatory with an historic telescope, and a gallery of more than 1,500 gems and minerals. Tour the museum with the boys and have them pause at each exhibit to write down an observation.
The Cleveland Museum of Natural History
1 Wade Oval Drive University Circle
Cleveland, OH 44106
216-231-4600
cmnh.org
Cuyahoga Valley National Park
Take your scouts for a hike at Cuyahoga Valley National Park, half an hour's drive from Cleveland, which will help them earn the geologist activity badge. The park is full of geological features such as the Ritchie Ledges, towering sandstone rock formations, and Brandywine Falls, falling 65 feet to the river below. As you pass each distinctive feature, give the scouts a brief lesson on it and encourage them to take field notes.
Cuyahoga Valley National Park
15610 Vaughn Road
Brecksville, OH 44141
330-657-2752
nps.gov
Tags: Cleveland Museum, Cleveland Museum Natural, Museum Natural, Natural History, activity badge