Kindergarten – 5th Grade
Cub Scouts
Where most Scouting journeys begin — and where families join in every step of the way.
What is Cub Scouts?
Cub Scouts is Scouting America’s program for children in kindergarten through fifth grade. It is a family-oriented program built around age-appropriate adventures that teach the foundations of leadership, citizenship, personal fitness, and character. Cub Scouts is where boys and girls make their first friendships in Scouting, discover the outdoors, and begin building the confidence that will carry them through the rest of their Scouting journey and beyond.
What sets Cub Scouts apart from other youth activities is the role of the family. Parents and legal guardians aren’t just dropping their Scouts off at meetings — they’re active participants in the fun. Whether that means helping build a pinewood derby car, camping together as a family, or joining a den meeting, Cub Scouts is designed to bring families closer while the Scouts themselves grow in skills and confidence.
How Cub Scouts Works
Cub Scouts are organized into local packs, and each pack is divided into smaller dens based on grade level. Dens typically meet twice a month, and the entire pack comes together once a month for a pack meeting that includes ceremonies, recognition, games, and family activities.
Weekly and monthly meetings
Dens typically meet twice a month at times that work for participating families. The whole pack gathers once a month for larger events, ceremonies, and family fun.
Family-led program
Parents and guardians run the program together, with support from national training and local mentoring. Every family contributes something, and no one does it alone.
Grade-based dens
Scouts learn alongside other kids in their grade and/or age group, building friendships with classmates and moving through age-appropriate adventures together.
Advancement and Ranks
As Cub Scouts complete adventures — hands-on experiences in the outdoors, in the community, and at home that build practical skills and reinforce Scouting values — they earn colorful loops and pins that go on their uniform. Each grade level has its own rank badge to work toward.
Lion
Kindergarten or 5 years old. Introduces the youngest Cub Scouts to Scouting with short, playful adventures designed for their attention span, with strong family involvement at every step.
Tiger
First grade or 6 years old. Scouts explore their neighborhood, meet community helpers, and begin their first outdoor experiences alongside a parent or guardian partner.
Wolf
Second grade or 7 years old. Scouts start taking on more independence with adventures focused on the outdoors, physical fitness, and personal skills.
Bear
Third grade or 8 years old. Scouts tackle more challenging adventures, from woodworking to fishing to first aid, developing self-reliance and teamwork.
Webelos
Fourth grade or 9 years old. Scouts begin preparing for the transition to Scouts BSA with adventures that introduce more advanced outdoor skills, leadership, and citizenship.
Arrow of Light
Fifth grade or 10 years old. The highest rank in Cub Scouting and the only Cub Scout badge that continues to be worn on a Scouts BSA uniform. Earning it prepares Scouts for the crossover to a troop.
Adventures and Activities
Getting Scouts outdoors is at the heart of Cub Scouting. Local packs organize regular outdoor activities — hikes, nature walks, fishing trips, and outdoor games — while Gulf Coast Council offers larger events throughout the year. Packs also host signature events that become traditions of their own.
Pack overnighters
Cub Scout families camp together at approved sites, giving Scouts their first real camping experience with the safety net of a parent right there.
Cub Scout Day Camp
Multi-day summer camps run by the council where Cub Scouts can shoot BB guns and archery, swim, fish, and try activities they can’t do at pack meetings.
Family Camp at STSR
Weekend camping events at Spanish Trail Scout Reservation designed for whole families, including younger siblings, to experience camp life together.
The Pinewood Derby
One of Cub Scouting’s most beloved traditions. Scouts and a parent or guardian work together to build a small wooden racing car from a kit, then race their cars in a friendly pack-wide competition. It’s part engineering project, part family bonding, and completely unforgettable.
Who Runs the Program?
Cub Scout packs are led by trained volunteers — almost always parents and guardians of Scouts in the pack. The pack is guided by a Cubmaster and a Pack Committee, while each individual den is led by a Den Leader. Every registered adult volunteer completes Safeguarding Youth Training and a background check before working with Scouts.
Cub Scouts is designed to work even when parents have no prior Scouting experience. Scouting America provides free online training, printed leader guides, and local mentoring so any family who wants to be involved can jump in with confidence.
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