I taught the Boy Scout Merit Badge class about Animal Science this week. Most of the Scouts were no longer teenagers. They were Scouts with disabilities and it was a stretch for me to prepare for a group with such diverse needs. The things that worked best were storytelling (my lizard story and my sheep story) and using pictures I projected on a huge screen. I invited a young girl in my neighborhood to come along with me to teach a portion of the lesson about chickens and they LOVED hearing her speak.
These are a few things that I observed that night.
1. Smiling is contagious.
2. The Scoutmaster of many years was leaving them and a new Scoutmaster was being assigned. When the announcement was read, many Scouts came out of their seats to hug the man who was leaving. The Scoutmaster could hardly speak because he was so sad to go. I found myself wishing I was less inhibited about showing appreciation for people.
3. The young men who serve each week as “buddies” for these Scouts are the ones learning the most powerful lessons, not the Scouts to whom they are assigned. I hope my sons get a chance to serve in this way someday.
4. One Scout walked in carrying a DVD about the Church. With an enormous smile, he came up to individuals, one by one, to show them his treasure. “Look!” he would say, with such enthusiasm, that each of us felt excitement for his movie, too. If that’s not the essence of what we ought to be doing with our associates in sharing the gospel, I don’t know.
5. Rarely have I felt such connection to people so quickly as I did in that room.
6. I observed the leaders who come each week and saw a calmness in their countenances. I think this must come because they were in a place the Savior would choose to be and doing the things the Savior would be doing if he were here.
7. Little Avery, a fifth grader, showed more poise under pressure than I see in most adults. We can ask children to do hard things.
8. I still love teaching science.