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Communications Merit Badge
Requirements
Source - Boy Scout Requirements 2006
Last Revised - January 1, 2004
- Do ONE of the following:
- For one day, keep a log in which you describe your communication activities. Keep track of
the time and different ways you spend communicating, such as talking person-to-person,
listening to your teachers or the radio, watching television, reading books, and other print
media, and communicating online. Discuss with your counselor what your log reveals about the
importance of communication in your life. Think of ways to improve your communications skills.
- For three days, keep a journal of your listening experiences. Identify one example of each of
the following, and discuss with your counselor when you have listened to:
- Obtain information
- A persuasive argument
- Appreciate or enjoy something
- Understand someone's feelings
- In a small-group setting, meet with other scouts or with friends. Have them share personal
stories about significant events in their lives that affected them in some way. Take note of
how each scout participates in the group discussion and how effective each one is in telling
his story. Report what you have learned to your counselor about the differences you observed
in effective communication.
- List as many ways as you can think of to communicate with others (face-to-face, by telephone,
letter, e-mail, fax). For each type of communication discuss with your counselor an instance
when that method might not be appropriate or effective.
- Do ONE of the following:
- Think of a creative way to describe yourself, using, for example, a collage, short story or
autobiography, drawing or series of photographs, or a song or skit. Using the aid you created,
make a presentation to your counselor about yourself.
- Choose a concept, product, or service in which you have great confidence. Build a sales plan
based on its good points. Try to persuade the counselor to agree with, use, or buy your
concept, product or service. After your sales talk, discuss with your counselor how
persuasive you were.
- Write a five-minute speech. Give it at a meeting of a group.
- Interview someone you know fairly well, like, or respect because of his or her position, talent,
career or life experiences. Listen actively to learn as much as you can about the person. Then
prepare and deliver to your counselor an introduction of the person as though this person were
to be a guest speaker, and include reasons why the audience would want to hear this person speak.
Show how you would call to invite this person to speak.
- Attend a public meeting (city council, school board, debate) approved by your counselor where
several points of view are given on a single issue. Practice active listening skills and take
careful notes of each point of view. Present an objective report that includes all points of view
that were expressed, and share this with your counselor.
- With your counselor's approval, develop a plan to teach a skill or inform someone about something.
Prepare teaching aids for your plan. Carry out your plan. With your counselor, determine whether
the person has learned what you intended.
- Do ONE of the following:
- Write to the editor of a magazine or your local newspaper to express your opinion or share
information on any subject you choose. Send your message by fax, email or regular mail.
- Create a web page for your scout troop, school, or other organization. Include at least one
article and one photograph or illustration, and one link to some other web page that would
be helpful to someone who visits the web page you have created. It is not necessary to post
your web page to the internet, but if you decide to do so, you must first share it with
your parents and counselor and get their permission.
- Use desktop publishing to produce a newsletter, brochure, flier or other printed material
for your scout troop, class at school, or other group. Include at least one article and
one photograph or illustration.
- Plan a troop court of honor or campfire program. Have the patrol leaders' council approve it,
then write the script and prepare the program. Serve as master of ceremonies.
- Learn about opportunities in the field of communication. Choose one career in which you are
interested and discuss with your counselor the major responsibilities of that position and the
qualifications, education, and preparation it requires.
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