Squirrels Challenge Awards Explained | UK Scouts

The Squirrels programme is designed around trying new things, having adventures and developing skills.

One of the main parts of the programme is the Challenge Awards.

There are currently four Challenge Awards for Squirrels, each focusing on a different aspect of their development. Scouts describes these awards as opportunities to step outside their comfort zone, try something they wouldn’t normally do and discover new abilities. (Scouts)

The four awards are:

All About Adventure

All About Me

All Around Us

All Together

Completing all four is an important part of working towards the Chief Scout’s Acorn Award, the highest award a Squirrel can earn.

All About Adventure Award

The All About Adventure Award is about getting out there and trying things.

For Squirrels, adventure doesn’t have to mean climbing mountains or going on a huge expedition.

It could be discovering somewhere new, trying an outdoor activity or taking part in an experience that they haven’t done before.

The important part is having the opportunity to explore and challenge themselves.

This makes the award a natural fit for outdoor activities, games, camps and adventures.

It can also help Squirrels discover that something which initially looks difficult can become achievable when they give it a try.

All About Me Award

The All About Me Award focuses on the individual Squirrel.

It’s an opportunity for young people to think about themselves, their interests, their abilities and what makes them unique.

This can include exploring things they’re good at, trying something new or developing confidence in themselves.

For a young child, simply having the opportunity to say what they enjoy, what they want to learn or what they are proud of can be a valuable experience.

The award helps reinforce the idea that everyone has different interests and strengths.

All Around Us Award

The All Around Us Award encourages Squirrels to discover the world around them.

That could mean exploring nature, learning about their local community or finding out more about the people and places around them.

It provides plenty of opportunities for outdoor activities.

A walk around the local area, exploring wildlife or visiting somewhere interesting can all help Squirrels become more aware of their surroundings.

It’s also a useful opportunity to introduce ideas about looking after the environment and being part of a community.

All Together Award

The All Together Award is about working with other people.

Squirrels can develop teamwork skills by playing games, completing challenges and working together towards a shared goal.

This doesn’t mean that everyone has to agree all the time.

Learning how to listen, share ideas, take turns and help other people is an important part of growing up.

The Scouts programme includes activities specifically designed around personal challenges and teamwork that can contribute towards Squirrels’ Challenge Awards.

How the Challenge Awards Fit Into the Squirrels Programme

The Challenge Awards are just one part of the Squirrels badge programme.

The current Squirrels programme includes 12 Activity Badges, four Challenge Awards and a Top Award, alongside Membership, Joining In and Moving On Awards. Squirrels can also work towards Staged Activity Badges.

This gives leaders plenty of flexibility.

Squirrels don’t need to spend every meeting specifically working on a Challenge Award.

A normal activity might contribute towards one of the awards while also developing other skills.

The Chief Scout’s Acorn Award

The four Challenge Awards are particularly important because they’re part of the requirements for the Chief Scout’s Acorn Award.

To earn the Acorn Award, a Squirrel needs to complete:

All four Challenge Awards

plus

Any two Activity or Staged Activity Badges of their choice.

The Acorn Award is the highest award a Squirrel Scout can earn.

It’s designed to recognise the young person’s overall development during their time in Squirrels.

Do Squirrels Have to Complete the Challenges in a Particular Order?

The four Challenge Awards aren’t intended to be treated like a strict progression where one must always come before another.

Leaders can incorporate them naturally into the programme.

This means a Drey might work on All Around Us during an outdoor exploration one week and then work towards All Together through a teamwork activity the next.

The important thing is giving Squirrels meaningful opportunities to complete the requirements rather than rushing through badges simply to collect them.

Making Challenge Awards Fun

For Squirrels, the best way to work towards Challenge Awards is usually through activities rather than lengthy explanations.

Games, stories, adventures, outdoor exploration, creative activities and teamwork challenges can all provide opportunities to develop the skills behind the awards.

A Squirrel might not even realise they’re working towards a badge while they’re busy having fun.

That’s often a good sign.

Challenge Awards Aren’t Just About Badges

It’s easy for young people to focus on the badge they will eventually receive.

But the real purpose of the Challenge Awards is the experience behind the badge.

Trying something new.

Discovering an interest.

Working with friends.

Exploring the world.

Building confidence.

Learning what they can achieve.

The badge is a way of recognising that achievement.

How Leaders Can Use Them

When planning a programme, it can be useful to look at the four Challenge Awards and ask:

“What experiences could our Squirrels have that help them develop these areas?”

That approach is more useful than trying to design every meeting around ticking off requirements.

A good Squirrels programme will naturally provide opportunities across all four areas.

Final Thoughts

The four Squirrels Challenge Awards provide a simple framework for encouraging young people to grow through adventure, personal development, exploration and teamwork.

All About Adventure encourages Squirrels to try new experiences.

All About Me helps them understand themselves and develop confidence.

All Around Us gets them exploring their surroundings and community.

All Together develops teamwork and cooperation.

Together, they form an important part of the journey towards the Chief Scout’s Acorn Award.

🐿️ THE BIG IDEA

Challenge Awards are about the experiences, not just the badges.

Give Squirrels opportunities to explore, discover, work together and try things they’re not sure they can do.

The badge comes afterwards — the adventure is the important part.