Language of Scouting

I don’t think of myself as particularly a persnickety or doctrinaire so what follows is probably out of character.

I do like to write therefore I strive to observe the rules of grammar and rely greatly on my spell checker. As someone who regularly writes about Scouting I have developed my own rough and ready conventions of usage and capitalization. Now that I have found the Language of Scouting I shall do my best to mend my ways. For example when should the word Scout be capitalized?

Scout May be synonymous with the term “Boy Scout” or may be used to include Varsity Scouts and Boy Scouts (not Cub Scouts). Use on second reference or also in informal usage when the meaning is clearly understood.

Capitalize “Scout” and all words beginning with “Scout” (such as “Scouting” and “Scouter”) unless the meaning is not related to the Scouting movement. The most mangled term in the Scout lexicon is ‘Webelos’; Webelos Scout (Pronounced WEE-buh-los.) A Cub Scout who has completed the third grade or is age 10 but has not yet completed fifth grade or reached age 11 1/2, and is a member of a Webelos den. The word “Webelos” (means WE’ll BE LOyal Scouts) should always be used as a modifier, never as a noun. So no boy is a Webelos but a Webelos Scout. No one is ever, ever a ‘Webelo’ I have been improperly capitalizing (however inconsistently) the following terms; senior patrol leader scribe quartermaster patrol leader patrol patrol leader’s council board of review court of honor merit badge While not specifically mentioned on the site remember that in terms like ‘board of review’ the word ‘board’ is modified by ‘of review’ thus the plural form is ‘boards of review’ and never ‘board of reviews’. The same applies to courts of honor.