Beavers (Scouting)

Beavers is a programme associated with some Scouting organisations generally for children aged 5/6 to 7/8 who are too young for the Cub programme.

Beavers programmes had their origins in the Northern Irish organisation The Little Brothers, founded in 1963 and renamed "Beavers" in 1966 to provide a programme for boys who were too young to be Wolf Cubs.^[1] A Beavers programme for Scouts Canada was designed and tested in 1971 and adopted in 1974. Since then, other scouting organisations in some countries have developed their Beavers or similar programmes. Some organisations do not call their programmes "Beavers" and often use an animal local to their region instead. Many share common ideas between them, such as:

• A Beaver pledge and/or motto,
• Earning merit badges
• A Beaver uniform, distinct from that of older Cubs
• Organised in groups, each called a Beaver "Colony", with optional smaller groups called "Lodges"
• Special ceremonies to commemorate new members and the graduation of the oldest Beaver members into Cubs
• Symbols unique to Beavers and distinct from Cubs, such as sitting and standing formations, salutes, and handshakes
• Use of lore and nicknames sourced from Harry McCartney's 1971 short story Friends of the Forest

Many Beaver groups that began as boys only now allow girls into their programmes as well, and many Beaver programmes which were not initially considered official parts of their parent scouting organisations are now fully embraced by them.^{[citation needed]}

The Boy Scouts of America never created a distinct identity for children of this age. Instead, over time, their Cub programme has expanded to fill this age group. Others, such as some Traditional Scouting organisations, have never adopted programmes for younger children at all, typically on the grounds this was not one of Robert Baden-Powell's original programmes.