A Scout troop is a term adopted into use with Boy Scouts, Girl Scouts and the

Scout Movement Scouting or the Scout Movement is a youth movement which became popularly established in the first decade of the twentieth century. It follows the Scout method of informal education with an emphasis on practical outdoor activities, including ...

to describe their basic units. The term

troop A troop is a military sub-subunit, originally a small formation of cavalry, subordinate to a squadron. In many armies a troop is the equivalent element to the infantry section or platoon. Exceptions are the US Cavalry and the King's Troo ...

echoes a group of mounted scouts in the

military A military, also known collectively as armed forces, is a heavily armed, highly organized force primarily intended for warfare. Militaries are typically authorized and maintained by a sovereign state, with their members identifiable by a d ...

or an expedition and follows the terms

cavalry Historically, cavalry (from the French word ''cavalerie'', itself derived from ''cheval'' meaning "horse") are groups of soldiers or warriors who Horses in warfare, fight mounted on horseback. Until the 20th century, cavalry were the most mob ...

mounted infantry Mounted infantry were infantry who rode horses instead of marching. Unlike cavalry, mounted infantry dismounted to fight on foot. The original dragoons were essentially mounted infantry. According to the ''Encyclopædia Britannica Eleventh Editio ...

and

mounted police Mounted police are police who patrol on horseback or camelback. Their day-to-day function is typically picturesque or ceremonial, but they are also employed in crowd control because of their mobile mass and height advantage and increasingly in th ...

use for organizational units.

Boy Scouts, Girl Scouts and Scout Movement

In the

, a Scout troop is an organizational unit consisting of a number of patrols of Scouts, Boy Scouts, Girl Scouts or Girl Guides. Girl Guides often use the terms ''unit'' instead of patrol and ''company'' instead of troop. The initial organization unit in the Scout Movement was a patrol of about 6 to 8 Scouts. Where there were a number of patrols, they could form a Scout troop. Scout troops are composed of boys and/or girls usually aged 10 to 18 years. Some Scout organizations have senior Scout patrols within Scout troops or senior Scout troops for the older youths. The size of a

Scouts BSA Scouts BSA (known as Boy Scouts until 2019) is the flagship program and membership level of Scouting America Scouting America is the largest scouting organization and one of the largest List of youth organizations, youth organizations i ...

troop for example, can vary from as few as five Scouts to over 100 youth, although the average is often said to be around 14. Scout troops may meet regularly at a meeting place. In addition, some Scout troops are active in the organization of additional activities. In some Scout organizations a Scout troop can be part of a Scout Group that combines the Scout troop with programs for different age groups such as

Beavers Beavers (genus ''Castor'') are large, semiaquatic rodents of the Northern Hemisphere. There are two existing species: the North American beaver (''Castor canadensis'') and the Eurasian beaver (''C. fiber''). Beavers are the second-large ...

, Cubs, Explorers or Venturers and Rovers, while in other Scout organizations the different age groups are independent of each other even though they may be sponsored or chartered by the same community organization, such as a business, service organization, school, labor group veteran's group, or religious institution.

Leadership

A key component of the Scouting movement is that Scout troops are led by the Scouts themselves under the advice and guidance of adult leaders. Scout Troops operate on the patrol method. Each Scout patrol is led by a Scout called the Patrol Leader. The Patrol Leaders within a Scout Troop form a '' Court of Honor'' or 'Troop Council' under the guidance of the adult leader of the Scout Troop. Some Scout Organizations allow a Scout to be appointed as a Senior Patrol Leader or Troop Leader who heads the Scout troop and Court of Honor. The Court of Honor is responsible for the management, program and activities of the troop. The leadership role of the adult and Scout members of the Court of Honor vary, and in some troops it is the norm for the adult leader to play a mentorship role, teaching the youth responsibility in their own leadership roles.

References

Scouting {{Scout-stub

Boy Scouts, Girl Scouts and Scout Movement

Leadership

See also

References