Each Scouts BSA class will cover all requirements for a Merit Badge, although some classes will have prerequisite work or homework. Scouts BSA Merit Badge classes are designed for boys or girls who are 11 to 17 years of age, have earned the Cub Scouting Arrow of Light Award and are at least 10 years old or have finished the fifth grade.
2023 Summer Classes
Be Prepared (Hermann Park)(Sugar Land)
(June 27-July 1 in Sugar Land, June 13-17 and July 25-29)
(Emergency Preparedness, First Aid, Fire Safety, and Safety)
Scouts are often called upon for help because they know First Aid and are experienced with the discipline and planning needed to react to an emergency situation. Learn to be prepared for an emergency, including certification in First Aid and CPR. Learn how to prevent incidents and emergencies through proactive safety and fire safety practices.
A field trip to the fire station is included (Field Trip Permission Slip required).
Prerequisites: Emergency Preparedness Requirement 7B and First Aid Requirement 1, 5a & b.
Captured Light (Hermann Park)
(July 5-8)
(Art, Graphics Arts, and Photography)
Learn about art and its key concepts. Draw a subject using different mediums such as charcoal, pen and ink, watercolors, or computers. Learn about the printing industry, from offset lithography and screen printing to digital design. Design and produce a printed piece of original work, study lighting and photographic composition, and learn how to become a better photographer.
Death by Natural Causes (Hermann Park)
(June 13-17 and July 5-8)
(Health Care Professions, Public Health and Reptile and Amphibians)
Take a spine-tingling look at human health from ancient times to the present day, studying public health through the lens of museum exhibits and exploring health care professions. Have a close encounter with some of the museums amphibians and reptiles.
A field trip to a local restaurant and Public Health Department is included (Field Trip Permission Slip required).
Prerequisites: Health Care Professions requirement 9 & Reptile and Amphibians 8 & 9a or 9c.
There is outside work.
Designing Your World (Hermann Park)
(July 25-29)
(Architecture and Landscape Architecture)
Learn how architecture is more than just a building but a work of art that requires thought and planning. Similarly, learn how landscape architects design and plan outdoor spaces that people will want to visit.
A field trip to downtown Houston is included (Field Trip Permission Slip required).
Digital World (Hermann Park)
(July 13-17 and July 25-29)
(Digital Technology and Programming)
Discover the history and use of computers and digital technology and how the Museum uses both for preparing its exhibits. Learn how to program a computer in three computer languages. Write, debug, and play a programmed planetarium show. Scouts will also earn their Cyber Chip.
The Final Frontier (Hermann Park)
(July 5-8)
(Astronomy and Space Exploration)
Discover how activities in space affect our planet, and bear witness to the wonders of the night sky including nebulae, exploding stars, meteor showers, and the Sun, Moon, and other planets in our solar system. Learn about man’s efforts to explore the solar system and beyond.
A visit to the Burke Baker Planetarium is included. There is outside work.
Law and Order (Hermann Park) (Sugar Land)
(June 13-17 and July 5-8 and July 18-22 in Sugar Land)
(Crime Prevention, Fingerprinting, and Law)
Learn about crime prevention in your school and neighborhood, our laws and criminal justice system, and how to take a fingerprint.
A field trip to the courthouse is included (Field Trip Permission Slip required). There is outside work.
The Power of Engineering (Hermann Park)
(June 25-29)
(Electricity, Engineering, and Nuclear Science)
Unravel the mysteries of electricity, how science, technology, and mathematics turn ideas into reality, and how matter and forces interact on the subatomic level. Build electrical circuits and components, perform an electrical home safety inspection, and design and build a solar cooker. Nuclear Science is one of the elective merit badges for the BSA William T. Hornaday Award.
There is outside work.
Robot Inventors (Hermann Park)
(June 13-17 and July 25-29)
(Inventing and Robotics)
Inventing involves finding technological solutions to real-world problems. Learn the importance of inventing tosociety, and think of creative ways to improve the lives of others through technology. Explore how robots move (actuators), sense the environment (sensors) and understand what to do (programming). Design and build a robot.
Strategy and Exploration (Hermann Park) (Sugar Land)
(June 13-17 and July 18-22 in Sugar Land)
(Chess, Game Design, and Geocaching)
Learn about game design, including psychology and strategy, of familiar games. Design a game to play with other Scouts and family members. Learn to play chess and how to “geocache”, the outdoor game of searching for hidden objects by using GPS coordinates.
A geocache field trip is included (Field Trip Permission Slip required). There is outside work.
TWO DAY CLASSES
Environmental Science (Hermann Park) (Sugar Land)
(Eagle)
(Herman Park-June 13-14, July 5-6 and July 28-29) (Sugar Land-June 7-8 and July 29-30)
This is a 2 day course to complete the merit badge. Investigate the interactions between air, land, water
ONE DAY CLASSES
Archaeology (One Day Class) (Hermann Park)
(July 8)
(Eagle)
Explore human cultures through the clues they left behind, examining actual Museum artifacts, do a mock dig and create a cuneiform tablet.
Citizenship in the Community (Hermann Park) (Sugar Land)
(Eagle)
(Hermann Park-June 15, July 5, and July 29) (Sugar Land-June 27 and August 9)
Scouts will explore how our local governments work within their community and their part within the community.
Prerequisite: Citizenship in the Community Prerequisite 3, 7a, b & c must be completed with your Troop leaders’ approval.
Citizenship in the Nation (Hermann Park) (Sugar Land)
(Eagle)
(Hermann Park- June 15, July 8 and July 26) (Sugar Land-July 6, July 19, and August 9)
Scouts will learn the rights, liberties and responsibilities of being a citizen of the nation.
Prerequisite: Citizenship in the Nation Prerequisite 2, 3 & 8
Citizenship in the World (Hermann Park) (Sugar Land)
(Eagle)
(Hermann Park- July 7, and July 27) (Sugar Land- June 9 and July 21)
How do different countries get along? Do events affect a country’s economy, security and health of its citizens? Scouts will discuss international relations, the various political systems and what it means to be a world citizen.
Communications (Hermann Park) (Sugar Land)
(Eagle)
(Hermann Park- June 17, July 6 and July 28) (Sugar Land-July 1 and August 8)
We use communication skills throughout our lives. Scouts will prepare and participate in effective communication skills from public speaking to digital communication.
Prerequisite: Communications Prerequisite 4, 5 & 8
Family Life (Hermann Park) (Sugar Land)
(Eagle)
(Herman Park-June 14, July 7, and July 25) (Sugar Land-June 6, and July 20)
Scouts will learn the roles families play within the community, the importance of family life, and how to strengthen their own families.
Prerequisites: Family Life Prerequisites 3, 4, 5 and 6b
Mining in Society (Hermann Park)
(Mining in Society) (STEM NOVA)
(July 27)
From deep in the ground to your dinner table, learn the processes, dangers and environmental impacts of mining.
Personal Management (Hermann Park) (Sugar Land)
(Eagle)
(Herman Park- June 16, and July 25) (Sugar Land-June 10 and August 8)
Scouts will explore budgets, finance and investment strategies.
Prerequisites: Personal Management Prerequisites 2 & 8 a-d
Soil and Water Conservation (Hermann Park)
(Eagle)
(July 26)
Scouts will explore the conservation practices of soil and water and the care of these natural resources. (Prerequisites 7e.)