Over the past two years, my little family has become a Cub Scout family. Greg is a very proud Eagle Scout, and scouting was a huge part of his upbringing. As such, we started Henry as a Tiger last year, and it became a really valuable experience for him (especially while Greg was deployed). Henry enjoyed it so much that now our whole family, as well as lots of our good friends, are pretty heavily involved. Last year, our Pack had a bumpy go at fundraising, so it was all hands on deck this year to figure out how to jump start our Popcorn program. But as my girlfriend and I were searching for Cub Scout Popcorn project ideas to get the kids excited about selling popcorn, we came up somewhat empty handed. So armed with a Cricut and inexpensive supplies, we got creative and made some really fun and easy projects that worked really well! Even though this post strays a bit off course from my usual content, I thought I would go ahead and share the Cub Scout Popcorn projects we pulled together to not only get our Scouts excited about selling popcorn, but motivate them to sell way above and beyond their goals. If you or someone you know is running a Cub Scout Popcorn initiative, here are some great ideas to try that worked really, really well for us!

Cub Scout & Boy Scout Images for the Cricut

Before I dive into the projects we pulled together, I want to point out that I was able to make pretty much everything (so quickly and so easily) thanks to my Cricut Explore and the Cub Scout image cartridge available by Cricut. I’ve seen the cartridge for sale in our local BSA store, and the images are also all available within the Cricut Design Space library. If you will be working on popcorn projects, Blue and Gold Banquet, Scout awards and other items throughout your child’s Scout experience, I highly recommend investing in this really nice set of images!

Via Cricut | Via Amazon

Popcorn Information Folders

Since the Cub Scout Popcorn program tends to be at the beginning of the school year, much of the important information, details, and dates tend to get lost in the new school year hustle and bustle. So that parents and kids would have everything they needed in a single, easy-access spot, my girlfriend assembled popcorn folders for each Scout. We added the Cub Scout logo to the bright yellow folders by using Cricut’s Print-and-Cut feature onto Cricut’s sticker paper.

Inside the folders was a detailed welcome letter from our Popcorn Kernel that included an overview of the popcorn program as well as important dates, deadlines, and details. We also included a print out of the Scout prizes (so the Scouts could see them up close and get excited about them!), and a printable popcorn tracker we made to help each child reach our Pack-specific goal.

Printable Popcorn Tracker

We set an ambitious goal for each Scout to sell $500 worth of popcorn. However, for kids, especially the younger Scouts, we worried this number was intangible and maybe even overwhelming. To help them get excited, stay excited and track their progress in an easy-to-understand way, we created a color-in popcorn tracker. Each piece of popcorn represented $5 in sales; and when the popcorn tracker was fully colored in, the Scout could bring it to the next Pack Meeting and pull a prize from our silly prize bucket.

NOTE: The prize bucket was not offered or provided by BSA; we just used some funds to buy slimy worms, stretchy hands, fidget spinners and other silly things that would get the kids excited (especailly since the BSA-provided prizes take a while to come in).

Not only was having a physical tracker that could be hung in plain sight on the refrigerator super helpful and motivating to the whole family, but the kids got VERY excited to stand up in front of the Pack and pull a prize for coloring in their entire sheet!

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Get The Cub Scout Popcorn Tracker!

To get your own (editable) copy of the Cub Scout Popcorn Tracker, just click below!

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Popcorn Samples

So the boys could (literally!) get a taste of what they were going to sell, we assembled little snack packs of the basic caramel popcorn and handed them out at the end of the popcorn information meeting. Tiny treat bags (from the dollar section at Michaels) with a paper topper (also cut with the Cricut) literally came together in minutes!

Games

Another way we got the kids excited about selling popcorn was by doing an easy popcorn-themed game at the info meeting. I made some large popcorn stickers (again, using the Print-and-Cut feature onto sticker paper) and put them onto colored buckets from Party City. We then balled up different colors of tissue paper to resemble over-sized pieces of popcorn, and the kids played various games where they had to catch and pass them.

Costumes

Last but not least, we did a few small “costume” projects to help the kids identify the adults actively running the popcorn program. Although I threatened to make my girlfriend a silly popcorn hat, this paper Popcorn Kernel Ribbon was just enough to set her apart and identify her as the person to direct all the popcorn questions toward!

We then got carried away and made a costume to use at various meetings and events during our popcorn fundraising initiative. I’ll be honest, when I was asked to make a popcorn costume simply to “get the kids attention,” I planned to do a simple sandwich-board-style ensemble. But then we found this huge box…and I happened to have navy blue wrapping paper…and then I found the Cub Scout Cricut cartridge…and one thing let to another and we ended up here…

Yep…that’s a huge cardboard box “dressed” quite accurately as a box of popcorn in a Cub Scout uniform. No…I do not have too much time on my hands…yes, I tend to get carried away on these kinds of things! #guiltyascharged

The Cub Scout Cricut images made it all-too-easy to make the Cub Scout uniform pieces, like the neckerchief, slide, American flag patch, Pack number patches, and pocket.

Pretty much everything is cut from cardstock, although I used vinyl to do the BSA letters above the pocket and on the ribbons, as well as the Scout symbol on the belt buckle. I stopped short of putting all the images on the belt loop achievements, but only because I ran out of time.

And who wore this massive Cub Scout Popcorn box? Oh…only my charming husband!

Needless to say, it sure got the kids’ attention and caused quite a few laughs in the process. Now to figure out how to store it until next year’s popcorn fundraiser!

Although it was absolutely the dedication (and organization!) of our Popcorn Kernel and the hard work of our Scouts that allowed us to meet our popcorn fundraising goals this year, these simple, motivating, and easy popcorn-themed projects went a long way in setting a fun, exciting tone for our popcorn program! With just a little bit of effort (and a whole lot of stickers and cardstock), we were able to present a colorful, organized, motivating and ultimately, successful program to our Pack’s Scout families, and I know the extra-special details were noticed and much appreciated!

Thanks for bearing with me, friends, over these past few weeks as I finish up some behind-the-scenes maintenance and get my Holiday Planner launched. Next week, we’ll be back to some organization and home projects; and behind-the-scenes, I’m wrapping up my office for a reveal very soon! Have a wonderful weekend and see you back here next week!