About Troop 5
Background & Values
Troop 5 was founded in Tokyo in 2012, and is chartered by the American School in Japan. While most of the Troop 5 scouts attend ASIJ, we welcome scouts from other schools as well. A few key themes distinguish Troop 5 and result in a positive experience for the members of the troop:
Troop 5 was founded in Tokyo in 2012, and is chartered by the American School in Japan. While most of the Troop 5 scouts attend ASIJ, we welcome scouts from other schools as well. A few key themes distinguish Troop 5 and result in a positive experience for the members of the troop:
- We follow the Patrol Method, and scouts organize into patrols, elect their leaders, select and organize their outdoor activities, and decide which skills and merit badge activities they will focus on. This provides many opportunities to develop leadership and teamwork abilities.
- We are the first BSA troop in Japan to launch a female troop, which we did in February 2019.
- We have many active adults who volunteer their time and skills to serve in leadership roles and teaching merit badges. Our "First Class Trail" program has a very high success rate - over the past several years, nearly 100% of our new scouts, who actively participated in our program, earned the very important First Class rank at summer camp at the completion of their first full year of scouting.
- We are a family-oriented troop, and we often welcome parents, siblings, and family members to join our activities. We have an active adult patrol that enjoys camping, hiking, and other events as they support the organization of our group. Monthly Troop meetings are open to all.
- Troop meetings are held on Saturday afternoon (4-6pm) to enable our scouts to focus on school work and after-school activities during the week.
- We have many adults and youth who are members of the Order of the Arrow and several award-winning leaders, including Wood Badge trained leaders.
- We take pride in the international nature of our troop, and many scouts and adults are fluent in more than one language. Our activities are run in English, and the international background of our scouts and leaders contributes much to the experience.
- Many of our scouts are also active in school sports and other activities, and our flexible schedule allows them to pursue all their interests.
What we do
Troop 5 patrols plan and take part in various activities over the year:
You can see more details about what we do in the "Activities" section, and our scout blog.
Troop 5 patrols plan and take part in various activities over the year:
- Camping—Learn to live in the outdoors. Camping takes you on exciting adventures into the natural world. Pitch your tent, cook dinner with your friends, make a campfire, and enjoy the stars!
- Day hikes - 3 to 20 miles in beautiful terrain.
- Patrol activities— The scouts plan the activities they want to do to earn merit badges, learn new skills, and just have fun. Some examples include whitewater rafting, canyoning, bicycling, hiking (including the annual Mt. Fuji climb), skiing, sea kayaking, and more!
- Service projects—Doing service projects is one way for Scouts to keep their promise "to help other people." These daylong or weekend projects may be related to conservation, food collection, building shelter, or healthy living activities.
- Summer camp—Summer camp is what many Scouts look forward to the most. Camp programs provide numerous opportunities for Scouts to earn merit badges along their advancement path. Usually taking place in mid-June to coincide with the start of ASIJ summer vacation, resident camp is a week-long adventure within Japan, involving tent camping and many fun outdoor activities.
You can see more details about what we do in the "Activities" section, and our scout blog.