Right hero for the right job

1. Gather everyone around and ask if anyone knows who the Marvel Avengers are. Explain that the Avengers are a group of superheroes who work together to protect the world. Some examples are Marvel's Iron Man, Captain America, Thor, Hulk, Black Widow and Hawkeye. They were brought together by Nick Fury, who is the leader of S.H.I.E.L.D., a secret government organisation that protects the world from dangerous threats.
2. Explain that each member of The Avengers has special abilities, such as super strength, high-tech armour or expert fighting skills. They join forces, and each of The Avengers uses their specific skills or abilities to take on different tasks in order to stop powerful enemies and save the planet from threats too big for any one hero to handle alone. 
3. Ask everyone to think about a task they’ve completed as a team, either inside or outside of Scouts. They should think about how they did the task. Did each person do the task the same way or, like the Avengers, did people help do the task based on their individuals strengths and skills? It’s important to recognise the strengths and skills of others, and encourage people to use them.
4. Ask everyone to get into small groups, and hand out some paper and pens.
5. Each group needs to think of a task for a younger section to do. This could be a skill, such as setting up a tent, or maybe a fun game, such as Capture the Flag, that you want to share.
6. In their groups, people should think about who has the right skills for each part of the task. They need to make sure everyone is assigned a role, as everyone has valuable skills and strengths within themselves to become a superhero. For example, who’s the most confident in public speaking and can explain the task? Who’s the most active, so could demonstrate the task? Who’s patient and can help explain things to others if they have trouble understanding? 
7. Once the groups are happy with their task, let them know if they’ll have the chance to run it with a younger section. If so, they’ll need to think about what they’ll need, where they will source it from or if it needs sourcing for them, and how they’ll get it there.
8. On the agreed night, the groups should go and run the tasks for the younger section. Please keep in mind the need to consider any risks involved in the tasks that have been created and write appropriate risk assessments. We suggest you involve the young people and write the risk assessments together.
9. Remind the group to encourage the younger sections to think about their own strengths when completing the task. Remember that the Avengers come together to solve a problem, and whether you’re running the task or completing the task, you’ll work together just like your favourite superheroes. 
10. After running the task, gather everyone together and ask how they thought their tasks went. Ask each group how they thought the younger sections approached their tasks, and what they thought of their methods and strategies, such as what surprised them about how they did the tasks. 

©2024 MARVEL