The Badge Archive

Network Circles

Info Needed for the Daisy badge requirements: A computer by itself cannot talk to other computers, search the internet, or download information. Computers are connected to each other through a computer network. The basic connections are made with wires. A wire can connect one computer to another, and all the communication and information goes through the wire.

Wireless connections are also common. Our voice travels through the air on sound waves we can’t see, but our ears can receive the sound, and we hear what someone else says. Information (or data) is sent through the air on specific waves we can’t see or hear, but a computer can have a receiver that “hears” or detects the information (or data). A wire connection needs a wire connected between computer 1 and computer 2 so they can send and receive data. A wireless connection needs a receiving device in both computer 1 and computer 2 so they can send and receive data.

Info Needed for the Brownie & Junior badge requirements: We know the internet is where computers anywhere in the world can connect with each other. We also know there are wireless devices, so things do not need to be wired together to connect. But can a computer in America connect to a computer in Asia wireless? Not quite. Your wireless device has to be in range of a wireless receiver. The wireless receiver is plugged in. The data goes from your device to the receiver wireless, and then travels by wire over to Asia. There are actually wires that cross the ocean, called “undersea cables”. Some think they are a myth, but that is how data travels across continents. In Asia the wires might connect to another wireless receiver, and it sends the data wirelessly to another device. That is how two wireless devices can connect across the world.

Items Needed

  • Blank circle diagram (one for each scout). See Internet and Network for what they look like.
  • Pencils, crayons, or markers

Instructions

  1. Introduce the idea that a network is a group of connected parts. Use examples like computer networks, community networks, or scouting networks to make the concept relatable.
  2. Give each scout a blank circle diagram. Explain that the largest circle represents the biggest group (e.g., worldwide or national) and the smallest circle represents the scout themselves.
  3. Help scouts fill in each circle starting with the smallest. It will differ for each scout, but a sample would be:
    • In the smallest circle, write “Me” (the scout).
    • In the next circle, write “Den/Troop” or “Team” (for sports players).
    • In the next circle, write “Community” (the scouting community or sports region).
    • In the next circle, write “Council” (for scouts) or “State” (for sports).
    • In the largest circle, write “Nationwide” or “Worldwide.”
  4. Let scouts color or decorate each circle to represent how they belong to each level of their network. For example, they can draw themselves in the smallest circle, a group of scouts in the next circle, and so on.
  5. Gather everyone to discuss their network diagrams. Ask how each level of the network helps connect them to bigger communities or organizations.
Tia Kennard