Communication Merit Badge

The nine requirements, with the three choices the badge offers and the four that need other people booked in advance.

10 steps (9 parts inside them). 9 parts depend on questions you have not answered yet. · Version 1, published 13 August 2026 · About Communication Merit Badge

No questions answered

This is the whole plan: everything that could apply to anybody. Answering the 3 questions at the address above takes out the parts that are not for you.

Which of this applies to you

You have not answered anything yet, so this is the whole plan: everything that could apply to anybody. Answering 3 short questions will take out the parts that are not for you.

Answer the questions

The steps

Stage 1 of 5

1 step

1. Look at how you communicate Requirement

One of four ways in. Two of them run over several days, so read all four before choosing.
4 parts
- 1(a). Keep a communication log for a day Optional May not apply
- 1(b). Keep a listening journal for three days Optional May not apply
- 1(c). Watch how a small group tells its stories Optional May not apply
- 1(d). List the ways to communicate, and when each fails Optional May not apply

Stage 2 of 5

4 steps

2. Present something and see if it lands Requirement

One of two: describe yourself, or sell an idea.
2 parts
- 2(a). Describe yourself creatively, then present it Optional May not apply
- 2(b). Build a sales plan and try it on your counselor Optional May not apply
4. Interview someone and introduce them Task

Someone you know reasonably well and respect. Listen actively, then prepare and deliver an introduction of them to your counselor as though they were about to speak, and show how you would ring to invite them.
5. Attend a public meeting and report it fairly Often forgotten Event

A council, school board or debate approved by your counselor, where several points of view are given on one issue. Take careful notes and write an objective report including every view expressed.

The meeting must be approved by your counselor and must be one where several points of view are actually given on a single issue. A meeting where everybody agreed leaves you with nothing to report objectively, so check the agenda before you go rather than afterwards.
9. Look at three careers in communication Task

Find three, pick one, find out the education, training and experience it needs, and explain to your counselor why it might interest you.

Stage 3 of 5

3 steps

3. Write a five-minute speech and give it to a group Often forgotten Task

Written by you, delivered at a meeting of a group. The writing is the small half.
6. Teach somebody something and check that it worked Task

With your counselor's approval: a plan, teaching aids you prepared, the teaching itself, and then working out with your counselor whether the person actually learned it.
7. Publish something Requirement

One of three. All three end in something a reader could hold or open.
3 parts
- 7(a). Write to an editor Optional May not apply
- 7(b). Build a webpage or blog Optional May not apply
- 7(c). Produce a newsletter, brochure or flyer Optional May not apply

Stage 4 of 5

1 step

8. Plan and run a court of honour or campfire Often forgotten Event

Plan it, get the patrol leaders' council to approve it, write the script, prepare the programme, and serve as master of ceremonies. The approval is a step inside this requirement, not a formality after it.

This is the requirement that decides how long the badge takes, and it is written as one line with no lettered parts, which makes it easy to underestimate. Inside it are four separate things: a plan, an approval from the patrol leaders' council, a written script and prepared programme, and serving as master of ceremonies on the night. Courts of honour happen a few times a year. Get on the agenda early.

Stage 5 of 5

1 step

Counselor signs it off Milestone

The completion date is the date you met the requirements, not the date of the signature.

Usually comes after 8. Plan and run a court of honour or campfire and 7. Publish something.

Merit badge requirements are republished annually. A Scout beginning work uses the requirements as they stand then; a Scout already working may finish under the ones they started with. Guide to Advancement 7.0.4.3 governs which applies. This page records the date its copy was read. Check it against the official page before relying on it.

This plan is a planning aid: the current Boy Scouts of America publication is always the authority, and the sources used here are listed in full. Each step names its own.