The Scout Movement aims to support young people to develop in mind and body so that they can play a positive role in society. As part of this, there has always been a strong emphasis on outdoor activities and survival. Various other popular movements, such as summer camp, have developed along the same lines.

It is divided into three major age groups (Cub Scout, Boy Scout, Rover Scout).

In 1910 the Girl Guides, was founded and also divided into three major age groups (Brownie Guide, Girl Guide and Girl Scout, Ranger Guide).

It is one of the largest youth organisations in the world.

One of the major activities of the army had always been to send out people ahead to look to see what the enemy was doing. These people, who needed many survival skills, were known as scouts.

The Scout Movement began when General Robert Baden-Powell, of the British Army, wrote a book for boys called Scouting for Boys (London, 1908), based on ideas of military scouting.

In the summer of 1907 Baden-Powell held a camp on Brownsea Island in Southern England to test ideas for his book. This is where the Scout Movement began.

The Scout Movement puts a lot of emphasis on practical outdoor activities, including camping, woodcraft, hiking, and so on. When the Scouts were formed, there was a lot of difference between peoples based on their class. The Scout uniform was intended to hide differences of class. The original uniform was a khaki button-up shirt, shorts, neckerchief and a broad-brimmed campaign hat, the fleur-de-lis, trefoil, and a variety of achievement badges and other patches.

The individual clothing items were all intended to have a practical purpose. For example, a pair of scout staves could be used with a pair of trousers (putting the staves through the trouser legs) to make a stretcher, the leather hat band could become an emergency tourniquet, and so on. Neckerchiefs could easily be used as a sling or triangular bandage by a Scout in need.

In many ways, the Scout Movement was founded both by British and Americans, for, in 1896, Baden-Powell met the American-born Frederick Russell Burnham, Chief of Scouts for the British Army in Africa. Burnham showed Baden-Powell a wide range of woodcraft skills and about the importance of a code of honour. This was all based on the ways of frontiersmen of the American Old West and Indigenous peoples of the Americas. At this time woodcraft was generally little known to the British Army. The scout signature campaign hat is like the one worn by Burnham.

Because of Baden-Powell's war successes he became a national hero, and this helped him to get the publicity he needed to get the Scout Movement going.

His organisational method, now known as the Patrol System and a key part of Scouting training, gave boys the chance to organise themselves into small groups and to elect a patrol leader. This was a first step in teaching democracy.

In 1909, the first Scout Rally was held at Crystal Palace in London, to which 11,000 Scouts came—and some girls dressed as Scouts and calling themselves "Girl Scouts". By 1910, there were already over 100,000 Scouts.

Scouting for Boys is now the fourth-bestselling title of all time.

The Boy Scout Movement was quickly adopted throughout the British Empire as well as the United States

Influence of the US frontiersmen can be seen in the selection of animal badges for Cub Scouts.

"Duty to God" is also a principle of Scouting in many, but not all countries.

Another ideal is that trustworthiness and personal honour, help to develop responsibility, character, self-reliance, self-confidence, reliability, collaboration and leadership. This is developed through enjoyable activities and games. The Scout Motto is 'Be Prepared', and the Scout Slogan is 'Do a good turn daily'.