Hey guides!

Here are some pictures taken by Mrs Poh during ball room dancing !

Dear guides:)

Here's a post regarding ballroom dancing initiatives by a year2:)

On Monday, the year 1s and year 2s had ballroom dancing as initiatives!

Before the initiative starts, the dance teacher gave us a brief introduction on ballroom dancing and some interesting facts. Then, we started doing the basic steps of the dance, Cha-cha. We then paired up with someone of compatible height and split into the left and right teams, doing the male and female role respectively. The left team is known as the "leaders" as they usually lead the dance. After practicing the basic steps, we danced to the music. As we have to dance at a much faster pace, we got very confused after a while because we are still not very familiar with the steps.

Next, we learnt the New York steps, whereby we had to do a 90 degrees turn. We then learnt the shoulder-to-shoulder steps, turning 45 degrees. After practicing the 3 steps, we put them together to form a dance, 4 basic steps, 4 shoulder-to-shoulder steps, 4 basic steps again and end off with 4 New York steps. The right team then had to learn how to turn at the 3rd New York step to a new partner. As it was rather simple to just turn, we did not have much practice on it.

To make the lesson more fun, the teacher made us form a circle, the left team forming the inner circle while the right team forms the outer one. After every set of dance, the right team had to turn to the next partner in anti-clockwise direction and dance with their new partner. It was very fun but at the same time confusing as the right team did not turn fast enough and we did not count consistently. We tried a second time and it was much better as we remembered to count consistently. The second part of the lessons was very enjoyable as we got to know one another better.

Hope we have another session like this! (:

Love Guides!

Dear guides, we had clean up on 9nov followed by initiatives!

Here's a post by a year3 who went for paintball initiatives:)

Clean-up for ATC ended quickly and we had our initiatives! The y3s were going to experience Paintball for the first time and we were all excited about it. :)

Upon arrival, we had a safety briefing and also watched a video on speed paintball which we would not get to try as we were still beginners at that time. Despite so, we enjoyed the video and even had to contain our excitement while listening to the instructors.

We were shocked when the instructor accidentally fired off an empty shot during the briefing but he told us it was okay and jokingly asked if we were scared. Honestly, some of us grew afraid but we all bravely experienced our first try of Paintball in the end.

Even though we had to compete in teams to attain the objectives of each round, all of us were happy that we got to experience something new and it was so fun that we didn’t want it to end so quickly.

Initiatives allowed us to end this year’s activities on a good note and hope all of you guides have enjoyed yourselves as much as the y3s did.

Have a good break before activities resume in December! :)

Love Guides! :)

ATC y1 n 2

Hi guides, below are the posts about ATC by a y1 and y2:

y1:

On 29th November, it’s time for Pre-Camp Inspection. As a Year One, we could not imagine what inspection would be like, how it would be carried out, yet we knew that it would be a serious event, thus making us feel more nervous, excited, but more of the spirit to help the seniors. We knew we have to be very prepared for this event. Through this Pre-camp Inspection, it let us, juniors who are new to ATC, to get how ATC would be like, and how important it is to prepare everything. Also, we knew that we have to keep up our patrol’s spirit throughout the whole ATC, because ATC would be a whole lot tougher than the Inspection, but we knew with constant cheering, we could persevere even more, through these hard times.

Day1
Finally, the big day had arrived. We jihed at 7.30a.m. Everyone was very excited on the way there.

The first event was Camp D. Each patrol was supposed to pitch 2 tents. Many of us were clueless as to what to do when we had to pitch tents, we should work on this skill. However, we still helped the seniors carry the canvas sheets etc. After that, we started pitching the tents or building their kitchen shelter. As a Year One, we are quite unsure of how to build all these structures, but I realized it was also important that we should never stand around and do nothing. We can always help our seniors by asking them what to do, and also helping them tie simple lashes. We can also help bao-shi and cheer.

Through Camp D, I realized that time management and man power allocation is a very important for camp D. We should also always move and act fast.

After dinner, we had Night PT. Although it was tough, we tried our best and persevered till the end. Although we were tired out after Camp D, we tried our best so it was something encouraging.

Day 2
On the second day, we had our flag raising ceremony. After that was inspection. Inspection was a rush and we exceeded time limit, because we were a bit slow in laying out our items. The Year Ones struggled with it too because we were new to in camp inspection. But the seniors gave us instruction and we managed to pass through the inspection! Through this, I learnt that inspection is also about communicating within your patrol and others.

After inspection, we cleared up and it was time for outdoor cooking. We first prepared the food at the dining hall while the others start the fire. Starting and sustaining fire are skills that we have yet to master, but I learnt a lot from my seniors through this outdoor cooking. We settled down and enjoyed the food that we had cooked ourselves! It was indeed a fun experience.

Finally, it was time for OJ. The OJ was rather different from what we had experienced in school. Thus, we got to encounter different kinds of situation that we would face in the campsite that were not possible to carry out in school. Also, this OJ required not only our physical ability but also our ability to adapt to changes and using your knowledge and apply it into good use. For example, one of the station required us to transport our items across the imaginary river using the A jia that was provided for us. We thus needed to use our knowledge of using lashes to secure our item and transporting them. We also must be practical and the methods used must be feasible. It often requires us to think through and plan properly, before we proceed into carrying out anything. Hence, we could say that it was a brand new experience, with a lot of valuable lessons learnt.

After all the activities, it was the long awaited Campfire. Te song leaders led the songs and we followed in a merry and joyous mood, while the campfire was burning. We watched different patrols displayed the campfire item that they had prepared for a long time and enjoyed ourselves to the fullest. Campfire was indeed an event for us to relax and also to bond as a company.

After the campfire, it was supper time! We had barbecue. After that, it was time to sleep. At around 1 plus, there was a Fire drill. Many of us were caught unprepared and some of us were flustered. Hence, we got a scolding and had to pump. However, this taught us a lesson to always stay alert to your surroundings. Also, in times of emergency, always help the people in need instead of just caring about yourself. We should always help the patrol mates who were injured because they indeed need more help than us. Through this, we would be more alert.

Day 3

The last day of the camp. We woke up early for breakfast and strike camp. After that, it was time for company games! That was a time to relax and really have fun. The fun we had chased away the tired feeling we had. After company games, it was time to head back to school.

Through this ATC, it definitely trained me to be a faster, stronger person, and also to adapt to the different problems faced. I learnt that the patrol spirit is everything. With a good and high patrol spirit, everything would be all right after all. Last but not least, thank you counselors, thank you Guiders, for the incessant support and encouragement you all had given us in the 3 days. Even though this was the first year that I had attended ATC, but it brought back good memories.


y2:

Pre-camp inspection
On 29th of November, we had pre-camp inspection. The year one and year two guides had a rehearsal on the day before to prepare for the inspection. We had to lay out all of our items that we needed to bring to camp for our seniors to check. This is to ensure that we were ready for camp and that all items were present. The inspection turned out to be quite smooth because we managed to stick to the time our seniors gave us and we had most of the items needed for camp. After inspection, the seniors briefed us about our overall performance on that day and told us to be prepared for ATC.

Annual Training Camp

Day 1
We reported to school at 7.30am and set off to Sarimbun Camp not long after. We started the day with Camp Development, and we were given 45 minutes to build a tent as well as a kitchen shelter, to be shared among 2 patrols. The tent was different from what we built in last year’s ATC, hence we were required to improvise and figure out on how to build the tent. Unfortunately, we were unable to finish it in time and thus, we had to ask for time extension. Through the first part of Camp D, we learnt that having a sense of urgency is important and also, teamwork and cooperation is required to work well with our patrol mates too.

After that, we had our lunch before continuing on the second part of Camp D, which is building our gadgets.

The second part of Camp D required us to build shoe racks, a baggage rack and a dustbin. It tested on our lashes as they had to be tight in order for the gadgets to be stable. Again, we had to constantly 报时 to ensure that we were in time. We had to work as quickly as possible in order to finish all the gadgets.

Camp D lasted until dinner time and I believe all of the trainees had benefitted a lot from it. It taught us to have a sense of urgency and to listen to the PL’s instructions clearly. Communication within the patrol is also a vital point that we learnt during Camp D too.

After we had our dinner, it was night PT. There were a total of 6 stations, and through night PT, we improved our perseverance level. All of us also cheered loudly to keep the patrol morale high. As the night PT was tough, each of us needed to spur our patrol mates on in order to get through the night PT. From this, we improved our mental and physical ability. It was certainly an enriching experience for the trainees.

As it started to rain heavily after that, we were unable to carry out the night games. We had been looking forward to it throughout the whole day and it was quite a pity that we could not carry it out. We went to sleep at the multi-purpose hall instead.


Day 2

We had morning warmup and then we went to have our breakfast. After that, we had inspection. This time, we had to bring all of our baggage as well as our Styrofoam boxes to lay out. Again, we had to act fast and lay out our items as neat as possible. Then, we proceeded to outdoor cooking.

Starting the fire was not easy because many of us had to try multiple times in order to sustain the fire. Outdoor cooking was fun because we get to cook our own food. We were given chicken, mushrooms and soup to cook for our own patrol, which would be our lunch. It turned out to be extremely delicious and we all ate our lunch heartily.

In the afternoon, we had OJ. This OJ we had was very different from the normal OJs as it required us to think more and make use of whatever we had with us. Once again, to carry out the task, we were required to communicate within the patrol and listen to our patrol mates’ suggestions. This OJ was a very memorable one because the situations we faced were totally unexpected and hence, we had to be prepared and work together as a patrol. The PL’s instructions were also very important as they had to be clear so that the patrol mates could carry them out. Thus, this OJ was very beneficial to the trainees.

At night, we had the most exciting event in the camp, which was Campfire! It was the time for us to relax and enjoy ourselves thoroughly after all the strenuous activities. Campfire was very fun and interesting because the songleaders were very entertaining, singing many songs for the audience. Some of us were also given the chance to participate in the campfire. It was a wonderful night because we sang our hearts out and felt very happy during the campfire.

After that, we had barbeque for supper. We had marshmallows, hot dogs and crabmeat to eat. We enjoyed a scrumptious supper before going to sleep.

About 1am in the morning, there was a sudden firedrill. It was assumed that there was a fire and hence, all the trainees had to run away from the fire, as far as possible. We were not supposed to take any of our baggage because in case of an actual fire, we had to ensure that safety comes first. Through this firedrill, we learnt that knowing how to act fast in emergency situations is important. Also, we need to stay calm and not panic as we need to be in a clear state of mind should there be any problems we need to deal with.


Day 3
It was the last day of our camp and in the morning, all we did was to strike camp. We brought down our tents and took everything back to the back store. Then we had our final clean-up on the campsite to ensure that the campsite was clean, without any litter on the floor. After that, we had company games. It was very exciting because we played many games and we could bond with our company too. Then, we left the campsite in the afternoon to return back to school. We had the prize presentation. Even though some of us did not manage to get into the top 3 positions, I believe that all of us had done well in the camp and through it, we have certainly become a better guide. For the year ones, they had learnt many new skills and at the same time, they improved themselves too. For the year twos, we learnt how to lead our patrol better and also, take care of them. This camp experience is an unforgettable one and I believe that what we have learnt during camp would stay with us forever.

Hello guides, our annual training camp has come to an end.

We hope that it has opened you up to more possibilities and allowed you to know yourselves better. All of us are work in progress and are constantly learning and changing, it is never too late to change your attitude and amend your mistakes!

Here is a blog post regarding ATC by a year3;

Hello guides :)

3 November marked the end of ATC 10. Through this 3-day camp, we hope that all of the trainees have learnt something not only new but also valuable from this camp and will apply them during future jihes.

This year, the camp was held in Sarimbun Camp and it is the first time the year 1s, 2s and also the 3s are camping there. The year 2s, being the ones to lead, were worried as the surroundings were unfamiliar to them. First, we jihe in school and the trainees had to bring all their logistics down to the foyer. There was lack of sense of urgency and the trainees guo shi. Next was goal setting in the respective patrols. We hope that you have achieved your goals at the end of the camp!

On the way to Sarimbun Camp, the bus was filled with excitement; most of the guides were most probably discussing how it would be like there, or perhaps already discussing about the activities and manpower allocation.

On arrival, we could see that most of the trainees were quite blur. Very soon, the first activity started and as usual, it is camp D. The tents we were supposed to pitch were somewhat different from what we usually pitch, and many of the guides were unsure of what to do. However, we worked together and overcame this problem. Communication is definitely something very important.

If unsure of anything, you can always approach the year 3s or seniors. Do not be afraid as the camp is for you to learn new things. Of course, certain things we expect you to know by the camp and you should not be over reliant on your seniors. You will have to learn to adapt to changes and put your skills in use! :)

Meanwhile, some of the trainees were putting up the kitchen tents. The help of the seniors were required and this should not be so. For things like this, you should know at the back of your hand and come to the camp prepared. Many of the kitchen tents were extremely unstable and the canvas was sagging. The year 3s were worrying that should there be heavy rain, your kitchen tent would just collapse. The seniors and year 3s even helped to adjust your kitchen tents.

We could see that some of your gadgets such as shoe racks were quite creative, and the other gadgets were rather stable too. Good job! However, some of the flagpoles were not stable and the ma sheng was not taut at all so time was wasted to re-tie the flagpoles. Do take note that you are supposed to wrap your flag around the pole using the la sheng, if not it would be considered as sheng ban qi.

At night was night PT. We could see many of you pia-ing and giving your best although you were tired. However, there were also some who gave up easily. We hope that all of you will not give up so easily next time. All of you are going through this together. Constantly cheer each other on to boost your morale! After night PT, it was supposed to be night games. Unfortunately, it started raining heavily and night games could not be carried out :(

On the second morning, we had morning warm up and then flag raising. Afterwards it was inspection. Many things were kupped and even a pei bei and first aid kit were kupped! These two things are very important and you should take care of them. Of course, every other thing is important as well and you must take care of them! We could see that many things were not standardized such as the direction your items were facing. Other than that, your overall layout is more or less neat :)

Next was outdoor cooking. This time, the kitchen dresser was not built hence preparation of food was at the dining hall. When transporting the food or other things from the dining hall to the kitchen tents, we could see that some of you were walking. We hope to see a sense of urgency in everything that you do. Do take note to cover your food while cooking, if not you will be eating ash for lunch :) the food was tasty and we hope you enjoyed the process and bonded with your patrol during that time.

After outdoor cooking and lunch was OJ. This time, OJ is very different from the typical OJs. We wanted the trainees to be able to adapt to change and put in use your skills. This OJ required the trainees to think out of the box and make use of your skills learnt. If you know your skills well enough, you would not fluster and you would be able to go through this OJ smoothly. Many of you were unsure of how to build a signal. This is very important and although ATC is over, we hope that you will still look through your notes and take note of these important things.

Then it was flag lowering and then dinner. Later on at night, it was campfire! The performances put up by the patrols were all very entertaining :) This year for campfire, we had something different, which was the fashion showcase. Every patrol had their own dress code and they were all unique and interesting :) The yarn was given by Yiting and Nicholette, it definitely spoke to us a lot and we hope that all of you will remember it and apply it into every that you do too!

Following campfire was supper and we had a mini barbeque. Sadly, almost all of the patrols did not clear up. Remember that it is a camp and you do not have servants to clean up after you!

Soon, the trainees fell asleep after a long and tiring day. At 1.08am, fire drill started. Some of the year 3s were at the campsite, shouting: “Fire, fire!” All if not many of the trainees were blur, confused and did not know what to do. It took at total of 8 minutes for all the trainees to evacuate the campsite and get to the main field. If there was a real fire, the consequences would be dire if you actually took such a long time to evacuate. What we hoped to see is that you could help one another and wake each other up. Some of you just ran out of the tents without waking up your other patrol mates, not even to say the other patrols. Many of you also ignored the “casualties” who were shouting for help. We hope that through this fire drill, you have learnt something valuable: do not just think about your own safety, but also remember that other lives are just as important!

Day 3 morning started with strike camp and clearing up of the campsite. Next was company games to celebrate almost the end of ATC. We hope that all of you had fun and bonded with the company!

We then carried all the logistics up the bus and headed back to school. Many of us were tired and fast fell asleep on the bus. We hope that this is a sign that all of you have pia-ed hard during the camp! Back at school, we had lunch. Then it was mystery games.

Overall, we hope that all the guides, be it year 1, 2 or 3 have learnt something from this camp and will continue to improve! It does not matter whether your patrol came in first or last, what matters most is that you have really done your best and sincerely helped each other. There have been tears but also bonds which have been forged. We hope to see the spirit of guiding to continue to grow in all of you!

Love guides!