Searching for?

3 February 2013

1st February Guides Activities

Hi Guides!:D

On 1st February, we had our Friday Guides activities! While the Year 2s were working on their craft badge, the Year 3s and Year 4s had Leadership training by the YAs:)

Basically, for the Leadership training which was done as separate batches, the first section consisted of a lecture by a Y6 YA, followed by OJ:)

Reflections from a Year 3...

The Y4s and Y3s had Leadership Training by the YAs on 1st February during 集合 while the juniors, Y2s, did the craft badge! When my batch received text messages from our PLs about needing to wear Guides Uniform and bring PE and slacks, we panicked and did not know what to expect. We were wondering if it could be PT or OJ along with mass change, or something else that wasn’t introduced to us yet like Vertical Rope. At home, we carefully prepared our Guides Uniform, especially our scarfs which we constantly retied to make perfect.

On Friday itself, we quickly changed and ate, then went for 集合 in our Guides Uniform and brought along our lecture books. We were told to go to a senior high classroom where a Y6 YA, Cassandra, would have a brief sharing session with us to prepare us for the leadership we would have to take on after PDP. She talked about things like the junior-senior relationship and how we need to lead and move the . Many of us scribbled down notes for future use after we would take over from the current Y4s. It was informative and we learned a lot like how to prepare ourselves for taking on leadership from the sharing by Cassandra.

Next, we were told that there would be OJ afterwards and it would be tough. We needed to pack our 配备, change into our OJ kit (PE shirt instead of Coy tee) and take two 青木within 15mins and assemble outside the auditorium. The QMs went to tuanbu to pack first while the rest of us ran to 3G to take our OJ attire and mass change.

Our first station was at the red tile area. It tested our survival skills where the PL was supposed to stand behind a restricted area and not be able to help the patrol. She was only supposed to give instructions to the messenger, the PS, who has to pump five times for every message conveyed. I watched as my patrol did what I told them to do, but was very chaotic and confused. They did not know where to get drinkable water and was unable to crack the codes properly. Hence, we 过时 a little and was unable to fully complete the task.

For Station 2, we continued with the station where we had to build a structure to hold a basin. The objectives were only told to the PL and PS which was that it had to look appealing and we had to use as little as possible. We were given 12minutes and were given some gadget poles to work with. After completing it, we were being briefed about the importance of communication. We were told that we needed to make more suggestions and speak up more.

Our third station was at the second level of the upper secondary block. We had to build a rope ladder and make a danger signal using a fire in 20minutes. We had trouble lighting the fire at first because the matches we packed in the 配备 were not working, however, we managed to successfully light up all three fires in the end. Afterwards, we were told to ignore the fire and go back upstairs to our rope ladder.

Our fourth station was outside LT3. It was a station where the PL will have two structures to choose from for us to build. Our PL for that station chose the one that we had to tie a star shaped structure. At first, we were a bit confused about the instructions because we were unable to visualize, however, we managed to complete it successfully in the end.

Since it was already 6.15, we missed the fifth and final station, which was the gas room and first aid station. I felt proud that our patrol did a good job and managed to survive OJ! Overall, I felt the OJ was a fulfilling, enriching and successful one.
Reflections from a Year 4...
For the first section of the Leadership training, the Year 4s had a lecture by Chai Ning on leadership. As we had already undergone PLTC and had half a year left leading the company, this lecture serve to remind us of our roles as leaders and give us some pointers on our leadership. Through this lecture, we learnt that there are many different types of leadership, and we also learnt how to progress from one level to the next. It also gave us food for thought regarding our own leadership experiences.
After the lecture section, we had OJ. We had not participated in OJ for a long time since we took over last year and this served as a surprise. We were given 15minutes to change from our Guides Uniform to our OJ kit, as well as to bring down all the logistics required for OJ to the location specified. This really was surprising and tested us on our sense of urgency as we were not informed of it beforehand.
 
We were then divided into OJ patrols depending on our original patrols. Three patrols combined to form one OJ patrol and we had to complete a total of 5 stations.
 
For my patrol, we went to the 夜里行军 and Gas Room station first. For my patrol, we did not work as fast as we could have and did not manage to complete the route in time. Through this, we learnt that we must have more sense of urgency but also ensure our patrolmates’ safety. After the 夜里行军, it was a Gas Room scenario. We had to get into the ‘Gas Room’ and rescue 2 casualties, as well as to treat them afterwards. We were told to leave together as a patrol. This really showed us the important of communication as no patrolmate should be left behind in any activity, and also made us more aware of the instructions given to us.
After the first station, my patrol went to the Survival Skills station. At this station, the PL was separated from the patrol and had to give instructions to the patrol via a messenger. This really tested the communication within the patrol as without the PL to give instructions, the patrol would not know what to do. Through this, we learnt the importance of looking around our surroundings and how the PS needs to take charge when the PL is not around.
For the third station, my patrol went to the Creative Gadgets station. At this station, our task was to build a washbasin using the gadget poles given. The PL and PS was given one objective each to complete when tying the gadget, and had to tell the entire patrol about them. For this station, we were again reminded of the importance of communication and the need for the PL to facilitate discussion within the patrol in order for everyone to know the purpose of the activity and thus complete it with understanding.
After that, my patrol went to our fourth station, which was the Rope Ladder and Firelighting station. At this station, the PL was again separated from the patrol and had to convey instructions through a messenger. This tested our ability to work fast and keep our goal in mind, which was to make the ladder safe for people to climb down, which means that the rungs had to be tied horizontally. This tested my patrol on our firelighting skills, which was quite bad as we took quite long to start a fire. My patrol didn’t get to try out the fifth station due to time constraints.
Overall, however, I think that my patrol worked together quite well and our morale stayed high despite the difficulties faced during the stations. I think that this leadership training has helped us to hone our leadership skills as well as instill in us sense of urgency and the importance of communication. We also got to sharpen our rusty Guides skills during this surprise OJ as well:)
All in all, the Leadership training by the YAs really benefitted the Year 3s and Year 4s:D For the Year 3s, it served as a introduction to leadership in preparation for their upcoming COJ and PLTC, and for the Year 4s, it helped us to hone our leadership skills!:O We all learnt much more about leadership which will serve us well in the days to come~:)

No comments: