Patrol Activity + Physical Training, 11 March 2016

Hello Guides! (:

On Friday, we had Patrol Activity and Physical Training! Here are reflections for PA!

P1 Bougainvillea

Firstly, our patrol leader gave us 7 minutes to build four emergency shelters concurrently, and we decided to split ourselves up into three respective groups, each of the Y3s handling their own juniors to educate them on the procedure. We revised it together, and this activity was also to give us a better sense of urgency and to show the Y1s the function of a emergency shelter. Halfway through, we met with some difficulties as the remaining two 中木 we had chosen were not of equal length and when I propped it under the poncho, it somehow always broke and could not stand on its own for too long, with the 八字结 becoming loose. Too occupied with the task at hand, we did not notice the time and had to ask for repeated time extensions. After our first attempt, we had to 拆掉 our structures and then had another 7 minutes to build it again. This time, noting our past mistakes, we improved on it and managed to finish faster as well. Our next activity was to build a flagpole, boil some water in a mess tin, build another emergency shelter and a shoe rack. We managed to teach the Y1s some basic 礼节s like how the flag pole and kit should not touch the ground as a sign of respect, and how we had to form an equilateral triangle or other simple knowledge like knocking the 青头 45 degrees down. Afterwards, we had to erect a dome tent and an eight-man tent. The dome tent, being the easier one, was done much quicker and we focused the rest of our attention on the eight-man tent. Again, we did much work to 打 the 青头s and it was pretty much filled with frustration as we all had to 抽 our lashes at the same time to enable our structure to stand straight, and somehow problems were always posed for us. When we were finally done with the PA activities, we felt accomplished and united as a patrol, and even more so doing the next activity designed for the company -

P2 Ixora

This 集合 was the first time we had PA as a patrol with the year ones and it was a really good opportunity for the year threes to learn to lead the entire patrol. First, we had to build a heart-shaped structure and a baggage rack under 35 minutes. Then, we taught the year ones how to tie lashes on spars, before building two Roman chariots. The year ones learnt really quickly and were very cooperative as well. We (the year threes) had to opportunity to practise learning how to give clear instructions, especially because it was also the first time the year ones built something using spars and hence were unclear on a few aspects, especially on how to tie lashes for spars. However, we exceeded the time limit a few times. Thus, for future 集合s, we must remember to improve our time management skills and increase our sense of urgency, so that we do not need to ask for so many time extensions. Overall, this PA was rather fun as everyone had a new experience as a patrol.

P3 Jasmine

For patrol activity during 集合 today, we built tents and then split into our different batches to carry out different activities. We were given 7 minutes to take down a 8-men tent, 1 dome tent, 30 tent pegs poncho for every member, 12 青头, 6 中木, and sufficient 白绳. After that, we were given 15 minutes to build 3 emergency shelters and one dome tent. However, we were stopped halfway as we had taken the 8-men tent instead of the dome tent. We had to thus go back and take another dome tent, which caused us to be behind time. We then 集合-ed and given another 15 minutes to build all the required structures. In the midst of building, many of us did not take note of our other logistics and the seniors took away many of our logistics that were needed in building the basha. Once our time was up, we 集合-ed and the seniors passed us some blindfolds to blindfold ourselves. They then tasked us to rebuild the dome tent within 5 minutes. This was very difficult as those who were blindfolded were always getting pulled away and kupped. Also, as they could not see, many of them had to be guided to each location and took very long for us to get going to build the tent. Eventually, after many tries, we managed to get the job done and all of us felt very accomplished. However, due to the lack of 报时, this resulted in us repeatedly 过时-ing and were punished for it. After that, we were given 15 minutes to build an 8-men tent. Once again, the 8-men tent we supposed to take was actually a dome tent. Hence, we had to stop and go back up to take the actual 8-men tent. We were then given another 15 minutes to build an 8-men tent. Our process was very slow as the sun was very hot and our patrol morale was low. Despite many tries, we still could not finish the tent in time and could not see the finished product. After building the tents, we had batch activity with the year 2s. We were given 6 minutes to mass change into our guides uniform. After that, the time slowly decreased and it became more challenging. However, we managed to do well for most of the attempts and many of us felt a sense of satisfaction after the entire activity was over. All in all, we learnt that we need to 照顾 both our logistics and members and we should not leave any one behind.

P4 Orchid

We had a mini obstacle journey and physical training which was part of the obstacle journey. For the first station we had to build a creative kitchen rack/shelf with our given logistics whilst building emergency shelters concurrently. Though our gadget was a tee bit shaky and slanted, it still stood which was a relief. For the second station, the Y3s were separated from the others and had to build a 3m tall structure that could stand alone with our given logistics within 10 minutes while decoding trekking signs. Having used the wrong lash as we had never been hit with this kind of mammoth task with 青木 which were merely 2m long, we were at a loss and were unable to complete our task. After taking apart our structure, we were tasked to light a fuel fire and build a shelter with a poncho. Upon realisation that we had very few matches most of which did not light up, we were not able to light the fuel. As for the poncho, in a fit of rash thinking, it was built too small, but alas a shelter was still a shelter and we quickly headed to our next station due to time constraint. Our last station was physical training and we ran around the Y3 and Y4 block looking for post its’, each post it with a set of PT. Some of us were slower than others and were unable to catch up, resulting in a rather large unsightly gap between the front runners and the slower ones. I think one thing we could improve on from this is to be more inclusive and make sure that we move together as one since patrol is family and no one gets left behind.

P5 Sunflower

Today, after we gathered for Patrol Activity, the Year 3s were split up from the Year 1s and 2s. Afterwards, we 集合-ed with the Year 3s from P2, and did a separate task from our juniors. We were told to get 4 青木, 4 黄木, 11 红木, 2 浅蓝木, 2 白木, 2 粗麻绳 as well as sufficient 麻绳 within 12 minutes, and that we were going to build a viking. However, while getting the logistics, we had a miscommunication which resulted in our of our patrol members going to take extra 木 and hence we had to ask for more time extensions. After both logistics and manpower were accounted for, we were given 2 minutes to read the proposal, and 50 minutes to build the viking. Halfway through, we realised that there was another miscommunication as we were supposed to take 6 青木, not 4 青木. However, we were able to improvise on our structure and managed to overcome that obstacle. Finally, we managed to complete our structure, with the help of several time extensions.After which, we had some fun playing around with the structure and taking several photos for memory's sake, before we had to 拆掉 our structure and return the logistics. Despite the fact that we were able to complete the structure and had fun with it at the end, we learnt to have a higher morale, have a better sense of urgency, and to have better communication, and we hope to improve on this even more throughout our guiding journey.

P6 Morning Glory

For the first half of the 集合 we had patrol activity which was pioneering to build a slide. First we had to take our logistics from backstore and 团部 but our sense of urgency was very low and we did not allocate manpower properly, causing us to 过时 although we were actually given enough time and had already asked for time extension. Hence this was a part that we could have improved, especially for the Y1s who might not be so familiar with everything yet. Then we started building our structure, but again our sense of urgency was not there and progress was very slow. Furthermore we did not cheer or 报时 regularly despite being reminded and eventually punished. Halfway through building, the Y4s decided to emphasise on the point of sense of urgency by making everyone tie square and diagonal lashes within the standard timing. Many of the Y1s had difficulty finish tying their lashes and despite the tight time limit there was no frequent 报时 which we really should have improved upon. Then we continued with the building of the slide but because of too little time, we could not finish it and had to cai the structure.  The important lesson we learnt is that we really need to work on our sense of urgency during 集合s. Even though the Y1s might still be inexperienced it does not mean we can slack off or take our time, instead we should make good examples for our juniors. Especially since we as Y3s are going to have PLTC soon, we have to take note of things like manpower allocation and 报时 so that we can lead better or risk the patrol not being able to finish the task. So this is really something we need to take note of.

After that was PT! Two patrols paired together and travelled to three stations!

First station:

The first station being to break into even smaller groups and huddle in a circle in our leg raise positions to support a pail of water. At certain periods of time, different people had to go up to seniors to complete tasks given out and this lasted for around 10 minutes.

Second Station:

The second station was relatively tougher, as it played more on circuits. The two patrols had to do consistently do 20 jumping jacks, 45 seconds of planking, 1 round of crab walk around the level, and so on. We did this until the time limit was up and needless to say, we were all exhausted, especially the Y1s as this was their first experience of PT.

Third Station:

The final and last station was to incur some competitive spirit between the patrols, as each member would take turns and compete against another to run around the MRL designed track and the faster person would gain the upper hand.

 

Hope everyone learnt something new and got to train their stamina!

Cheers,
Michelle
47th Batch Secretary

 

Patrol Activity, 7 March 2016

Hello Guides! (:

We had Patrol Activity on Monday! Here are reflections from the respective patrol secretaries!

P1 Bougainvillea:

We were a bit short of manpower and our PL split us into two different groups respectively - Y3s, then Y2s and Y1s. We were tasked to build a creative gadget within 30 mins, and from the seniors' suggestions we managed to think of a chair. The chair consisted of two A-架, two 中长木 attached across and we rafted the seats with 中木. We took our own time and had sense of urgency whatsoever, and when we asked for time extensions we did not adhere to it either. In the meantime, the Y1s were practising their lashes and the Y2s were guiding them through, correcting their mistakes. They touched on the basics like diagonal lashes, Mickey Mouse lashes, and tripod lashes. Then, we proceeded to the second phase of PA. Again, the Y3s were separated from the rest of the patrol and we had to build a baggage rack, while having to complete our previous structure. In the end, our structures were not steady because we had rushed through the process and our lashes were not exactly tight but we felt accomplished for reinforcing some of our skills that day. We had patrol corner until the end of PA and had a lovely time.

 

P2 Ixora:

This PA we (the year 3s) combined with P5 year 3s to build a viking. We took quite a long time to 般 the 木 as there was miscommunication as one person went to 般 more 木 when we already had all the logistics and she had to return the 木halfway. It was the first time any of us had built a viking and it was quite an interesting experience. We were given two minutes to look at the proposal and then 50 minutes to build the viking.

We used 4 黄木 to build a quadpod, which took a very long time. Halfway building the quadpod we built the rafting simultaneously to save time. We rafted 3 红木 to 浅蓝木 to use it as the seat of the viking. When the quadpod was tied, we tied 红木 to two opposite side of the quadpod, and tied another 红木 on top of it for both sides  to form a trapezium shape. We then tied a 白木 horizontally to the the top 红木 on both sides of the quadpod and suspended the rafting to the 白木 with 粗麻绳. We did get the chance to play with the viking and it was quite fun, especially since none of us have ever built a viking before. The experience was sort of like a cross between a seesaw and a swing. It was rather satisfying to be able to play with the structure after we spent about an hour building it. We were working quite slowly and had to ask for time extension twice. We also had to 重抽 or 重打 a few of the lashes as they were quite loose, especially the square lash of the top 红木. We need to improve our sense of urgency, especially when PLTC is coming soon.

 

P3 Jasmine:

For Patrol Activity today, we combined with P6 and conducted our activities as year 3s and year 1s and 2s. As year 3s, we had inspection followed by pioneering. First, we were tasked to pack a personal 配备 for every member on the patrol as well as a 配备 for OJ. We were given 5 minutes but exceeded the time limit even after asking for time extension. After packing our 配备s, we were given 7 minutes to layout all our logistics. At first, it was very confusing as I had to lay out for 2 people as one of them was laying out the logistics for OJ 配备. Also, 报时 was inconsistent and this caused us to 过时 once again. We were then given 1 minutes to pack the laid out logistics back into the 配备 and re-layout the logistics in the same layout as previously but in 6 minutes. This time, we worked much faster and systemically and there was a clear person reading out the layout which was an improvement. However, our 报时 was lacking and this resulted in us 过时ing again. We were then given 1 minute to pack and re-layout for the third time in 5 minutes. This time, I was quite familiar with the layout after doing it so many times and managed to do it quickly. Unfortunately, we realised that many of our logistics were missing and that we forgot to take them from 团部. After packing up our 配备s, we were given the task to do suicide runs along the road of GSL with the 配备s. We linked our hands together by placing one 配备 in between while carrying the rest of the remaining 配备s. We gave ourselves a target of accomplishing 12 suicide runs within 10 minutes. This was very exhausting as our stamina was weak and a lot of our energy had been used up by the inspection. In addition, some of us even carried 2 配备s and ran. This marked the end of inspection. Next, we were tasked to take 麻绳, 2 浅蓝木, 4 黄木, 6 青木, and 8 红木 and build a Viking within 30 minutes. This was very fun as it was our first time building a Viking and the final product turned out great. Also, the patrol morale was high and 报时 was constant. We felt a great sense of satisfaction and it was good to end the PA on a high note. In conclusion, the patrol activity was eventful and enriching and we learnt many things.

P4 Orchid:

For the first part of patrol activity, the Y3s were separated from the Y1s and 2s.  The Y3s had to build a kitchen table while the other were given a list of things to build which included a flag pole, a dome tent, an emergency shelter and a 8 men tent. When the Y3s were done, upon request, they did 8 minutes of suicide running. Meanwhile the other continued on with their assignment as well as cooked a simple dessert of marshmallows and oreos over a solid fuel fire. After gathering back when our allocated assignments were completed, we took down everything and had our much awaited water balloon game. Despite it consisting the least time of our patrol activity, it was the most enjoyable.

P5 Sunflower:

Today, after we gathered for Patrol Activity, the Year 3s were split up from the Year 1s and 2s. Afterwards, we 集合-ed with the Year 3s from P2, and did a separate task from our juniors.

We were told to get 4 青木, 4 黄木, 11 红木, 2 浅蓝木, 2 白木, 2 粗麻绳 as well as sufficient 麻绳 within 12 minutes, and that we were going to build a viking. However, while getting the logistics, we had a miscommunication which resulted in our of our patrol members going to take extra 木 and hence we had to ask for more time extensions. After both logistics and manpower were accounted for, we were given 2 minutes to read the proposal, and 50 minutes to build the viking. Halfway through, we realised that there was another miscommunication as we were supposed to take 6 青木, not 4 青木. However, we were able to improvise on our structure and managed to overcome that obstacle. Finally, we managed to complete our structure, with the help of several time extensions.

After which, we had some fun playing around with the structure and taking several photos for memory's sake, before we had to 拆掉 our structure and return the logistics.

Despite the fact that we were able to complete the structure and had fun with it at the end, we learnt to have a higher morale, have a better sense of urgency, and to have better communication, and we hope to improve on this even more throughout our guiding journey.

P6 Morning Glory:

On Monday, we split up with the Y1s and 2s and had PA with P3 Y3s. First, there was inspection and we were required to pack a personal 配备 each and 1 patrol 配备 for each patrol. I feel that we could have done better for this inspection as we did not 报时 constantly and thus 过时 many times. If we had 报时 and keep track of time constantly, we would be able to ask for time extension before the time was up. Also, we had a lack of logistics and took other patrol logistics, causing some confusion after 集合 when we were packing the 小队箱. From this activity, we understand that it is important to be organized and keep track of the logistics that we took. For the next activity, we had to carry our personal配备 and patrol 配备and run from one end of the road to another end. I feel that the activities really helped us in preparing for the upcoming PLTC as we get to train both our skills and physical stamina. After that, we had pioneering and built a Viking at the elevated platform. I enjoyed this activity as it was the first time we were building a Viking for many of us. It was a new experience and the Y4s guided us in building it. I feel that we were quite on task and managed to finish the structure although we could have still have worked faster and finish the structure on time. Overall, I felt that the combined PA was very enriching for us and I really enjoyed it. 

 

Hope everyone learnt something!

Cheers,
Michelle
47^th Batch Secretary

Outdoor Cooking + Batch Activity, 4 March 2016

Hello Guides! (:

For this 集合 we had outdoor cooking! The patrols had to do up a proposal beforehand and prepare their own ingredients, plan out a timeline and create their own recipe! The guides had 35 minutes to build a fire altar 

 

 

And afterwards 1 hour and 20 minutes to start a fire and complete their dishes!

Thoughts from a Year 3…

For the outdoor cooking, we worked together as a patrol to prepare and cook the food. The outdoor cooking session was very successful as the fire was maintained well and the food was cooked for just the right amount of time. We also managed to teach the year 1s the basic outdoor cooking skills, like how to start the fire and how to maintain the fire, etc. However, we had picked the wrong type of thin twigs, and they contained too much moisture, causing a lot of smoke to be produced. We have learnt from it and will avoid picking those kind of twigs from now on. Overall, it was a fulfilling session, and i think everyone did their part well.

 

Afterwards, the year 2s and year 3s had a separate batch activity from the year 1s.

Year 1s:

They were taught on the 礼节s and basic stuff of guides. After that, they went to 团部 to familiarise with where logistics are placed, and other stuff. They then did some physical training!

Thoughts from a Year 1…

Our seniors took us to 团部 to familiarise ourselves with the place after the oc. After that session, I learnt where were the various items placed and would not be so blur the next time I go to 团部. It was then I realised that although the 团部was small, things were organised properly and thus able to store many things in there. Well, I guess that next time I would not be so disoriented in the 团部when I go there again!

 Year 2s + Year 3s:

They were given 5 minutes to pack 配备 as a patrol and lay out their logistics in 4 minutes. Half of the patrol was blindfolded. They had 1 minute to pack up and lay them again in 4 minutes. No inspection layout was given to further test their communication skills.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

They then built a dome tent as a patrol in 20 minutes. They would then be given 5 minutes to 拆掉 and return all logistics.

Thoughts from a Year 3…

I think the inspection wasn't very well done. We lacked a sense of urgency during the inspection, and we went at our own pace throughout the whole activity. Also, with the more outspoken people blindfolded, there was initially no one who gave instructions to lead the whole 团. Hence, it was very chaotic and messy. Due to that, our first attempt resulted in being unsuccessful. We improved on that on our second try as someone stepped up to lead the 团. However, the rest of us did not listen to her and the situation was still very messy. I think this activity was supposed to train our communication, but it didn't seem to train us in that much as we were in a state of complete chaos. We have a lot of things to improve on in this section; like our sense of urgency, communication, and someone to step up to lead everyone. All our attempts were unsuccessful and I feel that we could have done much better.

 

Thoughts from a Year 3…

Inspection came as surprise to us and we were given some time to run up to 团部 to pack our 配备 before coming back to the GSL. The Y2s were still quite confused on the logistics required in the 配备，but we could tell that they were making an effort to help us out as juniors and make it less burdensome. However, what was most shocking was that half of the patrol had to be blindfolded, which basically meant that we could not contribute much to the leading of the patrol, and we took most of our instructions from whoever who stepped up in the 团. Due to our increasing sense of urgency and panic, we did not pay much attention to her and talked amongst our own patrol. The blindfolds were also an obstruction and we had to feel around for the logistic we were looking for. In the end, we all screamed at one another nonstop and the layout was not standardised for the first time we finished it. After getting used to the sequence, we improved the standards of the layout, and each time we only had around 40s to stuff everything inside our 配备. Overall, inspection was indeed an eye-opener as we learnt the importance of communication and asking for time extensions when we 过时.

We hope everyone learnt something after this 集合！

Cheers,
Michelle
47^th Batch Secretary