Hello fellow guides! Last Monday, we had Patrol Activity (PA) as per usual, but it was rather sentimental for the Year 4s because it is our last PA with our juniors. Nonetheless, we made the most out of it! Here are some reflections from the juniors on the activities they had, as well as their thoughts on this Patrol Activity.
Reflection from a junior from Patrol 1…
During Monday's Patrol Activity (PA), we started by finding the blue slips of paper hidden around the General science Lab (GSL). On the pieces of paper, there were codes which we had to solve. However, we were unable to find all the slips of paper by ourselves so in the end, we were missing three pieces. We proceeded to build the 8-man tent but realised we were missing some materials. It was then that the Year 4s (Y4) revealed that we had to go on a 'treasure hunt' for them. After we had built it, we had to blow a piece of paper ball out of a paper box filled with flour. It ended up being a very messy scene. Almost everyone had flour on themselves, but it was a really enjoyable activity as we still had loads of fun. The paper ball contained a message with instructions for out next activity: Fireman's Ladder (FML). We had a very fun time flipping over the fireman's ladder although a few of our patrol mates were screaming the entire time or refused to go over. We tried to encourage them when that happened. All in all, it was a very fun and exciting PA session!
Reflection from a junior from Patrol 2…
As this was the last PA we will have with the year 4s, we got to do something fun which was Outdoor Cooking. We were given 25 mins to build an indoor fire altar but we 过时ed as we realised that the two different sides of the fire altar did not match each other well. However, we still managed to build a rather stable structure with mostly tight lashes at the end. We were then given 30 mins for the cooking. I felt a sense of pride for the year 2s who enthusiastically taught the year 1s on firelighting. Although they were not really successful at first, we managed to get a strong fire going which was enough to cook our mac and cheese dish and melt the marshmallows which were part of our second dish. The food was a complete success and everyone loved the food. As we were in charge of the proposal for this OC, I was very happy that everyone enjoyed the food. Afterwards, we even played on the fireman’s ladder built by another patrol. It was rather entertaining to see both seniors, juniors and batchmates squeal as they tried to overcome their fear before making the flip. In all, this was one of the best PAs I ever had and one which formed memories that I would treasure for a long time.
Reflection from a junior from Patrol 3…
Monday's PA was our last ever PA with the year 4s. It was undoubtedly sad but I feel it did push us to perform better. After all, we are going to be the new leadership batch. The year 3s had two inspections - one with our personal logistics and one for our 小队箱. As it was just us years 3s, we had to depend on one another while helping each other to make sure that we got all the necessary items and were able to lay out the logistics according to the inspection layout especially when one of us had to read the layout out and could not unpack her own bag. Through this, I learnt that in a hectic situation we should not just care about ourselves and should always look out for those around. Following this, we had the 小队箱 inspection. Even though it was difficult to carry everything back up and down again, it helped us to bond better as patrol mates during the hardships. Not forgetting having a mini patrol inspection also helped to strengthen our communication skills. After that, we all sat down as a patrol and talked—something we did not get to do often. As the last PA before the year 4s leave is finally over, I hope that we will continue to improve and not let the year 4s down :)
Reflection from a junior from Patrol 4…
In this patrol activity, we went through basic structures such as dome tent, 8-men-tent, flag pole, and emergency shelter. We not only learnt these basic structures, but also learnt more about things such as putting our belongings under the emergency shelter to prevent them from getting kupped (for the year ones). The year ones in particular learnt how to do the Mickey mouse properly and revised knots such as 火结. While I'm sure many of us were sad that we did not do something more fun, we understand that it was the last PA and the seniors wanted us to know the basic the basic structures well. The seniors were very patient with us, going through the ways to secure the flag around the flag pole and helping us when we were unsure of lashes or structures. Important facts such as the fact that the flag kit and flag pole were not supposed to touch the ground were reinforced too. One area which we could work on was to remember specifics such as the number of pacings to take for structures as done year 1s admitted that they were unsure. Overall, I feel that this PA was a very fulfilling and bittersweet one as though it was the last with the year 4s, we could tell that they cared a lot about us as they patiently went through the structures.
Reflection from a junior from Patrol 5…
Today's PA was sadly our last PA of 2017. Miraculously, we managed to save the best for last. For PA this time, we did outdoor cooking (OC). Despite for the heavy rain the past few days had, we managed to collect enough kindlings, and have a very successful fire. We all were given the chance to revise our skills at starting and sustaining a fire. However, one problem was that we were too slow when building our 2 indoor fire alter, hence we ended up overrunning. However, by allocating different roles and working quickly, we were able to enjoy a fun and meaningful OC. when we had to take down the structure, our seniors suggested a mini competition, to see if us year 1-3 could take down the structure faster than the year 4s. Of course, we won. This small competition was an eye-opener, to let us know what we can do, and how much better we can be. Overall, this PA was a fun one, we did one of most loved thing, outdoor cooking. The food we made was delicious, and it was enjoyable to bond with each other as well. We will definitely miss PA sessions with this batch of year 4 seniors.
Reflection from a junior from Patrol 6…
We were told to collect 2 红木 and 6 青木, as we would be building a fireman's ladder, or FML in short. We were given 7 minutes to tie it. However, due to our slow speed and lack of patrol morale, we managed to finish it just shy of 20 minutes. I felt that as the PL of this activity, I could have done a better job at increasing the patrol morale by cheering. However, a commendable thing was that the Year 1s also put in effort to cheer, which I felt was great as the patrol morale was significantly raised and I was feeling flustered at the time. Next, we were given around 15 minutes to try out the FML. However, on multiple occasions, we were forced by circumstance to 倒 the structure and 重抽 all lashes. I felt that this could have been prevented if I had been more observant on the quality of the lashes during the 20 minutes instead of wasting time afterwards on something which could have been done correctly on the first try. Nonetheless, it was rather satisfying to see everyone having fun on the FML! Then, we were told to 拆掉 our FML and return all logistics and collect new logistics for our next activity. We had to divide all our logistics into 2 and we were split into 2 groups. We were then given 10 minutes to tie a structure using all of the 木, in our respective groups. However, my group did not manage to finish tying all the 木 due to my lack of foresight and poor instructions. Despite this, we proceeded on with the game. Each group was given 3 minutes to hide their 木 and structure around Block F. After 3 minutes, we would be able to invade the other group's territory and bring 1 木, at a time, back to their own territory. One person from each group would be granted immunity and this prevents the other players from touching them. The more 木 collected by a group, the more points they will receive. However, we did not manage to hide our structure properly, which made it extremely easy for the other group to find it. Our lashes were also slightly loose, which made it easier for them to steal our 木. I felt that this game was a great opportunity for all of us to bond, since it was our last PA session. We had a lot of fun running to and fro each station. In the end, there were no winners or losers as the aim of this station was solely to bond with our patrol-mates. It was an enjoyable PA and I thank the Y4s for making this last PA so memorable.
Published by:
Chen Wei
48th Batch Secretary
48th Batch Secretary
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