Hello Guides,

For this week’s 集合, the Year 3s did Camp D while the Year 1s and 2s did played Station Games and did Standard Gadgeting.

Station Games:

Station 1: Repair the Frame:

For this station, two Year 2s were assigned as PL and PS, and they stepped up to lead the patrol into building two carbon-copied frames. This station aims to give an opportunity for the Y2s to lead their Y1s in tying a creative frame. The Station Master also untied some of their lashes, which aims to teach the juniors to remain composed and learn to tie faster with the limited time left.

Reflection from a y1:

During last Friday’s CCA session, I felt that the station 1 activity was quite fun although we had faced some difficulties. At first, we were not given a time limit and we were all rather confused, however after we were told that we only had a few minutes left, we all panicked and tried to complete the structure in time. Luckily, after splitting the jobs accordingly, we all managed to finish just in time. When we had to 拆掉 the structure it took quite a while and a lot of effort. Hence, we had passed the time limit. However, we still managed to finish the task.

Reflection from a y2:

I think that the station was good for training our communication skills as we had to split into two groups and make a frame each. We did not complete because of problems in communication. Even so, everyone tried their best to communicate and standardised our frames to make sure that they were similar. Also, we should learn how to be more alert during the station as the seniors tried to untie our lashes and we almost did not notice. However, I think that we managed to avoid total destruction of our frames by warning each other about what the seniors were doing. Overall, I think that it was a good activity to test our skills, speed, alertness, communication and teamwork. I just think that we could have made our lashes slightly tighter as some were loose and we did not notice until we took apart our structures.

Station 2a: Puzzles with a Twist:

For this station, the juniors are required to solve 3 puzzles that were jumbled and placed together. This aims to allow the juniors to think fast and critically, which helps them improve on problem solving. Through this mini game, it allows them to bond as they work together to fix the puzzles.

Reflection from a y1:

I felt like the puzzle with a twist game was quite challenging, especially the second puzzle which only had solid colours and it was really hard to make out what it was, even after solving the puzzle. This game was really challenging and put our thinking skills to the test to figure out where to put the puzzle pieces. It allowed me to work with my patrolmates, which we were short of as the other people were not able to come. However, it was really fun and it gave me a sense of accomplishment when I finished the puzzle. I was also able to learn more about my patrol mates and chat with them while solving the puzzle. All in all, station 2a was an awesome game for patrol mates to put our heads together and think, as well as bond.

Reflection from a y2:

One of the station games we played during 集合 was Puzzles with a Twist. For this station, we were required to reassemble 3 puzzles where their pieces were jumbled up together. It was quite a tough challenge as some puzzle pieces only had a type of colour and no other clues, so we had to figure out where the puzzle pieces should go. I feel that this activity allowed us to think more critically and I also learnt the importance of teamwork. In order to solve all 3 puzzles, we had to work together and everyone had to contribute in fixing the puzzles. I find this station interesting and fun as we seldom play such puzzle games in 集合. As a Y2, we also had to organise the patrol and make sure everyone was involved in the solving of the puzzles. In the end, I felt really happy after we managed to solve all three puzzles together as a patrol. This game allowed me to bond with my patrolmates and juniors as we worked together to solve all three puzzles, and we all had fun playing this station.

Station 2b: Broken Telephone

For this station, the juniors played a well-known game, Broken Telephone. A message was read to the first person, and they would have to pass down the message as accurately as possible, and the last person is required to guess what the message is. This game helps the juniors to improve on their communication skills and allows the juniors to bond over a game.

Reflection from a y1:

Last Friday on 4th March, the Year 1s and 2s played station games. We played the game of “broken telephone” where we whispered to each other a sentence once and passed it down the line. We tried to pronounce the tongue twisters as clearly as possible but unfortunately, we failed most of the time as the sentences given rhymed and were tricky to say. Despite that, we had lots of fun laughing at each other as we tried to comprehend what the others were saying. I feel that through this activity, I was able to bond with my seniors and patrol mates and we had lots of fun playing the game. I also learnt the importance of communication so that others would not get the message wrong and lead to misunderstandings in the future. In total, last Friday’s 集合 was very enjoyable and .

Reflection from a y2:

The station game was very fun and enjoyable. It basically trained our brains to remember things fast and also develop a good rapport which is similar to telepathy. The tongue twisters were also funny. It was challenging because some of the words and names did not make any sense. However, it was still a really engaging way for the Year 1s and Year 2s to bond together, and develop our team spirit. Even though we did not get some of the sentences right, we still had a good laugh about it. Through this activity, I also learnt that communication is a key form of passing information, and we have to be clear in our instructions to avoid misunderstandings. Besides, I got the chance to bond with my patrol mates through the game. As such, I also hope that more of these kinds of station games will be planned during future 集合s.

Station 3: Escape Room

For this station, it tests the adaptability of the juniors and gives them more opportunities to work with each other. Much communication is needed as the juniors attempt to crack the riddles, and we hope the juniors can learn to work together and discuss with each other.

Reflection from a y1:

In Station 3, the Escape Room, the room was completely dark and it was really hard to see. We had to find 6 riddles hidden in the 3I classroom, solve them and tell the seniors our answer. Altogether, I found 4 pieces of riddles. The first one I found was hidden in the flowers in the classroom decoration. The second one was in a blue folder in a shelf. The third one was below the hand sanitizer at the front of the class.The fourth and final one was pinned on the notice board closest to the teacher's table. I remember that the second riddle was a maze. I solved the maze but when I showed the seniors my answer, they told each other that the maze had two answers and the number 03 was the correct answer. The last one I found was a famous riddle on how many holes a shirt has. This shows us how teamwork is essential when completing any task at hand. Those that are good at finding items in the dark should find them and pass it to the people who are good at solving riddles. Communication is also important in the sense that it allows for coordination to prevent the disorientation of the group. For example, if we had not communicated properly, some people may have been looking for riddles even after they were all found. This could result in valuable time being wasted. Overall, all of us had lots of fun in the escape room and it helped bond us together even more. I hope we will get to play more of these games in the future!

Reflection from a y2:

During the last 集合, station 3 was an escape room. While doing this activity my batch mates and I had no luck finding any of the clues. We looked under tables and chairs, yet we could not find anything. However, the Year 1s seemed to be able to find the clues with ease. They were able to find all the clues while we could not find a single one. This made me realise that we could not find the clues because we were not looking in the correct spots. Thus, we came up with a plan. The Year 1s were to find the clues first. Then, we would try to decipher the riddles and when we were done, we would help them find more clues. This made me realise how important teamwork is. Without the Year 1s, we would not have been able to find the clues. We were able to solve the clues faster and more efficiently with the help of our Year 1s. Since we had to do it in the dark, it also made me realise how important our vision is to us. When we are unable to see, simple tasks like looking for pieces of paper in a small classroom becomes much more difficult for us.

Standard Gadgeting:

For this activity, it introduces the standard structures to the Y1s and allows the Y2s to recap on their structures. It is also an opportunity to teach the Y1s exactly how to tie the structures and teach them step-by-step as well as other common lashes we use, other than square and diagonal lashes.

Reflection from a y1:

On 4 March, we were tasked to complete 2 standard structures, an indoor fire altar and a shoe rack. We faced a few challenges as of course, Year 1s had no idea what we had to do, and the Year 2 seniors were also trying their best to recall how the structures were supposed to be built. Furthermore, our seniors upped the level of our task by kapping some of our logistics. In hindsight, I highly doubt that I would know how to ask for our items back if I had caught them in the act. I am glad that we managed to complete the structures in the end. I will continue to learn from my amazing seniors.

Reflection from a y2:

Last Friday, we did Gadgeting. This was the first time we had 集合 without the Year 3s guiding us. Since the Year 1s were around, we had to step up and lead the Y1s in completing the structure. We got to experience what leading felt like and since the Year 1s were still not very familiar with the lashes, we had to step up and guide them along. I did not know that this was how it felt for the Year 3s when we first joined. I feel that we could have worked faster even though we completed our structures as we had to ask for time extensions a few times. This experience made me realise that teamwork makes all the difference as without help from my patrol mates, nothing would get done. Through this activity, it allowed me to recall how to build the standard structures, since we did not have the Y3s help and we also had to make sure we teached the Y1s correctly. I feel that this activity also allowed me to bond with my juniors as I guided them patiently on the steps to build the structure, how to tie the lashes, and explaining the structure’s function. All in all, I felt that this was a great learning opportunity for me and I also got to interact with my juniors more.

Camp Development:

For Camp Development, the Year 3s had to work in 3 groups, instead of their usual patrol members. They were tasked to build the structures they had planned after the Camp Development Lecture. This allows the Year 3s to learn the essence of Pioneering as they embark on a Creative Structure they planned from scratch. The Year 3s also had to step up and lead one another in order to complete their structures.

Reflection from a y3:

On Friday, we had Camp Development. We initially found it daunting as we had seen our seniors look very tired after their Camp Development. However, it was quite memorable as we were able to build a structure related to a theme park or playground. My group decided to build a rock climbing wall, although we had to make many changes to our idea. However, we took quite a long time for the collection of logistics, so we will take note of that in the future. Even though we spent more time during the first half of the session, we managed to increase our sense of urgency to work faster in the second half, allowing us to finish our structure in time. Through this, we were able to bond with our batchmates more, and allow us to work together to write proposals and build structures together. The Year 4s also guided us through the planning stages so we are grateful to them that they supported us through the planning process and the session itself. It was an enriching experience and we hope that we will be able to improve on our sense of urgency and overall in future 集合s, especially since we will become 领导层 in a few months.

Reflection from another y3:

This Friday's 集合 required us to build a pioneering structure based on what our group had planned. As a Year 3, this experience allowed me to understand what I could improve on for both soft skills and hard skills. Firstly, the feedback that the seniors gave was very valuable. As one of the few times being IC, I was still unsure on what to do and it was mainly the other IC that did the leading. However, the seniors did give very helpful advice that I could learn from. The first thing would be foresight. Through the discussion with them, I realized the importance of thinking through and imagining the process on how the structure was going to be built beforehand. As such, I would have a better understanding of how the structure should be built, and any hiccups that may possibly occur. I also learnt that thinking of a backup plan was also important, such that we could adapt to any situation that occurred, for example, the 木 that we picked was too short or the structure we built was not stable. Second, they also highlighted the importance of situational awareness, such as being able to make use of the surroundings to take measurements such that it would be accurate and also save time. The seniors also pointed out how we could have planned the structure better, such as rafting 木 together for the slide, instead of attaching floorboards. Hard skills wise, I felt that I could improve on the tightness and speed of tying lashes, as well as revising them more. This was because there was one instance where I had to tie 八字结, but I kept tying it the wrong way. All in all, even though this experience was tiring, it was a very enriching and valuable experience that I had, from the planning of proposals to the building of the structures.

Reflection from another y3:

The Camp Development was very enriching for me. As I was selected to be one of the ICs of my group, it allowed me to step up more. The challenges I faced during the proposal submission and the actual implementation of the Camp Development has taught me a lot. During the proposal submission, some difficulties faced was trying to find time that most of the group could come together to discuss our structures. We managed to discuss a few times, and the rest of the proposal was done when we allocated some time to do it. Additionally, from the feedback given by seniors for the proposal submissions, I now understand more that 2D and 3D frames need diagonals to prevent shearing. During the tying of our structure, we faced some difficulties. We realised that the 黄木 we chose for the base frame was not ideally long enough. As the seniors had told us to bring extra 木, we could use the extra 2 黑木 instead. This taught me that we should always be prepared to face any type of challenges during tying of structures, and to also have foresight to think about what difficulties we might face and how we can overcome them. Another challenge I faced initially was having the group be on time with the timeline to tie the structure. After my senior suggested giving them timings for the lashes, the group’s sense of urgency had improved greatly and we even managed to finish the structure with spare time to try it out. From the Camp Development, I have learnt a lot more about planning for Guides activities, planning for possible challenges and solutions to them, stepping up to look at the bigger picture of the structure constantly, and giving timings when asking group members to tie lashes.