Hi Guides!
From 15-17 November 2023, ATC was held at Camp Christine for the first time ever since the pandemic. After months of preparation done by the counsellors and trainees, along with the help and guidance received from the Guiders and YAs, ATC was a great success.
Camp-D:
After reaching Camp Christine, one of the first activities was Camp-D, where trainees had to build structures such the Kitchen Shelter and Indoor Fire Altar that they would need for the next few days of camp.
Reflection from a Year 1 in P1:
During Camp Development, we had to build a Kitchen Shelter as well as an Indoor Fire Altar. When building the Kitchen Shelter, I felt that we lacked a sense of urgency as we needed numerous time extensions. In addition, I feel that we could have 报时-ed more often. This way, we could have worked more efficiently and finished building the Kitchen Shelter in a shorter duration of time. Moreover, I felt that we could have 抽-ed the lashes tighter as we had to re-抽 the lashes a few times. For the Indoor Pire Altar, P1 had a lot of manpower. Hence, I was assigned to help other patrols, such as P3. Through this, I had a better understanding of 以团的利益为主. Additionally, we did not adhere to the timeline that we set in our proposal. I feel that this could have been prevented by 报时-ing more often. This will allow us to work with a better sense of urgency. In addition, I felt that we could have 照顾好人，照顾好东西 better as some of our logistics were kapped. Many of the trainees had to constantly ask for the kapped items back. I feel that this could be prevented by taking better ownership of our logistics. This could also ensure that we have better control of the overall scenario. Furthermore, I feel that we should better take into account the number of manpower we have. This will allow us to better allocate our manpower, as well as 照顾好人. Apart from the Kitchen Shelter and the Indoor Fire Altar, we also had to build the Flagpole. As it was my first time building a Flagpole, I was unsure of the steps at first. However, under a Year 2's patient guidance, I had a better understanding of how to build a Flagpole. I also learnt about the different components of a Flagkit. All in all, it was a fulfilling and enriching experience as I got to learn many soft skills, as well as hard skills.
Reflection from a Year 2 in P1:
During Camp Development on the first day of Annual Training Camp (ATC), we built Kitchen Shelters alongside Patrol Flagpoles, tents, and Indoor Fire Altars — with the original itinerary cut down significantly due to time constraints. As it was our first time at Camp Christine, the environment was unfamiliar to us, which was possibly an underlying deterrent to our swift success in building all required structures. The Kitchen Shelter proved to be the crux of our struggles — altogether we took an estimated three hours to complete it, overrunning the standard timing by more than double of what was expected. We speculate that this was because we took a long time to get our logistics in order and lay them out, which delayed the whole process substantially. This was largely due to the lack of foresight on our part, as we had to shift the canvas sheet along with all the 木 multiple times when we realised that it was impossible to 起 the structure at its previous position. In hindsight, we should have been more aware of this possibility and prevented such complications beforehand. Other curveballs included loose lashes that had to be 重抽 — a problem that we had to spend time rectifying and should have avoided by ensuring that all lashes were tied tightly, such that they only had to be tied once and tied well. We also got the pacings for the guylines wrong, which was an error that we ought to have avoided by being more familiar with the building of the structure. Although we did experience some manpower shortages, this incident served as a reminder that we have to continuously strive to improve our skills and learn from our mistakes to do better next time. We had to forgo building some other structures due to most of our time being spent on the Kitchen Shelters. As for the pitching of tents, we should have been more proactive in stepping forward to involve ourselves in the process instead of letting the camp warden carry our responsibilities for us. Another thing we should have familiarised ourselves with more was the detailed timeline for building the Patrol Flagpole. Upon retrieving our logistics, we realised that we were completely unsure of how to build the flagpole. We were later grateful to the seniors for their kind guidance, but nonetheless, remembered that we should have learnt these steps from them beforehand during camp preparation sessions. As some patrols were experiencing severe manpower deficits, the building of Indoor Fire Altars would have gone more smoothly if patrols like my own had offered any available assistance to others more readily. From this, we better understood that the spirit of 团 over patrol over self should have taken priority in such situations. Overall, although Camp-D did not go as well as we had hoped, it served as a valuable learning experience that shaped us for the future.
Inspection:
After Camp-D, Inspection was conducted to ensure that the trainees had brought everything that they needed for ATC. Inspection was also conducted on the last day of ATC to ensure that the tainees would not leave anything at Camp Christine.
Reflection from a Year 1 in P1:
For inspection, we had to do two types of inspection – personal inspection and patrol logistics inspection. As it was my first time doing a personal inspection, I was a little puzzled at first. However, I tried to remember as much as I could from the personal inspection layout that we sent to the counsellors. With a little help from the other trainees, I was able to complete my first inspection layout! However, I felt that there were still some details to improve on. Firstly, I feel that we should step up more. Meaning, that some trainees could have stepped up as In Charge and led the 团 so that everyone could complete the layout more efficiently. Moreover, I feel that we should 照顾好人，照顾好东西 better as some of our logistics were kapped. We can prevent this by looking out for our logistics and taking better care of them. Lastly, I feel that we should have had a better sense of urgency as many of the trainees had to constantly ask for time extensions. This can be prevented by being more familiar with the inspection layout so that we would not spend so much time thinking about where to put our logistics. After completing our memorised layout as well as a laterally inverted version of the memorised layout, we had to complete an unseen layout. Two ICs were assigned to lead the 团 in completing the unseen inspection layout. The two ICs had to come up with the third inspection layout on the spot. As this was a new layout for all of us, it was very chaotic. At some points, we could barely hear the ICs. I feel that we could have calmed down and lowered our volumes so that the ICs could be heard. In addition, I have a strong sense of 以团的利益为主 after completing the inspection layouts. As the ICs are leading the 团 and are unable to complete their own layout, we should help them with their layout so that the whole 团 can finish laying out their logistics more efficiently. For the patrol logistics inspection, we had to lay out all the logistics in our 配备. I was more familiar with how to complete a patrol logistics inspection so I tried to help out as much as I could. Again, I feel that we could have worked faster with a better sense of urgency as we had to ask for time extensions frequently. We should strive to complete the inspection layout within the time given for future inspection layouts. All in all, inspection has taught me many soft skills. This year's Annual Training Camp inspection left an indelible mark on my mind.
Reflection from a Year 2 in P1:
During our Annual Training Camp (ATC), we had two Inspections, our first on Day 1 and the second on Day 3. For our first Inspection, we had to lay out all of our personal logistics according to the layout we had made in our proposal. Unfortunately, it was very messy as some people did not 靠 their layout to the wall. Most of us even forgot about our helmets. As a result, our helmets got kapped. Some of us also did not work fast enough and did not memorise the layout properly. Many of our layouts were thus incomplete and we needed a lot of time extensions. However, in the next round, we learnt from our mistakes and everyone understood that we had to 靠 our layout to the wall. We also got back our helmets from the counsellors and standardised them into our layout. From this inspection, we learnt to work faster, standardise across all the trainees and 照顾好人，照顾好东西. Our second Inspection was a surprise Inspection for our personal logistics that took place in the morning on our third day. We did not know that the second Inspection would take place early in the morning, so we were very shocked and unprepared during this Inspection. However, I believe that we managed quite well. We tried to remember what we learnt on the first day of Inspection - we made sure to move fast, compact and standardise our layouts, and help each other in times of need. If one of us finished first and there was more time left over, we would find those who seemed to be struggling or were not done with their layouts and assist them. We truly learnt the importance of teamwork as 团, and how as long everyone pitched in and worked together, we could overcome any obstacles.
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Night Games:
On the first night of ATC, we continued the tradition of conducting Night Games, which was an entirely different experience compared to Night Games in school.
Reflection from a Year 1 in P4:
During the night games, we had the chance to work together on different station games with each other in the patrol. These games were a good opportunity to bond and work together with people who were not in our original patrols. There were multiple different stations for the patrols to complete, and we went to these stations in a given order. I think that the station where our patrol performed the worst was the station where we had to pass a message down the line. A counsellor would whisper a message to the first person in the line, and the person would then have to whisper the given message to the person behind. However, despite only having three people in our patrol, our patrol did not get any of the messages we had to pass down out of seven. This shows that our communication needs a lot of work, and can be improved. As our patrol only had three people during the activity, we had very little manpower and had to ask for time extensions multiple times at the different stations. Our lack of manpower made some of the stations harder for us, but we managed to complete these stations together, which made us a lot closer to one another. At the end of the stations, the company was given a code to crack. We were given four pieces of paper, and the whole 团 had to work together to put the notes together and form the sentences. A few people remembered seeing post-it notes with 白绳 while playing the station games, so while they ran to get them, everyone else tried to crack the clue. In the end, with the help of everyone in the 团, we managed to solve the clue and complete the given task. Through the night games during ATC, we bonded more with the people in our patrol as well as the rest of the 团, making this a fun experience for all of us.
Reflection from a Year 2 in P4:
Overall, the most important lesson learnt is communication. Our patrol, P4, failed at the “pass the message station”. This station proved true that our sense of communication was not strong enough. Having strong communication between members of the patrol and the rest of the trainees in the 团 is extremely important as it would affect the effectiveness and efficiency of everything. After the night games, the trainees were once again tested when we were given four small sheets of paper to crack the code and save our counsellor, Yan Tong. Thankfully, after going through all the stations from the night games, we understood the importance of communication and started to discuss more efficiently within the patrol. By the end of the game, the trainees managed to successfully crack the code within half the time given. Another important lesson we learnt was to make the most out of what we had. Being the patrol with the least amount of manpower, we 过时 on certain stations and sometimes had it harder. However, our patrol has learnt that even with such little manpower, many things can be accomplished. Our patrol started to gain momentum and worked faster and faster in the next few stations. Overall, thanks to the station games, P4 has definitely grown a lot closer. Lastly, our patrol has learnt to have creativity and to enjoy the little moments. After tying so many standard structures, when faced with a problem, sometimes we may lack the creativity to come up with a solution. However, night games has given us the opportunity to think outside of the box. This can be seen in the station where we had to create our own tennis racket. During the station, P4 had a lot of fun as we discussed and tied the structure. Although we failed the station, it was the little moments that would be engraved into our memories forever.
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Physical Training:
After a night of sleep, we started Day 2 with Physical Training to warm the trainees' bodies up for the rest of the activities to be held later in the day.
Reflection from a Year 1 in P4:
During the Physical Training, we exercised with the people in the 团 together. During the stretches and cool-downs, people from the 团 stepped up to lead everyone. The instructions that they gave were loud and clear, and it was easy for everyone to follow them. There were two stations, one in which we had to complete a PT circuit, and the other in which we played a frisbee game. The PT circuit was comprised of jumping jacks, burpees, 站马, Buddha claps, and leg raises, and had to be completed within a time limit. It was indeed tiring, but it was time well-spent as it was spent on exercises. I felt that I should improve my stamina, as I already felt quite exhausted after only the first exercise. During these holidays before school, I will work on my stamina so as to complete these same exercises without being as tired afterward. In the game of frisbee, we played against another patrol. In the game, we had to throw the frisbee to our goalkeeper with a minimum of three passes. As there was a difference in the number of people in the patrols, some people from the other patrol voluntarily joined our patrol for the game. During the game, we also had to cheer every one minute. However, we occasionally forgot about it, and the counsellors had to remind us to cheer. It was a good opportunity to use the patrol cheers that we had worked on and put in our proposal, and we also got to hear the other patrol’s creative cheers. The game was very fun and helped the members of the patrol bond with each other while playing the game. Although we were all tired afterward, the PT helped train our endurance and stamina and also helped us bond with everyone else.
Reflection from a Year 2 in P4:
One main takeaway from the PT stations was the importance of a team’s morale. During PT, our morale was relatively high, especially during the frisbee station, which led to our patrol doing quite well in this segment. Although we were tired at times, we were able to cheer and 报时 constantly. Furthermore, by persevering through the station and maintaining enthusiasm, the morale of our patrol was kept high throughout PT, which enabled us to do well. I think this can be transferred to all activities, including those outside guides: maintaining a can-do attitude despite any challenges or setbacks not only makes completing any tasks easier for yourself but can also improve the morale of a team, which in turn allows for better teamwork and enthusiasm all-round. Teamwork was also very important during these stations. In the PT circuit station, it was important that we all counted together and encouraged each other in order to ensure that we were all able to complete the PT. Furthermore, during the frisbee game, it was important that we learned to work together as a team for the frisbee to reach the goalkeeper. We needed to communicate effectively with each other when passing the frisbee, as well as block the other team’s passes to prevent them from scoring points. Through these stations, I learnt how teamwork can make a big difference in the outcome of a task. For example, during the first round of frisbee, our team was only able to tie the match. However, in the second round, we were able to improve our teamwork and communication and hence were able to win. Lastly, I learnt the importance of perseverance. Although the PT stations were tiring, we would not have completed them if we had given up or stopped trying. Furthermore, by pushing through, we were able to boost team morale, which kept us motivated to complete the stations successfully.
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Mystery Games:
Mystery Games allowed trainees to adapt to uexpected situations, and train their communication and critical thinking skills.
Reflection from a Year 1 in P3:
The mystery games in the Annual Training Camp were not only fun but also a good learning opportunity. Through the mystery games in ATC, I was able to learn and work on new skills to allow for personal growth and to allow us to bond together as a patrol and become closer to one another. Some of these new skills include collaboration, communication, and time management skills. These skills allowed us to work together in harmony as a patrol and face the multiple obstacles we faced during the mystery games in ATC. During the mystery games in ATC, one of the most important skills would be communication. In order to work together, we would have to convey ideas and information to one another clearly and concisely and attentively listen to and comprehend information from others. Another of the most important skills would be collaboration. To effectively work with one another and achieve success, we would have to combine our strengths and skills. To overcome the challenges together, we had to recognize and accept that each of us has different skills, perspectives, opinions, and ideas. Therefore, we each had to play a part and contribute in order to be successful. During the mystery games, we could also learn from others' views and understand their perspective and opinions. This way we could effectively work together to succeed. In order to complete each station in time, we had to constantly 报时 so that we were aware of the time we had left to complete the station. In conclusion, this was a memorable and meaningful experience as through these mystery games, I was able to form a closer bond with my patrol and got to know them better. This experience was not just about solving puzzles to succeed, but also being able to collaborate with one another and getting to know one another better through this experience.
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Outdoor Cooking:
For lunch on Day 2, the trainees were to cook the dishes they had planned beforehand using their Indoor Fire Altar that they had built on Day 1 during Camp-D.
Reflection from a Year 1 in P2:
On the second day of the Annual Training Camp, we had Outdoor Cooking. P2’s dishes were Crux on a Stick, 星空面 and Lumix Dough. We started making Crux on a Stick first. The dish consists of chicken breast that was provided, broccoli, and mushrooms on a stick. At the ingredients table, Valerie and I skewered the ingredients onto the satay sticks and we poked our fingers trying to put the broccoli on a few times but it was okay because Valerie found a way to put the broccolis on without poking her fingers. When a few sticks were done, Vivian helped us take them back to the Kitchen Shelter to cook. When she returned, she showed us our cooked skewers. It was not very successful as the broccoli and mushrooms looked burnt while the chicken was still raw. So, we decided to take everything off the sticks to season and cook the chicken first, then put them on the sticks with the broccoli and mushrooms. That turned out to be a great idea. Our meat was cooked thoroughly and tasted good. In the end, the Crux on a Stick turned out to be a success. At our Kitchen Shelter where our Indoor Fire Altar was, my other patrol mates were starting to cook our 星空面. They boiled the Maggi Noodles in the mess tin with water. While it was cooking, they also added frozen vegetables to it, including cut carrots, corn, and peas. When it was cooked, they added soy sauce, salt, pepper, and the Maggi seasoning to it. Then they repeated this process another time and we had two servings of 星空面. It tasted a bit salty but it was nice and filling. While we were making these two dishes, Gwendolyn was at the ingredients table making our third dish, the Lumix Dough. Our Lumix Dough was supposed to be edible cookie dough made by mixing butter, chocolate chips, milk, brown sugar, flour, sugar, vanilla and a little bit of salt. When she mixed everything together according to the recipe, it was a little crumbly, so she added a little bit of milk to fix that. In the end, we had about 20 small balls of cookie dough. It was very filling so we shared it with other patrols. They said it was nice. I also learnt how to sustain the fire from Yue Zuan. I enjoyed this OC.
Reflection from a Year 2 in P2:
Frankly, Outdoor Cooking was definitely not as smooth as I expected it to be. As a Patrol Leader, I was supposed to lead the patrol in cooking the dishes. However, due to my lack of preparation, I forgot the ingredients for some dishes and could only rely on my other patrol mates’ memories. Allocation of manpower could have been improved because there was only me and another patrol mate who was starting the fire. As a result, most of the patrol was left at the table area preparing dishes which made both leading the patrol difficult and causing dishes to be prepared before the previous dishes were cooked. Looking back, more people could have been helping to cook the dishes which would make cooking the Maggi Mee more efficient and more skewers can be made simultaneously. The chicken would not also be left without supervision when I had to quickly replace the fallen aluminium foil. An issue was the water used to cook the Maggi Mee was constantly filled with 木麻黄 which caused the need for the water to be replaced multiple times. Not only is it unhygienic, but it also wastes time having to reboil and refill the water over and over again. A possible solution would be to cover the mess tin with a spare plate to prevent 木麻黄 from going in and also speed up the process of boiling water. Additionally, we could have prioritised boiling water as it takes quite some time for it to boil. Additionally, the counsellors and mentors pointed out that the chicken on our skewer takes more time to cook which may cause the chicken to still be raw while the other ingredients on the skewer cooked faster. A sudden change of plans was needed to first fry the chicken and then place it on the skewer. Fortunately, everything was able to be cooked through and was safe for consumption. Lastly, flies were an issue and it was extremely unhygienic. One way is to eat cooked food quickly. For the raw food, cover it with a plate and ensure it does not be left in a corner unattended for too long. Sadly, we had to throw away a small part of the chicken as multiple flies landed on that plate of chicken, which also caused food wastage that could have been avoided. Generally, I think the OC was quite a mess though I think it was a valuable experience. I definitely learnt the importance of allocating manpower well and also ensuring that I knew what was going on at all times. Being a PL is definitely harder than I thought and I hope I get more opportunities to step up and lead the patrol in different areas in the future.
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Obstacle Journey:
After cooking and eating, the next activity was Obsstacle Journey, where trainees were met with different challenges at the different stations.
Reflection from a Year 1 in P3:
Through the Obstacle Journey in the Annual Training Camp, I was able to develop both my soft and hard skills such as prospecting, communication, and teamwork, while the hard skills consisted of lash training. There were multiple challenges during OJ which included First Aiding casualties, putting our survival knowledge and skills to work as well as gadgeting creative structures, guessing trekking signs, and overcoming obstacles. My patrol and I have forged a stronger bond while accomplishing the tasks as activities like creative structures and overcoming obstacles required us to communicate more with one another and share our thoughts and opinions. And it also allowed us to learn how to be open-minded when other people have different ideas and try to prospect their ideas. While developing the soft skills, the hard skills are also crucial as it had given us many opportunities throughout the OJ for us to tie good quality lashes. The First Aid activity was also enriching as it helped us to recall basic skills and how to treat fractures, sprains, and even head concussions of the casualty. Which may, in turn, be very useful in the long run. First Aid skills are also deemed basic and necessary as they could be used in an emergency and always be prepared. The trekking sign activities would require us to recall our knowledge about the given signs in our Guides Notes. It is important to revise the signs, especially for the outdoors. The variety of activities allowed us to put many of our skills into action, be it open-book memorization, lash tying, first aid, or problem-solving skills, it definitely requires the whole patrol to work together on various tasks so to complete OJ. In summary, I think that OJ was a very fruitful experience during ATC and it definitely helped the patrol to be more united meanwhile training on our hard skills.
Reflection from a Year 2 in P3:
Obstacle Journey tested many of our patrol's skills such as teamwork and Guides knowledge. We started off with the station where we had to make a gadgeting structure that represents our patrol. Since our patrol and patrol 4 combined, building something related to a spider was perfect for this station as both our patrols had a name relating to a spider. We ended up choosing a spider web to build. This station tested us on our teamwork and our responsibility as our 麻绳 bag got kapped which shows that we could work on our responsibility. The next station was a survival station. We were given a scenario and had to figure out what to do. In the scenario, we had to draw someone's attention by starting a fire. We also had to find Post-its with different symbols on them and we had to figure out what they meant. I think this station was testing our Guides knowledge and survival skills and our patrol did okay but we could definitely improve on our survival skills. The next station had an “acid river” and we had to build a bridge across it. Our patrol did fairly well in that station as we managed to build a bridge within the time given and we all managed to cross without falling off or stepping into the river while building as that could have resulted in a forfeit. The last station was the hardest one. It was a first aid station that had 3 of our patrol mates act as casualties and the rest had to use their first aid skills to help the casualties. I was a casualty but none of my patrol mates seemed to know what to do with my injury. They were also confused about what to do with the other casualties' injuries which proves that our patrol needs to read up more on our first aid skills. Overall OJ was fun and engaging and also served as a reminder to our patrol to work harder on our hard skills and soft skills.
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Strike Camp:
One of the last activities held at Camp Christine was Strike Camp, where trainees were required to 拆掉 the structures built during Camp-D and clean up Camp Christine before leaving the place.
Reflection from a Year 1 in P2:
During Strike Camp, there were a lot of things I thought we could have improved on and I have learnt a few things from Strike Camp. Firstly, I think that our sense of urgency could have been better. Although everyone was exhausted, I think we should have put in our most effort when we 拆掉-ed our structures as having a sense of urgency is very important in Guides, because we did not have a high sense of urgency, some of our manpower had to do forfeit on behalf of us. Secondly, I think we could have 报时-ed a bit more as the counsellors had to prompt us to 报时 when we were 拆掉-ing the structures. Thirdly, I think we could have tried cheering to boost the trainees' morale when the morale was low, I think that morale is very important, with cheers, we can keep ourselves motivated when 拆掉-ing the structures and any activities after that. Fourth, I think we also could have 照顾好人, 照顾好东西 better. Some of our logistics were kapped because we did not 照顾好人, 照顾好东西. I hope we can look out for our logistics, as well as manpower better. Our seniors emphasised many times that manpower and our logistics are very important and we cannot build our structures without them if they were being kapped. I also think that we could have thought more logically when 搬-ing the logistics back to Olave Hall. We put the heavier spars on top of lighter gadget poles, we also put the wet and dry spars together. If we had separated them earlier, we would not have had to spend more time separating them when we could have used the time for other activities planned. I hope that we can improve ourselves in the future 集合s.
Reflection from a Year 2 in P2:
On the last day of the Annual Training Camp, we striked camp. We were supposed to 拆掉 all the structures as well as 清理场地. I have learnt many things from strike camp. Firstly, I learnt that we should have a better sense of urgency. Although we were granted time extensions, we took those time extensions for granted. We continued to work at a slow pace and as a result, the counsellors asked one trainee from each patrol to step out. Those trainees had to do Buddha claps while the rest of us continued to 拆掉. This served as a reminder for all of us to work with a greater sense of urgency so that our patrol mates do not have to suffer. Secondly, I learnt perseverance. As it had rained the day before, most of the 麻绳 and 白绳 were wet which caused it to be more difficult to untie. However, we did not give up and tried our best to untie the 麻绳 and 白绳. We used 青头s to loosen the lash so that we could untie it more easily. Lastly, I learnt to allocate manpower properly. As some of my patrolmates were sitting out, my patrol had to allocate manpower properly to ensure that we were able to finish 拆掉 on time. At the start, the way I had allocated manpower was not very effective. However, with the guidance of the counsellors, I found out about my mistakes and learnt a better way to allocate the manpower which allowed my patrol to work at a faster rate and complete strike camp faster. During strike camp, I also learnt the importance of helping each other. After my patrol finished strike camp, there were still some patrols that were not done. As we had extra manpower eventually, we were able to help the other patrols 拆掉 which allowed us to complete strike camp.
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