Hi Guides! As much as we are excited for ATC’24 to happen, we still have to go through many sessions in order to prepare for the upcoming camp, in order to make it run smoothly and have fun! These sessions started early before ATC on 29th November. We split into 4 different patrols, so that we get to worm with other people from other normal patrols, just for ATC!
Reflection from a Year 2 in ATC P2:
On the first session of ATC prep, we built our indoor fire alter. I think we did a good job as all our lashes were really tight for our first session of ATC prep. However we could have 報時 more without the seniors reminding us. There were also a lot of zuobos thus we could have had a better man-power allocation. During PT, we could have also 等人 at times. On the second session of ATC prep, we had really little manpower and many of us had injuries. Thus our original plan had to be changed to building our creative gadgeting structure. During the first session we could have had a better sense of urgency and 報時 more often. Our lashes were mostly tight but our tripods were not as tight. Thus we need to work on our tripods lashes more. On the third ATC prep session, we built the kitchen shelter. We had lots of y1 zuo bos at the start as we did not know what to do. Thus our man-power allocation could have been better. We also should have 顶 the structure properly with our knee to the 木. Hence there were a lot of times when our safety was at stake as the structure was very unstable and was leaning. We also could have chatted lesser and 报时 more frequently without the seniors reminding us. We also should have chosen a better canvas sheet as the one we had taken had no holes at the corners. We also could have worked faster with a better sense of urgency. We could have picked out longer 木 as some of our 木were to short and had to be substituted.However we managed to finish the structure despite the burning sun. On the last ATC prep session, we built the flag pole. We could have had a better sense of urgency and worked faster. We also learnt our patrol dance and songs. During pre-camp inspection, we could have 报时 more and should have 照顾好人，照顾好东西 as a few of us y1s got cupped and our flag pole too. We also should have taken better care of our flag pole and not let the 头 动地. We also should have listened to our ICs giving us the layout instead of shouting over to ask for the layout.
Reflection from a Year 2 in ATC P3:
In the weeks leading up to our Annual Training Camp, we had multiple CCA sessions to prepare for camp. During one of these sessions, we built a Kitchen Shelter on the elevated platform, together with P4. Through that, we all managed to familiarize ourselves with the steps to build a Kitchen Shelter, as well as find out what we could improve on during ATC itself. During our Camp Preparation sessions, we also practiced tying an Indoor Fire Altar, as well as a Flagpole. We took very long to tie the flagpole at first as many of us in the patrol had not tied a Flagpole before our Camp Preparation sessions. However, the more we practiced, the less time we took to complete our flagpole. For our Indoor Fire Altar, we practiced it many times. The more times we did it, the faster we would tie the next one, and we grew very familiar with the structure. During our Camp Preparation sessions, we also came up with ideas for our Creative Gadgeting structure. We had to think of a completely new and different structure many times as issues would arise. For example, one of our structures might have been very unstable had we gone with it. One of our ideas was too similar to a standard baggage rack. One was too similar to another patrol's structure, so we edited it so it would not be the same. However, we did manage to think of a unique structure, and we managed to finish it. Apart from the building of structures we did during our Camp Preparation sessions, we also relabelled all our logistics and packed our 配备s and Toyogo boxes so as to ensure that our logistics were easily identifiable as our patrol's, and that we would bring everything we need to Camp Christine. All in all, these camp preparation sessions were fulfilling, and helped hone our hard and soft skills before ATC.
Reflection from a Year 2 in ATC P4:
In preparation for Annual Training Camp 2024, my patrol attended three separate preparation sessions to train our skills and prepare for ATC. For the first session, we planned to start building the gadgeting structures for the Camp Development segment of ATC, to familiarize ourselves with them, which were the Indoor Fire Altar and Flagpole. We were already familiar with building the Indoor Fire Altar, but we had never built a Flagpole before. Hence, we enlisted the help of our Year 4s to guide us through the process. By the end of the first camp preparation session, we were much more confident in building the two gadgeting structures. On the second day of camp preparation, we decided to train up our pioneering lashes through lash training. We set aside 40 minutes for lash training and it definitely helped improve the tightness and quality of our lashes. Then, we worked on our creative gadgeting structure that we had come up with. As we were building, we improvised some details of the structure to allow it to serve its functions more effectively. Lastly, as we had some buffer time left, we headed to 团部 to relabel our patrol’s 配备 and Toyogo Box logistics. Overall, day two was to practise our pioneering hard skills and try out our creative gadgeting structure to see if it worked and aligned with what we had envisioned it to be. On the last day of camp preparation, my patrol combined with P1 to build a Kitchen Shelter. However, the process took longer than anticipated due to our lack of time management and the ground being too soft due to recent rainfall, causing the Arthurs to be uprooted easily despite our efforts to 打进 it down. After completing our Kitchen Shelter and 拆掉, we worked on a newly designed creative gadgeting structure as other patrols had similar designs as us. It turned out well and was exactly what we were going for. Lastly, we had some time left and used it to work on our patrol songs and cheers. Day three of camp preparation was very helpful in helping us learn to build the Kitchen Shelter faster and familiarize ourselves with building the new and improved creative gadgeting structure. Overall, throughout these three camp preparation sessions, everyone in the patrol was able to prepare ourselves and practice the structures for ATC. All in all, we managed to improve our hard skills significantly, as well as refresh our memories for the structures that we do not build very often.
Reflection from a Year 1 in ATC P1:
Before we went to our Annual Training Camp, we had to have some Camp Preparation sessions. When we were having these sessions, we had to build some structures. One of which was an Indoor Fire Altar. While building the Indoor Fire Altar, we encountered some difficulties as we had some wrong proportions of the two tripods and the zinc plate, which is supposed to stand on the two 中长木s kept falling down and we had to make do with what we had. We also built a Flagpole. While attempting to build the Flagpole for the first time, we faced many challenges as it was the first time building a Flagpole for the Year 1s, who are now Year 2s. We also had to learn how to tie the Mickey Mouse lash and learnt about new logistics. Some of us also had a first time experience of using a rubber mallet. After our first unsuccessful attempt at the Flagpole, we managed to have a chance to attempt the Flagpole again at the next camp preparation session. This time we were more familiar with the structure and successfully managed to build the Flagpole, even though there were still some minor difficulties. Other than the flagpole, we also built a Kitchen Shelter with P4. Some of us had never built a Kitchen Shelter before, so it took some time to get used to building the Kitchen Shelter. We took quite long to build this Kitchen Shelter and the Kitchen Shelter needed to use the metal mallet. However, there were classes going on that day and even some examinations going on so we had to wrap the metal mallet with a cloth to try to muffle the sound. The cloth kept slipping off the metal mallet and the metal mallet ended up making a huge hole in the cloth, which slowed down our progress. We finally managed to get the Kitchen Shelter up after around two hours. We also had to build our Creative Gadgeting structure and after hours of planning and experimenting, we finally managed to come up with a structure that acted as a device to hang all of our quanzhis. We familiarized ourselves with this structure and managed to perfectly execute it during ATC. We also had to plan what we were going to make for outdoor cooking, and ended up coming up with a creative idea of making a wrap, which had chicken and vegetables in it. All in all, the camp preparations were very helpful for us and prepared us well for ATC.
Reflection from a Year 1 in ATC P2:
The Pre-Camp Inspection was quite a trying experience, yet enlightening, for our patrol. We were frustrated and panicky when some of our patrol's belongings were kapped on the day of inspection. The items were taken from us because we had failed to take good care of them, and that was a key issue we needed to address. We were upset by these consequences of our actions, but it eventually became a learning experience. The tension within our patrol was palpable during the inspection. We knew we were disorganized due to our own negligence, and I was not very helpful initially, waiting for my seniors to tell me what to do. Of course, watching some of our important items being taken away drove us into a state of panic, on top of the fact that we failed to complete the layout on time a few times. We were not ready for that, and the results showed what responsibility means. It was a moment that made me reflect on how easy it is to overlook small details, yet how crucial they can be in the bigger picture. But it was only after the Inspection that I began to grasp the motives of such Inspections. It's not all about just having our stuff in their places, but inculcating these qualities among us: responsible, accountable, and concerned for details. Nowadays, when one feels embarrassed due to those tough situations (during the inspection), I have understood they help us to become better Guides; pushing us to be reflective over what went wrong and changing our ways to act differently the next time. In the future, I am committed to taking better care of the patrol's stuff and preparing better for future inspections. I have learned from this experience that a person should keep things organised and take pride in what we do. Moreover, I will pay special attention to the improvement of my time management in order to efficiently manage tasks within the allocated time set. I want to use this experience as a learning experience to become a dependable, efficient part of the patrol who can handle problems with clarity and confidence. Our Pre-Camp Inspection had taught me yet another valuable lesson that I can carry on further in my continuing journey as a Guide.
After all our efforts in preparing for ATC, we know it will be the best one yet! Looking forward to it!
Chan Zi Xuan
56th届 Secretary
