Hello Guides! We had a special CCA session today, with WAGGGS Activities planned and Batchwork to earn our badges!
Here are some of our Reflections:
Reflection from a Year 3 in P5 on WAGGGS:
On 24th February, the Year 3s participated in the WAGGGS activity with the Year 4s. The first activity conducted was the History with Actions Activity. For this activity, the IC would read out about the history of Guides and each patrol was given a certain cue word. Once the cue word was said, we would have to do an assigned action. Some examples of the cue words were Baden-Powell, Guides and Our Chalet and some of the actions were flexing our arms and doing a 360. Through this activity, we managed to have fun, bonding with our seniors while learning about the roots of Girl Guides. This served as a reminder to all of us that while as we conduct our weekly 集合 sessions or any other Guides-related activities, we must never forget the roots of our CCA and the challenges and hardships that the founders went through to ultimately form the association. Next, it was the Our Guiding Values Activity. We were tasked to think about what integrity meant to us. In the beginning, many of us said ‘honesty’, however, we soon realised that integrity is more than just honesty. Integrity is having the strong moral principles to do the right thing at the right time. Our actions are shaped by integrity and by having integrity, trust can be fostered between individuals, forming stronger bonds and connections. As a Guide, we must practice integrity, upholding the Guide Law and Promise at all times, regardless of what we are doing. Thus, through this activity, I learnt about the importance of integrity and its significance as a value that we should practice in our Guiding journey and even in the future when we join the working force. Following that was the From Sangam Mandala to Your Mandala Activity. For this activity, we were required to draw Mandalas as a patrol to express what meant to us the most as a Guide. For my patrol, we drew a sunflower, my patrol’s flower, and wrote each member’s names on each petal. What made this activity so enjoyable was that we managed to practice our creative expression while bonding with our seniors and batchmates. We all had fun trying our best to draw while having conversations. Through this activity, we managed to foster stronger bonds with each other while practicing our creative ability. Overall, it was extremely fun and memorable. Lastly, the final activity was the Message to the Future Activity. During this activity, we had to write to the Girl Guides Headquarters a letter of what we thought the future of Guiding would look like. Personally, I thought that Guiding in the future would not change much in terms of the mission and the values we choose to uphold. Nonetheless, what I felt would change is how women are empowered. In the future, there will be a stronger emphasis on training women in the STEAM field, a male-dominated field. Additionally, more women will be encouraged to participate in politics and take on leadership roles in corporate jobs. There will be even more initiatives to promote gender equality, to give men and women an equal playing field in the workforce. All in all, this set of activities allowed me to reflect on what it meant to be a Guide, showing the importance of going back to our roots once in a while. As a result, I have a stronger sense of belonging to this CCA and a better understanding of Guides as a whole.
Reflection from a Year 3 in P4 on Our Guiding Values Activity:
In Our Guiding Values activity, we are split into different groups and sat in a circle together to discuss “what does integrity mean to you” and “what are your values”. We sat around shared our thoughts and feelings. From the discussion, I have learnt that integrity means doing the right thing even when no one is watching, be truthful to yourself and do not in any ways deceive to get what you desire. Integrity is a key value of being a good guide to maintain credibility and build trust among our friends and the society. Our words, actions and decisions root from our integrity and it may impact others, such as not cheating on a test, not engaged in any dishonest act and not afraid stand up for yourself. We should help others and build a society of true camaraderie and trust, thus having integrity is essential. Integrity does not only apply to workspaces, schools and daily lives, but also in leadership where it plays a crucial role. Leading with integrity means earning trust and respect from others, our integrity reflects our moral principles and strong set of ethical values. They stand up for what they believe and has genuine connection to their fellow friends. Thus we have discussed the definition of integrity, how it can be applied to our daily lives and different aspects of it. Next, we discussed our own values such as honesty , loyalty, resilience and responsibility. These values are equally important as integrity and I have learnt that each and everyone of us is unique. This is why working together is crucial as it brings these values together to create a more harmonious environment where everyone demonstrates their own values. Having different values help us learn from each other’s experiences and knowledge and understand what diversity can brings and give each and every one of us a positive sense of identity.
Reflection from a Year 3 in P2 on Sangam Mandala to your Mandala Activity:
My mandala represents my guides journey, which has matured me in many ways, like becoming diligent, more responsible and appreciative. My mandala starts with a spark on the inside, that expands and blooms bigger, representing the first spark I got, deciding to join guides developing into a love and passion for guides as time went on, and I learnt many more things and experienced hardships and developed core memories with my CCA mates, with 55th anniversary campfire and all the ATCs I have attended. I am sure this spark will only continue to grow bigger as I continue on with my guiding journey.Then, I drew many people holding hands, to represent the Girl Guides from all over the world being connected on World Thinking Day. Even though we are all far apart in proximity, we are all celebrating the same event at the same time, beneath the same sky, all with high spirits ,which is why there are clouds above the people. I felt the most connected during the World Thinking Day parade, where the companies from all over Singapore gathered at one venue to celebrate together, and everyone I interacted with was so kind and helpful. It was only when I asked a guide from a different school about something and she replied with kindness and understanding that I realised how included I was in the global movement of Girl Guides and sisterhood. Then I drew a pattern of black and white squares, which are supposed to signify space for growth, memories, new lessons and experiences with my fellow guides with time. These images all form one beautiful mandala, which describes my guiding journey briefly, from the growth I had, the memories I experienced , the people I have met and the global movement I am thankful to be a part of.
Reflection from a Year 3 in P3 on Message to The Future Activity:
I wrote in my message to the future that I would like Guides to be full of passionate girls that are initiative and love Girl Guides. I hope that through their Guiding journeys, many future Guides will hone their different skills and talents, and thrive. I hope the future of Girl Guides is one where the organization thrives and grows to meet the needs of today’s world. Girl Guides has always been about empowering young girls to be confident and strong leaders, and as the world changes, I believe we should adapt to stay relevant and helpful. For Girl Guides to thrive, I hope it becomes even more inclusive than currently, welcoming more girls from all backgrounds, abilities, and cultures. This will allow everyone to feel like they belong and help them learn from one another. I also hope the activities and programmes carried out reflect today’s important issues, like climate change, mental health, and equality. Teaching girls skills for the future, such as using technology and managing money, will help them be prepared for whatever comes next in life. I also hope Girl Guides embraces technology in fun and innovative ways. Virtual meetings, online badges, and digital activities can make learning more exciting and connect girls from all over the world. This will keep the sense of community strong, even if they are physically far apart. I also hope that Girl Guides continues to nurture a sense of camaraderie, teamwork, and friendship among its members, fostering relationships that last a lifetime. By providing a safe and supportive environment, the organization can inspire confidence and resilience, empowering future generations of girls to become impactful leaders and changemakers. Additionally, I hope that Girl Guides remains a place where girls can freely express themselves, discover their passions, and embrace their unique qualities. Through diverse opportunities, I envision a future where every girl feels encouraged to pursue her dreams, build self-confidence, and make a positive difference in her community.
Reflection from a Year 3 in P6 on Histroy with Actions Activity:
The activity “History with Actions” was a very fun, engaging and enriching activity that helped us to learn more about girl guides and encourage us on our guiding journey. This activity was during the 集合 after World Thinking Day and it was a great recap on the information we had learnt about girl guides that day. For this activity, History with Actions, the activity was quite literally in the name. One of the Year 3s gave each patrol a certain unique word related to girl guides and we had to perform a certain action when she said our word in the story that she was telling us. This story, was the girl guides history and hence, we found it quite amusing that the name of the game was quite literal. For this activity, my patrol was given the word “world”. So, when she read out the word “world”, we would have to spin around in a circle. As she read out the story about our girl guides history, we were able to learn many interesting facts about girl guides. We learnt that the first girl guide company was founded in the United Kingdom before quickly, this movement spread internationally and expanded to countries such as Canada, Australia and New Zealand. We also learnt that girl guides aim is to empower young girls by developing their hard and soft skills such as first aid and independence. It also focuses on citizenship and fostering a spirit of service as seen through the various community project girl guides all over the world participate in. We also learnt that today, girl guides and scouts operate in over 150 countries, with millions of members part of this movement. This activity was very fun and enriching as because we had to listen out for our respective words, all of us listened intently and managed to learn interesting facts about girl guides. Hence, this activity was a great experience and reinforced our identity as girl guides.
Reflection from a Year 1 in P5 on Speaker, Toymaker, Craft Badgework:
During badgework, I was very excited as we focused on three badges: the Craft Badge, the Toymaker Badge, and the Speaker's Badge. We started the session by gathering in our patrols in a classroom and sharing the materials we had brought. The crafts we needed to make were shown on the screen. To earn the Craft Badge, we had to complete three different types of crafts, with at least one made from recycled materials.First, my Patrol mates taught me how to make a basket using paper, which was one of the recycled materials we brought. I’ve never been very good at crafts, so I found it a bit tricky at the start to fold and shape the paper correctly. But with the help and encouragement of my Patrol mates, I managed to complete it. While making the basket, we bonded and worked closely together. It was a fun and meaningful activity because we got to be creative while also learning how to reuse materials in an eco-friendly way. Everyone’s basket turned out differently, and it was interesting to see the variety of unique designs. After we completed part of the craftwork, Ms Chang called me out of the classroom to work on the Speaker's Badge. First, she asked me to read aloud a passage she had prepared. Then, I had to either recite a short poem or passage from memory, or discuss a current affair with her. I was a little nervous at first since I didn’t know what to expect, but it turned out to be quite fun and a good opportunity to practise speaking with confidence. Once I finished, I returned to the classroom to continue with the rest of the crafts. Through the badgework, I learnt how to think critically and creatively, especially when it came to repurposing materials. Most importantly, I was able to bond with my patrol mates and work as a team, which made the experience even more enjoyable.
Reflection from a Year 2 in P2 on Speaker, Toymaker, Craft Badgework:
This years badgework was different from last years as we needed to teach and lead our year 1s what to do. To achieve our crafts badge, we had to make three different crafts that had to be made with recyclables and be made to be presentable as a gift. I had decided to weave a basket and rug and make a puppet. We did not bring tape and scissors thus we had to crossover to other patrols to borrow materials. Thus I think we could have been more prepared and brought more supplies so we could have saved more time and not wasted time by waiting for the other patrols to lend us the materials. This could have sped up this process alot faster and we could have completed alot more of our crafts. We taught our year 1s how to weave. I think I could have been more focused and weaved faster. For the toymaker badge, I did not have time to complete it, thus I had to do it at home. I had chosen to create a musical chime and two different animals. I created the musical chime with the leftover magazine from the crafts badge , string and plastic straws. It was a very easy process. For the two animals, I folded origami animals. I folded a frog and a crane. My whole patrol did not have sufficient time to complete the toymaker badge, thus our year 1s had to complete it at home. I think I could have been more attentive to my year 1s and helped them more throughout as well as talked to them more to bond more. They were very cooperative and we all had a lot of fun in the process. The morale was also very good as we started cheering in the classroom!
It was a day filled with new memories.. The WAGGGS Activities made us realise the importance of Integrity. We promise to uphold integrity!
Published by
Chan Zi Xuan
56th 届 Secretary
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