Leisure Camp, 28 March 2025 to 29 March 2025

Hi Guides! We are so excited to share with you our first-ever experience from our 2D1N Leisure Camp! It was held on 28th March (Friday) to 29th March (Saturday) this year!

Reflection from a Year 1 in P6 on Fireman Ladder and 绳桥:
On 28 March 2025, we had Leisure Camp! Since it was our very first overnight camp in guides, we were extremely excited! For the first activity, we were assigned different roles to build the Fireman Ladder and 绳桥. My patrol was assigned to build a Fireman Ladder. The logistics for building one are 2 红木, 3 青木, 7 麻绳 and 1 thin mattress. First, lay out the 红木 so that they are parallel to each other like chopsticks. Lay the 3 青木 such that it looks like a "三" with the top 2 青木 below the 红木 while the middle 青木 above the 红木. Use the 麻绳 to measure the length between the 3 青木 and ensure that they are suitable for each patrol. Finally, tie a square lash at each of the points whereby the 青木 and 红木 are overlapping. Ensure that the lashes are tight enough so that when we kick the 木, the 木 hardly moves. Building the FML was not very easy as we had to constantly 顶 the 红木 and stabilise the structure so that it would still be parallel when we tied the square lashes. Furthermore, our lashes were not very tight so we had to 抽绳 the lashes quite a few times. Additionally, for us Y1s, that was our first time building a Fireman Ladder, so our amazing seniors explained to us how to build one while tying lashes. But in the end, the effort was worth it! Although our one was not the best, it could still work and we were able to play! We took turns to 顶 the 木 while one of us climbs the ladder and flip over to the other side. We also cheered each other on when we were a little nervous to flip. I was too timid to try the Fireman Ladder, so I cheered my batchmates and seniors on when they were flipping over the structure. The 绳桥 was built by the other patrols, and while I did not dare to play it either, I got to see my seniors half-hang half-crawl from one end to the other of the 绳桥. It looked quite difficult but fun too. We cheered for them too while holding the structure in place. Overall, this activity during Leisure Camp was very fun and we got to learn how to build the FML as well as how to play it and the 绳桥.

Reflection from a Year 2 in P6 on Outdoor Cooking:

On the second day of leisure camp, we had outdoor cooking. We were given 2 hours to make lunch for everyone in our patrol. However, as my patrol was not able to finish building our indoor fire altar in time, we had to spend some time completing the structure before we could start, this meant that we had less time to cook as compared to other patrols. I think we could have done better in completing our indoor fire altar within the given timing so that we had the proper amount of time to cook. We were able to start the fire rather quickly so we could start cooking in less than 20 min. The first dish we decided to cook was maggi noodles, so we had to boil the water. However, the water took a very long time to boil and pieces of aluminium foil kept falling into the boiling water, contaminating it. This meant we had to keep repeating this process and we wasted quite a lot of time and I think one improvement we could have made was to use more toothpaste and stick the aluminium foil on better so that it would not keep falling into the water. Luckily, we were able to cook 3-5 packets of maggi noodles, which was enough to feed our patrol. While cooking the maggi noodles, we also made skewers with mushrooms and sausage, and went to other patrols who had an open fire and were willing to lend us their fire to cook them. After we finished cooking all the skewers and noodles we also made smores which were very yummy and sweet. Overall, I think we did quite well this OC as we were able to make enough food for everyone in the patrol and all the food was very nice to eat.

Reflection from a Year 3 in P5 on Station Games:

On the first day of our Leisure Camp, we enjoyed a series of station games designed for us to bond together as a patrol while practicing some Guides related activities. For station 1, we were inside a classroom and required to solve a series of riddles in order to find the code to unlock a locker. For my patrol, we found the first riddle the most challenging as we could not fathom what it meant. Hence, we moved on to the other two riddles first to find the locations with questions which revealed some of the code and solved them. Fortunately, after a tedious search of the classroom, we eventually found the last question and found the code to the locker. Through this activity, we bonded as a patrol while we gathered our different ideas for the answers to the riddles. Additionally, we trained our ability to think outside the box when solving riddles. For station 2, we had to do a set of Physical Training (PT) exercises. Doing these exercises certainly was not easy as not only were our legs fully covered, making it hot, the sun also shone on some of us, worsening the heat. Nonetheless, we pulled through and slowly overcame the sets of PT. This activity taught us a few things: perseverance and the importance of working together. We had to push both our mental and physical capability in order to complete the multiple sets of exercises. Thus, this trained our perseverance, an important value needed when carrying out CCA sessions. Next, we learnt the importance of togetherness as well. When doing the different sets of PT exercises, different people have varying physical capabilities. Hence, we learnt to match the pace of most people and allow the slightly slower people to catch up. This improved our togetherness as a patrol, strengthening our bonds with each other. Next, for station 3, we were required to start a fire using 木麻黄 and matchsticks. As it was the Year 1s’ first time starting a fire, we found it enjoyable to teach them the basics and the method to do it. While there were a few slip-ups along the way, such as not holding the matchstick close enough to the fire, we ultimately managed to complete the task and the Year 1s learnt a new skill that can be applied to future Outdoor Cooking sessions or fire starting activities in general. Lastly, station 4 was the station where most memories were forged as we had to choose some poses to recreate. As there was such a large variety of poses to choose from, we were very indecisive and took a while to choose. Nevertheless, we soon got along with the activity once we chose which ones to do. In that one station, countless photographs were taken as we bonded together to recreate the funny poses and shared laughter. Overall, the station games strengthened our bonds as a patrol and allowed me to appreciate my patrol members even more.

Reflection from a Year 3 in P1 on Movie Night:

Our Guides Leisure Camp movie night was a truly memorable and heartwarming experience. After 集合 on that Friday, which we did Fireman Ladder and 绳桥, it was nice to wind down and rest together with the Disney movie Tangled. As we turned off the lights and started playing the movie, we felt very excited and felt a sense of nostalgia as it was one of everyone’s favourite childhood shows. Tangled is about Rapunzel, an innocent, young girl, who is locked up by her overly protective mother. Her wish to escape into the world outside finally comes true when she meets the good-hearted thief, Flynn. Even though this movie is a famous childhood movie, it taught us many things. Through Rapunzel’s journey of self-discovery, courage, and freedom, I learnt that we also need to be able to step out of our comfort zone, and be forgiving. As we sat together as a 团, watching the movie attentively, we shared laughter. What made the night even more special were the snacks given to us, crispy chips, buttery popcorn, and sweet Ribena that we all had as a child, making it even more nostalgic. We passed the snacks around while enjoying the movie. This movie night reminded me how important it is to have time to relax and bond as a 团 outside of our usual CCA activities. This movie night helped us grow closer as a 团, beyond batches and it was a well-deserved break that made the camp feel even more complete. Overall it was a relaxing time and a nice way to end off the night with a childhood movie in a cooling room away from the heat.

Reflection from a Year 2 in P2 on Hike:

During the leisure camp hike, we had to walk all the way to the Tanjong rhu bridge front, and then all the patrols took turns to lead the团. Sometimes, we had to quicken our pace and the seniors told us to close the gaps as we were too slow. When we finally reached our final destination , the walk paid off as we got to play squid games inspired station games. They first regrouped all of us so that each group would have enough people, before telling all of us to tie our shoelaces together. Then, we had to walk a many legged race together, completing some tasks before being able to move on to the next station. We had to coordinate our footsteps and make sure that we were not walking too fast or too slow and were taking similar sozed footsteps. It was extremely challenging as some people had really big steps and the plan was not effectively conveyed to everyone. A lot of teamwork and communication was needed before we managed to walk in coordination. At some point in time, we even had to walk backwards, which was even more challenging as we were not used to it. The station games were extremely fun and engaging. The first one was that we had to kick a capteh on our leg 5 times. As most of us were not familiar with this game, it was a little challenging as we didn’t know how to control it and either kicked it too high, or kicked it sideways. But after trying for many times. We finally got it and managed to move on. There were other station games as well, but we learnt from the first one and planned well and communicated before playing. That experience taught us to never give up, learn how to discuss with each other and hear out others opinions. Overalls this experience was extremely fun and enriching. Although the walk was really really tiring, we managed to bond with our patrol mates and also have fun!

Leisure Camp will definitely be one of our core memories! We cannot wait to make more memories with our fellow Guides.

<3

Published by 

Chan Zi Xuan 

56th 届 Secretary

March Enrichment Activity 2025

 March Enrichment Activities

Reflection from a Year 1 in P2:

Taking the Aikido March enrichment workshop was a fun and enriching experience. I learnt that Aikido was about discipline and movement. The first thing we learnt was stretching while counting to ten in Japanese. I cringed when the sensei bent his wrist down almost all the way as it looked like it would really hurt but in reality, it did not hurt at all. Next, we jumped into the forward roll. I did not want to do it initially as I was afraid I would mess up and land not so elegantly but eventually found my courage when I saw all of my friends going for it. At first it was really challenging but it became more comfortable as I continued practicing. Another part of the workshop was learning how to dodge an attack quickly. We had to learn how to spin from the front to the back, though some of us struggled with the directions. The sensei told us that aikido was all about going with the flow of your opponent’s movements and dodging smoothly. Eventually everyone got it. We also learnt basing locks to defend ourselves and control the opponent without hurting them. I really struggled at first as I did not know how to grab my partner’s hand and twist correctly, worried I would hurt her. And when I twisted her arm, it looked really painful that I couldn’t help but wince. She had to tell me it did not hurt to reassure me. Overall, the workshop helped me build confidence, coordination, and respect for martial arts.

Reflection from a Year 1 in P6:

On 25 April 2025 in the late afternoon, we went to an aikido workshop to enrich our self-defence skills. Most of us have never learnt martial arts before, so this was an interesting experience. When we reached the place, we had to take off our shoes and keep all our belongings on a shelf. Traditionally, we had to call the instructors "sensei" and either kneel or sit cross-legged during the lesson to show respect. First, we learned how to turn left and right quickly to avoid an attack. We had to turn our head, hands and legs at the same time very quickly. Although this may sound really easy, it requires our head-hand-leg-coordination, as well as some balance. Next, we learnt how to fall backwards safely without hitting our heads. We had to roll backwards so that it lessens the impact when we fall and it helps to give us a boost to stand back up. We had to tuck in our heads when falling backwards and rolling back up. There are two possibilities to fall, either we fall forwards or backwards. Hence, after learning how to fall backwards safely, we then learnt how to fall forwards safely. The concept is similar: both required us to roll either backwards or forwards. For rolling forwards, we had to kind of lie down before rolling forwards to stand back up. It was slightly more difficult and some of us were unable to do it correctly, but we still had fun. Lastly, we learnt how to escape if someone is holding onto our arm or sleeve very tightly. We needed to twist their arm so that they would loosen their grip and kneel down from the pain, giving us time to escape. My partner and I took turns to practice. We patted our shoulder with our other hand to signal that we felt pain. While we we not able to do the movements fast enough, we were still able to make the other loosen their grip. In conclusion, while we faced a few challenges during the aikido workshop, it was still very fun and we learnt basic skills to defend ourselves. 

Reflection from a Year 2 in P2:

For the March enrichment activity, we got kayaking. It was many of our first times kayaking and while we were all extremely excited about what we would have to do, we were also a little bit afraid of the intensity of the activity and what we had to expect. Nevertheless, we all showed up bright and early, ready to face and conquer all the challenges! On the first day, after meeting the instructors, we had to move the kayaks onto the grass patch, before moving it to the reservoir. There kayaks were really heavy but we put our best foot forward and managed to help out a lot. Then, we had a safety briefing and we’re also taught about what the parts of the kayak were, as well as the uses. After that, our instructor, taught us about all the different ways to move forwards, backwards and sideways. We were scolded by the instructor as we were doing the techniques wrongly but did not ask him. This taught us that it was important to clarify doubts then to not understand it. The next day, we kayaked to another place, where we could practice falling and getting back out again. The way there was very challenging as we could not go straight and kept swerving left and right. When we finally reached after what felt like an eternity ,we took turns falling, rescuing, and helping the rescuer as an assistant. At first, it was slightly challenging and scary to shake the boat and fall, and our legs would get stuck inside. However, after practicing for a while, we got the hang of it and it wasn’t as difficult anymore. The way back was much easier, as we managed to be able to travel in a straighter line. Just as we reached the shore, it started to rain, so we were extremely lucky that we managed to reach the shore in time. This was certainly an extremely unique experience that allowed me to learn more about kayaking and gain exposure to different sports. It has also allowed me to learn to persevere and never give up as because of that, we managed to learn lots of new things and have fun with our batch mates.

Reflection from a Year 2 in P3:

This year’s March holidays was the most fulfilling one yet for me. There were two days of the March Enrichment Activities for the Year 2s, which consisted of 12 hours of kayaking in total, which spanned over 2 consecutive days. I was brimming with excitement, not knowing what kayaking would be like. Other than the school Year 1 Adventure Camp’s dragon boating, I have never participated in prior water-based activities before. Kayaking would serve as a brand new experience for me to try out and I was really keen on trying out the activity. The very first day, I made sure to apply a thick layer of sunscreen and wear on my water shoes that I had previously bought for dragon boating. After making sure we were all ready to set off, our trainer asked us to pair up and carry our own kayaks to the nearby Kallang River. We were told that each kayak could sit only one of us, which worried me as I was unsure if I could handle my own kayak when left in my hands. Before going into the water, we were briefed and introduced to the various equipment we would be handling, the oar, the kayak and the different parts of these equipment. We were also taught the basic kayaking techniques that we were going to use right after. Getting into the water was definitely not an easy task. I was not used to stepping into the riverside, thus I was shocked at the state of the water there. There were water plants floating around, much sand that covered my legs with every step and the water was looking quite murky. It took me a lot of courage before I finally forced myself into the water and into my kayak. However, as the day continued, I got used to the environment and got the hang of kayaking. Although I mostly spun in circles at first, I could control my own kayak when moving in different directions. Kayaking with my batch mates was really fun, making my experience much more enjoyable, with us spraying water at one another and motivating us to persevere under the hot, blazing sun. The first day was so tough, yet so fulfilling. The second day was even tougher for me, for we had to kayak all the way to another part of the river, where we practiced our capsizing and rescuing. I was very hesitant to capsize, especially since I saw an otter jump into the nearby water and the thought of being in the same area as it scared me, but the thought of not being able to attain the badge was even scarier, so I pulled myself together and forced myself to do the drill. Turns out, it was much more fun than I expected, and capsizing gave me a quick rush of coolness when I got into the water, escaping from the sun’s heat. The toughest part of the second day was kayaking back to the shore, as we were all burnt out and our hands were aching, but we still had to kayak a long distance back to end the day. It also started drizzling, which made kayaking the waters even harder as we had to fight against the strong winds. Still, we made it, and there was not a moment I did not enjoy. This experience was eye-opening and very fulfilling, for I braved myself and did things I never would have thought possible.

Reflection from a Year 3 in P5:

On 18 March, my batchmates and I went to Outpost Climbing for our March holiday enrichment activity. At first, I was a little nervous as I am scared of heights. However, with the instructor's patient guidance and my batchmates' support, I was able to reach the top of three walls! I felt a great sense of accomplishment and fulfillment. My biggest takeaway from this activity was learning how to belay. As a complete newbie to climbing, I was lost at first when the instructor first introduced us to belaying. There were numerous equipment and skills that we had to pick up, making it overwhelming at first. However, I stayed calm and learnt bit by bit, clarifying with the instructors if needed. I learnt about the various equipment used in belaying, such as a belay device. I also learnt how to tie a figure-eight knot and check my belay device properly. What seemed like complicated gear at first slowly became familiar tools I could trust. Communication was also another essential skill, ensuring that both the climber and belayer are on the same page. For example, a climber would ask “On belay?” and the belayer would reply “Belay on”. I also learnt that these were universal phrases and climbers from all around the world would use the same phrases when belaying, hence preventing language barriers from hindering climbers of different backgrounds to climb together. Practising these call-outs with my climbing partner made me feel more in control, whether I was on the ground or on the wall. Lastly, I learnt about belaying techniques. Managing slack, keeping the brake hand steady, and feeding rope smoothly while always being alert was no small feat. This was extremely important as my climber’s safety is in my hands so I have to be ready whenever she falls. From this activity, I have learnt how to trust – in myself, in my belaying partner and in the system. With that, my batchmates and I earned our Level 1 Sport Climbing certification. We are ready to conquer more walls!

Reflection from a Year 3 in P6:

During the March holidays, my batch and I all went to Outpost Climbing for our batch activity which was rock climbing. We were all extremely excited. We had come to Outpost Climbing before during our Year 3 Orientation Camp! We had expected our batch activity to be the same as what we had done during that camp, however, we were doing something different. The previous time we were her, we learnt how to rock climb with a safety device. However this time, the instructors told us that we would have to rely on our partners for this and that we had to follow many safety instructions. They started off by explaining to us all of the rock climbing equipment and telling us their various different uses and how they expected us to operate these equipment. They then asked us about what we would like to learn about rock climbing and we went in a circle, taking turns to answer the questions they asked. The instructors were extremely friendly and funny and they were very kind and taught us many different things about rock climbing. They then told us more about the difficulty level of our activity that we were having that day and explained that we had to form pairs. Once we were in our pairs and seated, the instructors explained to us the procedure to start and had two of us come up for a demonstration. As I was quite scared, I didn’t volunteer myself but I admire the bravery of my batchmates for being willing to try. The instructors gave us a few commands to remember where the one climbing would have to reply and then they proceeded to show us how we would take turns climbing the wall using the equipment. Overall, it was a very fun experience and we hope to do something similar again!

We are so glad to have these opportunities to participate in meaningful activities and pick up important physical skills in our March Holidays! We look forward to our next Enrichment Activity!

Published by 

Chan Zi Xuan

56th 届 Secretary