Before we built the Gadgeting Car, the Year 2s took part in Lash Training to further refresh our lashing skills after a long holiday. We were tasked to tie the basic lashes, which were a Square Lash, a Diagonal Lash, and an A-架 Lash each. Those who finished earlier could step up to tie 4 Quadpods as a batch. I think my lashes were up to standard as I was quick to finish tying the three lashes, and stepped up to tie the Quadpod. In my opinion, it was tied well for one of my first try, although it 飞脚-ed. The seniors gave me tips on how to 顶脚 better in order to avoid 飞脚, which was to push the 木 against the wall and push it downward. I found them really helpful and I will remember to apply their tips in future to improve my hard skills. The seniors were really helpful and understanding, commending me that my lashes were quite good. However, I feel that the quality of my lashes were inconsistent, and I will continue to work hard in Lash Training sessions to tie tighter lashes. Although some of us finished relatively quickly, most of my batchmates took a long time to tie their lashes. This was quite disappointing as we had high expectations for ourselves, and did not want to disappoint our seniors. Those who finished tied the Quadpods, and had to ask for time extensions so that we would not 过时. It felt humiliating asking for time extensions again and again, and we will definitely learn from this experience in order to further improve the quality of our lashes, and also improve our sense of urgency. We tried our best but I believe our lashes are still not up to standard yet, so I really hope that we will take Lash Training more seriously, rather than as a time to chat mindlessly, but as a time to focus and work on our lash-tying skills, asking for tips and feedback from our seniors.
On 23 January 2026, the Year 3s were split into two groups and had a Proposal Writing practice, whereby one group had to write a proposal on building a Gadgeting Car and the other, a Gadgeting Dustbin. From our past experiences of writing proposals, we all knew we had to work together to make sure that our proposals were standardised properly, as well as of good quality and high standards, such that it could be efficiently used by us to complete the planned activity. I think the two groups could have sat closer to each other as even though we could have sat exactly next to each other and only using two benches, we sat one whole bench apart, making communication inconvenient and not very effective, where we had to stretch our arms to pass a message and even sometimes had to wait for the other group to respond before we came to a conclusion. I also think that we could have taken the time to understand the structure more. As there were Patrol Leaders (PLs) and Patrol Seconds (PSs) assigned, most of us did not have the thought to properly familiarise with the structure and understand the building process which impacted the process of us executing and completing the structure, where when the PLs and PSs were changed, we were slow and unprepared to react as our proposals were also not as detailed. From this, I learnt how important it is to look ahead and plan for possible contingencies. This could be extremely crucial for future activities and events that we have to plan for during our 领导层 journey. As the Guides motto goes, this activity reminded me and my batchmates to always “Be Prepared”.
As it was one of the last few 集合s before the Year 1s arrived, I was excited and a little nervous as it would be our first time building the Gadgeting Dustbin since it is not a standard structure, and it was also our first 集合 after Orientation Preparation. We were grouped with Patrol 4 and when building the structure, I was a little unsure as to how to build it. At first, we tied the frame for the Dustbin, but since we did not 顶 properly, it kept moving while we were tying the lashes. The frame was also sheering and the distances between the 木 were different, so we had to untie some of the lashes on the frames and 重打 the lashes. The Year 3s also assigned some people to help 顶 the frame against the wall to ensure more accurate measurements. When tying the structure, we also did not ensure constant 报时 and the seniors had to keep reminding us to do so. Even with the seniors’ reminders, we would often not 报时 after a while. In the end, we did not have a good sense of urgency and asked for multiple time extensions. Though we completed tying the structure, the dustbin did not work well. Overall, I think that we could have done way better as we could have definitely improved sense of urgency and make sure our lashes were more up to standard. However, I am still proud of my group as it was our first time tying the Gadgeting Dustbin, which included moving mechanisms that we were not very familiar with.
On 23 January 集合, Patrol 3 and Patrol 4 were grouped together to build a Gadgeting Dustbin, while Patrol 1 and Patrol 2 were grouped to build a Gadgeting Car. I was the Patrol Leader of P3 and P4 and since this was one of the first few 集合s of the year, where the Year 4s had stepped up and I had to be the one to give out instructions like them, I felt nervous yet excited that I had been given this opportunity to lead my peers along with my Patrol Second. Throughout this whole 集合, we faced many difficulties. We had given ourselves too short of a time to complete the structure during the Proposal Writing activity as we did not foresee the challenges that we would face along the way. The Gadgeting Dustbin was also a structure built during Orientation Preparation, which made it quite challenging for us to give out the instructions as it was a structure that included moving mechanisms. I needed to keep the overall plan in mind to ensure the structure was completed successfully, while also managing time effectively and giving clear instructions so that no one felt unsure of their tasks. However, despite all that, we still worked together as a team to complete the structure. Although the structure had some areas for improvement, like the tightness and neatness of the lashes, I still felt a sense of accomplishment as this was not just a structure we built, but a meaningful experience that taught us resilience and cooperation. From this experience, I learnt that I could have clarified with my seniors about how the structure works so that we could have a better understanding of the bigger picture which makes it easier to convey our instructions to our juniors. We could also have had a better sense of urgency and asked for time extensions before the time was up. Another thing I learnt was to 集合 all the 做不s and brief them on the next step, which helps to ensure that everyone has a clearer picture on what we were doing next. In conclusion, this experience has taught me the importance of preparation, communication and teamwork, and I will apply these lessons to become a more effective PL in future 集合 sessions.
On 23 January 2026, we built a Gadgeting Car with Patrol 2. As this was one of our last few 集合s before the Year 1s came in, we had to ensure that all our lashes were tight so that we can better guide the Year 1s to the best of our abilities. We built the frames, connected them and added a door. Although it might seem easy, it was actually quite challenging for us, especially with two patrols working together, there is more manpower and hence, the situation would get messy and chaotic easily. Thus, I think that there are many areas which we can improve in. Firstly, as it was also one of the first CCA sessions after such a long break, the December holidays, many of us did not tie our lashes in the standard timings. Furthermore, some of the lashes were quite loose. I think we can practise tying lashes within the standard timings and of better standard in the future. Secondly, we could definitely increase the frequency of our 报时. At one point in time when tying the structure, all the Year 3s were put on mouth alert. The atmosphere quietened very quickly due to our lack of 报时. This shows that the Year 2s were not 报时-ing enough or not 报时-ing loud enough. In future 集合s, we can 报时 louder and more consistently. This would help us keep track of our time better. Thirdly, when building the structure, we were overcrowding the Patrol Leader (PL) and Patrol Second (PS) to ask them for instructions, which could lead them to feel overwhelmed. In the future, instead of overcrowding the PL and PS, we can be more proactive and take the initiative to do other things such as tuck in 鸟绳 or 重抽 loose lashes. Overall, this was a really fun and insightful 集合.
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