Reflections. From this leadership training workshop, I have incorporated the values of cooperation, creativity and commitment.

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1 Reflections MY MEMORIES OF THE PRIMARY 5 LEADERSHIP CAMP OF 2013 Memories are the allegory of our lives. The memories that our Primary Five cohort commissioned with our trainers and educators during the annual Primary Five Leadership Camp, from 18 March to 20 March 2013, engulfed us in tears of sorrow while leaving the campsite; yet, the experiences evoked leadership values and a sense of accomplishment in us. I will always cherish Trainer Inshyrah Tang, humming tunes of Josh Groban and Taylor Swift, and how her unkempt hair swayed about as she was on the dance floor during the campfire. I will cherish her providing us with motivational messages when we were quarrelling about how we would perform for the campfire, and how, before I stepped onto the bus returning to Haig Girls, she ruffled my hair, held me close, and advised me to always believe in myself. Over the two days, one night stay at the Dairy Farm Adventure Centre located at Bukit Timah, we were pushed beyond our limits, yet, the programme allowed us to try something new. For me, it was looking and smelling like Robinson Crusoe after participating in all the activities, consuming substances I had never eaten before and dosing off on a hard, wooden floor, with only a sleeping bag and my plush dog, Cupcake, for comfort. Overall, my experience there was enriching and enjoyable. Hence, it would be my pleasure to share it with you my reflections of some of the daily highlights of the two days, one night camping adventure. DAY 1: 18 March 2013 LEADERSHIP TRAINING WORKSHOP IN SCHOOL As a leader bestowed with many leadership positions that require a lot of responsibility, like many other fellow leaders, I was invited to attend a leadership training workshop in school on Monday, the 18th of March We participated in many activities such as a geo-caching training and cooking our own meals! It was fun-filled and I truly enjoyed cooperating with my companions. In life, there are many ups and usually downs, such as, during the making of our meals, our pasta was overcooked and stuck together like glue. Also, during the geocaching training, two of my buddies and I huddled together instead of following our group to find the waypoint (checkpoint). We received a tongue-lashing from Mdm Tng and we realised our mistake. Yes! As the Awesome Threes, we should have worked as a team, stayed committed to the given task and brainstorm creative ways to reach the checkpoint. From this leadership training workshop, I have incorporated the values of cooperation, creativity and commitment. DAY 2:19 March 2013 PRIMARY 5 LEADERSHIP CAMP 2013 (AT CAMPSITE) At about eight in the morning, 144 Primary Five students boarded four buses that set off for the Dairy Farm Adventure Centre, an hour s drive away from our school.

2 Seated next to my best friend, Saskia, we chatted about matters that favoured us, yet, at the back of my mind, I was excited beyond imagination of what might occur during the camp. Saskia cooed at Cupcake, and witnessing beautiful homes on the way, we awed at them and wished to have one of our own. Finally, after spending an hour of satisfying friendship bonding, we reached the campsite. We set off for the canteen, where each group s trainer was introduced. Our trainer had looked very familiar as I had seen her during the leadership training workshop a day before. She introduced herself as Trainer Tang and led us off to our dormitory. Inside the dormitory, it looked very bleak and bland, with just two wooden pieces and a door that led us up to an attic where we heaved our bags off our shoulders and retrieved our day packs. I had forgotten to bring my day pack along and had to make do with a plastic bag. Stuffing it with writing materials, insect repellent, my water bottle and a hat, the leaders introduced us to Trainer Tang. When I told my group mates about my five leadership positions, everyone, especially Trainer Tang, looked astonished. When she asked me to list them out for her, I took a deep breath and recited them. I m a Junior Prefect an Art Ambassador, a CE (Citizenship Education) Ambassador a CCA Leader for Debating Club and a CCA Leader for Science Club as well! By the time I had completed reciting my leadership positions, I was out of breath. Phew! Afterwards, we customised ourselves with a group name. Group 7 seemed like a very boring title; therefore, we decided to call ourselves the Shooting Stars! We printed our group name on a piece of mahjong paper decorated it with crayons. Just then, we made our way back to the canteen to have lunch and there, we spotted Trainer Tang placing our poster on the canteen wall. When we received our lunch, I gagged at the bean sprout and chicken drumlets. In spite of my hunger, I finished most of the rice and dumped the remaining in a trash can. After our lunch, we headed off to our geo-caching site and found many waypoints. We hiked, and Li Ju, a former classmate of mine, misplaced her sunglasses and we were on a wild goose chase to find it. Unfortunately, it was never to be found. Maybe, a monkey decided to utilize it during this hot sunny day Just imagine Ms Monkey swinging from tree to tree wearing Li Ju s sunglasses Ha!Ha!Ha! After a tiring hike across Bukit Timah Nature Reserve, we headed back to our dormitory with perspiration plastered all over our foreheads. We then had a limited amount of time to discuss how we were going to perform for the upcoming campfire. We had an endless argument between the Directioners and the Swifties until Trainer Tang almost blew her top! Instead, she injected some motivational words of wisdom into our heads, and after a few practices, we were ready to go. The campfire began with a BANG! We watched many groups perform; singing and dancing on the dance floor. Even our teachers and trainers were given an opportunity to strut their performing arts skills!

3 Finally, it was our turn to perform. As soon as the Primary 5s heard the strumming of a guitar, they immediately realised that we were singing to Taylor Swift s We are Never Ever Getting Back Together, they jumped with joy. Although our performance was not pitch perfect, our effort was evident. Trainer Tang congratulated us with a thumbs-up sign. We were exhilarated. After the festivities, we had a briefing by Camp Chief Nan. She asked us to look towards the direction of the sky and we wondered why there wasn t a single star visible. She then explained that the stars were already here, and pointed to us. It then struck us that we are the STARS! Then, we went back into the canteen and had supper. After gobbling down our Oreos, we went to shower. When we arrived at the bathroom, a long line of campers were already queuing up to have their go at showering. When it was my turn to shower, I turned on the showerhead and my circulatory system alerted me that I am showering in Antarctica! The icy cold water made me tremble and I was under the shower 30 seconds the most before storming out of the cubicle. I then unpack my sleeping bag with the help of a buddy. Soon, I was drifting off to Dreamland. DAY 3: 20 March 2013 PRIMARY 5 LEADERSHIP CAMP 2013 (AT CAMPSITE) I woke up weary from the major partying the night before. After meeting my five daily routines that include making the bed, brushing teeth, showering, praying and having breakfast, my team and I went over to the High Elements section. We learnt how to fasten our helmets and harnesses. First, our group went rock climbing and it was quite tedious for me as I am not an avid rock climber, unlike my group mates. Then we proceeded to the Flying Fox challenge. Although it seemed safe and sound, I was paralysed with fear. I just could not face the challenge. Next, we went on to Abseiling and although the trapeze looked fine, I felt like I was a million meters above the ground. Also, my harness was too tight and my heart missed a beat as I stepped onto a platform. I refused to move when the anchorman tugged at my harness. I could feel tears streaming down my cheeks. I just had to give the challenge a miss. Trainer Tang spotted me and helped me to come down from the horrible trapeze. We had lunch and went over to the dormitory, where we filled out a feedback form and wrote a personal letter to Trainer Tang who was leaving the camping profession to be a teacher. Soon, we packed our bags and proceeded to the canteen for a briefing before leaving the camp site. There, I received a certificate for my leadership skills. Then we proceeded to the gate where we departed. When the bus finally arrived, I was filled with the hope that I would return here again. Before I stepped onto the bus returning to Haig Girls, Trainer Tang ruffled my hair, held me close, and whispered a crucial piece of advice that any leaders should adhere Always Believe in Yourself. That moment I had with Trainer Tang will remain in me for the longest time.

4 During this meaningful camping expedition, I gained many leadership values and memories that will be treasured and cherished. BELIEVE IN YOURSELF is the one piece of wisdom I evoked from this learning journey. - Tanisha (5 Charity)

5 When I got to school s foyer waiting to depart for the Dairy Farm, I was so excited to see who our trainer was, what it was like going down a zip line and how camp and a campfire as I have never been camping before! As there were 8 groups, we departed at different times. Since I was in group 7, group 7 and 8 had to ride together and since we were the last two groups, we were the last to depart. It was finally our turn to depart! As my buddy, Rachael and I were the first on the bus we sat at the back. When we finally got to the Dairy Farm, our teachers took us to the canteen where everyone was to assemble to meet our trainers and for a briefing. After the briefing, my trainer, Trainer Tang took us to our dorms. When we put our stuff down, we introduce each other. After that, everyone went for lunch. After we ate, we went geo catching. Geo catching is a game of treasure hunt but we use a GPS (Global Positioning System) to aid us in navigation. During the geo catching, I had so much fun finding the way points but after the activity, I was exhausted. My legs felt like jelly and I was out of breath. After geo catching, we went back to our dorm to prepare for our campfire performance. As we only had an hour to prepare, we quickly got started. During that hour, we had some differences as some of us wanted singing, dancing, acting and some did not want to do anything, but we finally agreed to sing and dance to Taylor Swift, We Are Never Getting Back Together. We had a row of girls in the front dancing and singing and the back was singing. When it was time for dinner, we stop practising and went to the canteen. After dinner, all the dancers practised. When it was finally time to start the campfire, our group was nervous as we did not have a lot of time to practice but in the end we all had fun. Near the end my best friend, Hanna performed a wushu act and she was really good. Then my friend, Adriana and I danced to David Guetta s Titanium. At the end of the campfire, our teachers danced. Then the campfire was over but I was happy as I enjoyed seeing my friends preforming. After the campfire, we ate supper, showered and went to bed. The next morning, we got ready and went to the canteen to meet our trainer for breakfast. After breakfast we did rock climbing. It was very fun even if I did not reach the top because I tried my best and had fun. The next activity was zip lining. When I was going up the stairs, I was scared as there were gaps on the stairs and if you look down, it felt like you were going to fall. When I reached the top, I was so scared! I felt like I was going to fall. When it was my turn, I was scared as I was so high! Before I went down, the trainer made me touch my toes but I did not as I thought I was going to fall and scared that he was going to push me. However, as I went on the zip line, I was unafraid and the whole experience turned out to be fun. The next activity was challenge rope course. There were two courses, the tight rope and cargo net. I did the tight rope and I thought it was a bit challenging. After the activity, we went for lunch. This was followed by a prize presentation. Our group

6 did not win but everyone was happy as we had fun. After that, we went back to school and everyone in our group was sad as we will miss our trainer as she made us laugh and happy. At this camp, I learnt that there is no such thing a failure, only experiences also what Michael Jordan and Oprah Winfrey said: I can accept failure, everyone fails at something. But I can't accept not trying. Michael Jordan I don't believe in failure. It is not failure if you enjoyed the process Oprah Winfrey - Gwyneth (5 Kindness)