08/05/14
This evening we finished the dragon boats the girls had started last week. Our first challenge was getting the boats back to Brownies as we couldn't store them there and there was only just enough room in the car for them as us! We managed it, with a little help from a parent at the other end to get them into the hall.
We did show-and-tell and then told the girls that they had until 7 (about 45 minutes at that point) to finish their boats before we raced them. They had just spread themselves around the hall in their sixes and were getting stuck in when the District Commissioner came in. She asked if she could have a few minutes of the units' time as she couldn't come at the end of the meeting so we got the girls into a circle. That took some time as they didn't want to stop so soon but they did all eventually get into the circle. She then presented me with my Adult Leader Qualification! I was quite surprised that it all went through so quickly, but I'm not complaining!
We then let the girls go back to their boats. It was absolute chaos with glitter, paper and pens absolutely everywhere but they seemed to be enjoying themselves. We floated around and helped by cutting sticky tape and settling minor disagreements but we left them to their own devices when it came to the actual making of the boats.
I had one girl come up and ask me what my badge actually meant. Our conversation went something along the liines of:
Her: Does your badge mean you can be Brown Owl if you want?
Me: Yes, it does.
Her: So you could be Brown Owl and Brown Owl could be your helper? (Brown Owl was within earshot and smiled at me)
Me: Yes but I don't want to just yet.
Her: Don't you want to be a Brown Owl?
Me: I do, but I want to get university out of the way first.
Her: Oh... *runs off again and Brown Owl laughs*
Around 5 past 7 we stopped them and did a quick sweep of the hall with a broom to get most of the mess out of the way. We lined the girls up at one end of the hall in their dragons (and did a fair amount of rapid repairs where they were falling apart!). We invited in a few parents who were waiting outside to watch and then we started the race. The race itself went well with no major problems but then we said they could run back to the other side of the hall. Most of them took this as the cue to run pell-mell back across, ripping the dragons to shreds as they went! It was all done in good humour and all the girls got involved so it was a good way of quickly breaking it down into pieces we could put in a bin bag and in the large bins outside. They all helped fish the pens and glue out of the piles of rubbish that had been swept to one side and then put all the rubbish into yet more bin bags.
All in all I was very impressed by our girls this week. They worked well together and there were no major disagreements (and only one or two minor ones about what colour it should be). There were no objections to being asked to tidy up either and everyone chipped in and made the job far easier and quicker. It's times like these when I really enjoy being involved in Brownies.
(Easter Break 2014)
I thought I would put up a post letting you know what Guiding related things I've been doing over this holiday (while I should have been revising for my A-levels!). If you're only interested in getting ideas for your unit, feel free to skip this one!
First off, I finally got round to completing my Adult Leader Qualification! Most of it was just writing up what I had done because that's the part I don't particularly enjoy. The only part I hadn't actually done was the unit accounts so I sat down with mum one evening and we worked through this term's income and expenses. It's actually fairly straightforward, particularly as I have some experience from doing invoices and that kind of thing in a shop. It took us about an hour to go through and copy things into the spreadsheet so it wasn't as bad as I thought it was going to be. And it all balanced too which was a bonus! It feels great to have finally printed it all off and put ready to pass on to the District Commissioner - I can't wait to get my badge and see it updated on Go! after all this time! For all you out there who are either part way through or considering doing your ALQ, go for it! It may take some time but, if you stick with it, the end result makes you feel really proud. And, an added incentive for me, it will make things a bit easier when I go to uni in September and can approach my district and say "hi, I'm a fully qualified leader, where can I help?" as opposed to just "hi, I want to help at Brownies". I know some units are wary of taking on university students because there's no telling if they'll commit and stick around but, if you are fully qualified, it shows that you have the dedication to attend every week and be a useful member of the team. That coupled with the fact that most places struggle with a lack of qualified leaders equals a win-win situation!
Having finished this, there are several things calling my name that I could do next... The big one at the moment is the Look Wider badge with its 8 Octants: Community Action, Creativity, Fit For Life, Independent Living, International, Leadership Out Of Doors and Personal Values. You can do the Octants in any order and the Look Wider badge is gained when you've done all 8 of them. Each Octant is made up of 3 phases which, again, can be completed in any order. Phase 1 involves getting a taste of 3 different activities; phase 2, developing an activity for 12 hours; and phase 3, undertaking one activity for 30 hours. I've gone through the various ideas and have realised that I've actually done some of the parts of this: for example, passing my driving test for Independent Living Phase 3, and with a little more work could get a couple of the Octant badges. I've looked into the Commonwealth Challenge before now but I still don't know what I would do for any of the optional sections so I don't think I'll be doing that any time soon. I've also been tempted by the Queen's Guide Challenge but I think that's one to leave until I've either finished uni or have found a group of like minded students who can fit it around their studies because it involves an awful lot of work. All of these are Senior Section qualifications, meaning I have until I turn 26 to complete them so there's no rush; it just feels odd to not have something Guiding related to do when I should be revising!
I also recently came across this blog on the overhaul of the Girlguiding website. As someone going to uni in September to do Maths and Computer Science, I am very interested in this and am keen to get involved. I have signed up to be a 'Digital Champion' (someone who will be asked questions and given opportunities to feedback on various stages of the design) which is one step towards being involved. I am also currently debating whether I should become a member of the Team Digital panel who will travel to London a few times a year and give feedback and present ideas to the team designing the website as well as being available for email debates and feedback. It is for GGUK members as well as non-members aged between 16 and 25 and lasts for 2 years. This is the one thing that's worrying me right now; I don't know how much time I'm going to have to put into this while at uni and I don't want to commit if I'm not going to be able to help to the best of my ability. I have until May 5th to decide and apply so I will keep you updated on what I decide to do.
So basically, this has actually been a very Guiding filled holiday! It's a welcome break from the continuous revision though so I'm not complaining! Next week regular meeting updates will resume but I may throw in a few update posts here and there if I decide to get involved more with Team Digital or do any of the multitudinous qualifications available to me between now and my 26th birthday...
