Family Challenge 2014

The Fellowship

On September 6th and 7th I took part in the 2014 family challenge. The family challenge is a fundraising event for the Kamili organisation, a group that supports those with mental disabilities within Kenya. The challenge helps to pay for facilities and treatment for these people, and is a great way to spread awareness. We donated over 30,000 shillings to this organisation through the family challenge.

Gandalf!

After doing this challenge for eight years or so it was sad to think that this was going to be the last time that I would participate in this event. This year our group consisted of me, my dad, my two younger cousins (Isolde and Theo), and my uncle. It was challenging because we had always been a group with older children, and having a 5 and 7 year old definitely changed things for us. We found it a lot harder to get to each event in time and to collaborate effectively together (Isolde and Theo very often didn't know what to do in each game). However, when we had been brainstorming our team name I had come up with an idea of us being the fellowship from lord of the rings. As a result almost every member of our team wore a green hobbit cloak, the one ring around their necks, and carried staffs. My dad was even dressed as Gandalf! I thought this made the challenge a lot more fun for everyone, and I know we definitely should have won the prize for best dressed team!

The team rushes to the next challenge!

The challenge was organised the same way as last year. Each family was allowed two bikes, and challenges were set up at various points around Sanctuary Farm in Naivasha. Sanctuary farm was filled with amazing animals - zebra, wildebeest, giraffe, horses, and a great deal of other wildlife  An example of a challenge was driving a matatu around a course blindfolded (instructed by the rest of your team members). There were 47 teams this year, which was a fair amount, and everyone was extremely passionate and involved in everything. We camped in Sanctuary Farm overnight, and there was a wonderful barbecue. Furthermore, after we had finished our activities the second day we had the awards ceremony - people were recognised for individual challenges, and the overall winner was also announced.

Isolde and I

Isolde and Theo in their cloaks

As always, the family challenge was an increasingly positive experience for me. Improving interpersonal and communication skills, leadership, teamwork and collaboration, and many other positive traits, as well as being a genuinely interesting and fun event. I always walk away from the family challenge filled with awareness and empowered to make change in the world myself, knowing that I have learnt and achieved so very much within the span of only two short days. This was a wonderful final year in this event, and I hope that it continues to be so very successful!

ARTSCO Bake Sale, Mural Painting & Leadership Board

On Saturday, September 6th, ARTSCO did a cupcake decorating event at the PTO picnic. Unfortunately, I couldn't be there (due to the family challenge being the same weekend), but I heard that it was a success. We set up a table with icing, decorations and cupcakes and opened it up for people to make their own designs. We also had a table with paper and pencils for arts and crafts and were painting a mural. Our mural is of elephants, and is made up of a collage of other pictures.

The ARTSCO members said that when doing our next fundraiser it would be useful to organise who was bringing what a little better, and assign time slots more effectively. I acknowledge that I wasn't the best at organising this event, but hopefully things will be more effective when I can actually attend myself. Regardless, we raised 15,700 shillings, 5000 of which was given to HeArts (due to their help in our stall).
I have also planned for us to meet next weekend to finish off our mural, which hopefully won't take very long. I am eager for those who did not have a chance to do this at the picnic to take part during our next painting.

Finally, today during our meeting we did elections for the ARTSCO leadership board. I did my best to promote democracy, asking for a personal statement before the candidate was eligible to give a speech (to ensure that only those committed could apply). Candidates gave speeches and then we voted as a whole club. This is the new ARTSCO leadership board:

Secretary: Shanti Zschocke
Treasurer: Hannah Duiker
Public Relations Manager: Nidhi Ranjalkar
Vice President: Annisstar (11th grade)

I am very pleased with the new leadership board, and I truly believe that this group of people will be effective in charge of the club. I am also really glad that the vice is in 11th grade - this means that they can take charge of the club whilst I am in exams, as well as transfer to president next year. We will meet every week 2 (the week the club doesn't meet) to discuss plans for ARTSCO. We are now seriously thinking about the talent show, and have brainstormed theme ideas as a club. Here some ideas we came up with as a club:

- Country
- Bollywood
- Disney
- Fantasy
- Cartoons
- 1980s or 1960s
- 70s GOM
- Food fest
- Britain’s got talent
- Hollywood
- International/cultural mix/around the world
- Under the stars
- Hawaii
- Hogwarts
- Casino
- Black and white
- Celebrities

Before advertising begins we must make a concrete decision regarding this theme, however.

JUMP Leadership Weekend

Obelisk Game

On August 30th and 31st I was given the opportunity to undergo a leadership course at ISK with JUMP. This course was designed for the club leaders of the 2014-2015 school year, telling us what qualities we should promote and follow within clubs, how to set goals and plan our time, and much more. On Saturday we were at school from 8 in the morning to 4 in the evening, and on Sunday we attended from 8-12. 

The two days of this program consisted of a number of leadership games, goal setting, and a review of our personal challenges and goals. We started out with a look at growth mountain, and were asked to place ourselves on the scale given a number of scenarios. I think that we were all somewhat surprised by where we, and our peers, placed ourselves, and were able to gain a self awareness and understanding.  We were also told about the five aims every leader should have, and set goals for the course based on them. The goals were as follows: 

1. Challenge the process

2. Enable others to act

3. Inspire a shared vision

4. Encourage the heart

5. Model the way

I felt that I was lacking in challenging the process (tending to stick to the same activities as other clubs and being rather dull in what I plan), and that I am better at modelling the way. I feel that my commitment and passion is what I look for in members. 

Round Square Goal

Some of the games we did were the cinnamon bun challenge (this was my personal favourite, consisting of all people holding hands and coiling into a big cinnamon bun hug), a traffic light game (in which we had to swap directions in a line while sticking to a set of rules regarding movement), a box game (we had a minute to observe the contents of a box and then replicate it as a group), and so on and so forth. We also watched a Planet Earth movie, showing a wild dog hunt and the migration of a group of elephants, that served as a symbol for leadership. The cohesive nature of the wild dog pack, and the loyalty and steadfast qualities of the elephants allowed us all to understand what's required of us in a group. At the end of the course we had to identify what our spirit animal (in terms of leadership) was, and I chose an elephant. Elephants, at least the ones in the movie, were trusting, loyal, supportive and effective in working as a group. I don't want to be too forceful in my role, instead acting as a guide and a friend to club members. 

We analyse the movie

Our goal setting (including SMART goals and GRRAPES) entailed the various leaders of clubs getting together and planning out where they were going for the year. Unfortunately, ARTSCO was a smaller club and I instead helped out with the planning of NHS and Round Square. This was very useful and i think that we all gained new insight through this experience.

We ended the course with reflections and a formation of a back pocket of leadership tactics. I found this course very educational and important, it definitely allowed me to gain a new perspective on what it means to be a leader within the community. I feel that I am more confident and sure of myself after undergoing this training, and I am extremely excited about the year ahead. I know that my role as a leader will help to me to excel in all other aspects and fields of life, and I look forward to the challenges that it brings. 

Save the Rhino and Group Updates

Save the Rhino: 

I have been able to meet with the Save the Rhino leadership board one so far this year. We discussed our aims for the year, mostly revolving around the promotion of public awareness. We hope to give presentations to different sections of the school and raise funds to donate supplies to rangers out in the bush (we were thinking about a drone!). Save the Rhino is meeting every week 2 Thursday, and we have a fair amount of members from last year, as well as some new applications. I hope to organise the talent show with Save the Rhino.

President's Award: 

I am continuing work on my Gold award for PA. I will continue swim team (for action) and piano (for my skill), but unfortunately the KCCL service trip that I had planned to do was cancelled. Therefore, I am going to join HeArts as a substitute for KCCL. HeArts and KCCL are very similar in their activities, both working with children in difficult situations and reaching out to them through art. I have also managed to do my independent journey already - my trip to South Africa for Round Square fit with the requirements for this voyage. Moreover, having already completed the gold service trip I will be able to do a IC trip of my choice this year. I hope that I will be able to complete and obtain this award by the end of twelfth grade.

Swim Team:

This year I am going to be attending swim team three times a week, all practices taking place in the morning. I plan to go on Monday, Wednesday and Friday for swimming, and to go to the gym on Tuesday and Thursday. I am extremely idealistic and determined in my sports, and I hope that I will be able to go far this year. I will be doing a limited number of competitions, due to the rigorous nature of the IB, but will definitely commit to training completely throughout the school year.

ARTSCO 2014-2015 - Goals

ARTSCO is my biggest challenge and undertaking this year. I have never taken on a role as president before and I am determined to do the best that I can do in this position. We have already had a signup day for the club, and a grand total of around 35 students joined ARTSCO. However, I acknowledged that a club this size would be extremely difficult to manage, and so all those who did not attend the first meeting were removed from the club. We now have about 25 members and I am hopeful that they will remain committed and passionate about our cause. I have created a Facebook page and hope to be able to effectively communicate logistics.

My main goals this year in ARTSCO as are follows:

1. Organise a talent show - this will hopefully occur in the first semester, and will be done in collaboration with Save the rhino (and perhaps GIN). We are still brainstorming themes and will start to plan this ASAP.

2. Go on a field trip to a clinic and do some painting - Hannah Duiker has told us about a clinic down near Kembu Farm that is in desperate need of painting. I thought it would be a good target to raise the funds to buy paints for this trip and then visit for a weekend. However, this still needs a bit of thinking over (in terms of logistics).

3. Carry out fundraisers - We will do bake sales and other fundraising events throughout the school year to buy new paints and supplies.

4. Manage the mural project with FOTA and usher for drama productions - This will be an ongoing task, ARTSCO distributing panels and arranging times for painting, etc. We will write small articles about each painting that is done (including the aim of the club, background on a local painter (if there is one involved), etc). This will promote awareness regarding ARTSCO and its goal within the ISK community.

However, our most recent undertaking is the PTO picnic. We have arranged some tables and will be doing a drawing game (called 'exquisite corpse'), jewellery making and a cupcake making stand. I will unfortunately not be here on this day, but Nidhi Ranjalkar is taking on a leadership role during this event.

Finally, ARTSCO is in need of a leadership board. We are holding elections next meeting for secretary, PR manager, vice president and treasurer. I hope that there will be a sufficient amount of applications and that ARTSCO will be able to thrive with their support.

CAS 2014-2015

Now a senior at ISK I have decided to cut down my clubs significantly. My place as the vice president of Save the Rhino and the president of ARTSCO mean that I will need to focus on devoting as much energy into my leadership roles as possible (as well as making time for my studies). However, I'm happy to say that I am going to embrace the opportunity to get involved in the extracurricular programs as much as possible during my last year here at ISK. Following is a list of the clubs that I have joined this school year:

- HeArts (service and creativity)
- ARTSCO (service and creativity)
- National Honor Society (service)
- Presidents Award (service, creativity and action)
- Swim team (action)
- Yoga (action)
- Save the Rhino (service)
- Round Square
- Spanish newspaper club
- Book club
- Piano lessons [done outside of school]

I am doing significantly less service this year and am embracing the things I love to do in my free time (reading, yoga, music, etc).

Quoting my goal from last year, over the course of this school year I will try to build on the eight learning outcomes of CAS:

1. Increased awareness of strengths and weaknesses - I know that I am not necessarily the most extroverted or confident public speaker, but my undertaking of two places as a club leader will help me to build on these weaker traits and develop the qualities that will aid me in the future. My passion, determination and creativity will, however, drive me to do the best that i can do.

2. Undertake new challenges - A challenge for me would be to become more confident and take on new and unique tasks within my two groups. I want to challenge the system and inspire enthusiasm and passion in the members of my clubs.

3. Plan and initiate activities - I have planned out the groups that I'm joining and will try to continue keeping myself organised and working with others to do this. I am going to create a schedule and a set of goals for the year, sticking to these and achieving my aims in a structured and clear manner.

4. Working collaboratively with others - I will aim to work well both with my ISK peers in the school groups I'm joining and outside campus with street children, rescue dogs, etc. I will do my best to be open and supportive as a leader, encouraging cooperation and trust.

5. Show perseverance and commitment in activities - I'm going to attend all meetings in my groups and try to tackle problems that arise (while at the same time finding confidence in myself and being more comfortable speaking out).

6. Engage with issues of global importance - My place in save the rhino, round square and HeArts will enable me to acknowledge and become more aware of global issues. The fact that we live in Kenya makes this less difficult as I recognise global issues each day as I go about my daily routine.

7. Consider the ethical implications of my actions - When we lead such privileged lives it's easy to forget the implications of our actions. CAS will hopefully keep reminding me of what's happening in the world today and how we should act around one another.

8. Develop new skills - CAS definitely exposes us to new experiences, therefore letting us gain more knowledge and experience in various areas. I am sure that challenges will arise in many of these activities and that I will grow as a person as I tackle them.

I will try and make time to do all of these activities, and I am very excited for this coming year of CAS.