Camper

Community Help

I helped to plant a tree in Canberra during one of my camps

Trees contribute to their environment by providing oxygen, improving air quality, climate amelioration, conserving water, preserving soil, and supporting wildlife. During the process of photosynthesis, trees take in carbon dioxide and produce the oxygen we breathe. According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, "One acre of forest absorbs six tons of carbon dioxide and puts out four tons of oxygen. This is enough to meet the annual needs of 18 people." Trees, shrubs and turf also filter air by removing dust and absorbing other pollutants like carbon monoxide, sulfur dioxide and nitrogen dioxide. After trees intercept unhealthy particles, rain washes them to the ground.

Trees control climate by moderating the effects of the sun, rain and wind. Leaves absorb and filter the sun's radiant energy, keeping things cool in summer. Trees also preserve warmth by providing a screen from harsh wind. In addition to influencing wind speed and direction, they shield us from the downfall of rain, sleet and hail. Trees also lower the air temperature and reduce the heat intensity of the greenhouse effect by maintaining low levels of carbon dioxide.

Both above and below ground, trees are essential to the eco-systems in which they reside. Far reaching roots hold soil in place and fight erosion. Trees absorb and store rainwater which reduce runoff and sediment deposit after storms. This helps the ground water supply recharge, prevents the transport of chemicals into streams and prevents flooding. Fallen leaves make excellent compost that enriches soil.

Many animals, including elephants, koalas and giraffes eat leaves for nourishment. Flowers are eaten by monkeys, and nectar is a favorite of birds, bats and many insects. Animals also eat much of the same fruit that we enjoy This process helps disperse seeds over great distances. Of course, hundreds of living creatures call trees their home. Leaf-covered branches keep many animals, such as birds and squirrels, out of the reach of predators. As Such they are very important in our community.

Camp Reflection

Learning Objectives

• Never underestimate your impact on the main picture. Everyone in the team has a role to play that will ultimately affect the end result.
• Something impossible on your own can be done by many people.
• You may not understand the big picture but others (your leaders) will, so when they give you a command or a job don’t question them, instead just do whatever you are told to do.
• A team is made out of people who are imperfect. Everyone has a weakness.
• However, these weaknesses can be covered by the other team members strengths.

The part that I enjoyed the most was the Laser Tag. The strategy as demonstrated by the Service scouts is to go in a group. that way you increase the percentage of taking down an opponent. One thing I am not pleased with about this activity is that some of the cubscouts cheat in a sense that they hide the laser dector. I find that this is very un sportsman like of them to resort to such matters in order to win.  

STC Reflection

There are three main styles of leading: autocratic, democratic and laissez-fair.

Autocratic

Authoritarian leaders, also known as autocratic leaders, provide clear expectations for what needs to be done, when it should be done, and how it should be done. There is also a clear division between the leader and the followers. Authoritarian leaders make decisions independently with little or no input from the rest of the group.Abuse of this style is usually viewed as controlling, bossy, and dictatorial.
Authoritarian leadership is best applied to situations where there is little time for group decision-making or where the leader is the most knowledgeable member of the group.

Democratic

Participative leadership, also known as democratic leadership, is generally the most effective leadership style. Democratic leaders offer guidance to group members, but they also participate in the group and allow input from other group members. In Lewin’s study, children in this group were less productive than the members of the authoritarian group, but their contributions were of a much higher quality.
Participative leaders encourage group members to participate, but retain the final say over the decision-making process. Group members feel engaged in the process and are more motivated and creative.

Delegative (Laissez-Faire) Leadership

 

People under delegative leadership, also known as laissez-fair leadership, were the least productive of all three groups. The people in this group also made more demands on the leader, showed little cooperation and were unable to work independently.
Delegative leaders offer little or no guidance to group members and leave decision-making up to group members. While this style can be effective in situations where group members are highly qualified in an area of expertise, it often leads to poorly defined roles and a lack of motivation.

Communication

 

Communication is important when leading as it allows us to give our commands clearly and for our audience to clearly understand what we are saying.

 

When giving a command, make sure that what you say is clear and distinct so that your audience can follow the command with ease. If you are giving directions, give them specifically( like turn left ), and not just things like “Over there”

 

Calm Down

 

 We must keep a cool head when we are leading. If we are angry, we will let our emotions influence us and cause us to make the wrong decision. Furthermore, when we are at our burting point, unpleasant things will appear, so we must calm down when leading.

 

Ways to Calm Down

 

1)      Take a time out. Just take a few minutes to yourself to calm down. Get away from the thing or person that is making you mad.

2)      Breathe in and out. Take a few deep breaths and think of clam waters or something along that line.

3)      Walk away. Walk away from the thing or person. Being around them will not help.

4)      Avoid your first impulse. As mentioned earlier on, anger will cause you to make the wrong decicion , so do not do whatever first comes to your mind when you are mad. It will most proabably worsen the situation.

 

Gang Show

 

My group was quite unco-operative when it came to the planning of the gameshow. I am not sure whether it was whether the group leaders were leading the wrong way by shouting a lot and not listening to the rest of us. Or is it that the rest of us were just overly impatient and made a lot of noise thus creating a need for the leaders to shout and as no one liked being bossed around, no one listened to the orders given.

The leaders in this case were autocratic.

Outdoor cooking

We cooked our meal using a natural fuel. The hardest part was lighting up the fuel. The service scouts used matches to light it which had two flaws. 1) The flame of the match was weak 2) The wind kept blowing so the matches kept going out. They should have used a lighter but we have to work with what we were given despite the fact that it was just wasting the matches.

Once the water was boiling, you added the instant noodles into the water and allow it to cook. Once the noodles has softened, you added the seasoning and wait until the flame goes out. Then you can enjoy your bowl of instant noodles.

Shelter Building

Basha

A basha tent is a tent made from a single piece of rectangle plastic material, usually groundsheets, but ponchos also work fine. This type of tent is good due to its minimum weight and the multi-function capacity of the plastic sheet.

Part 1 of 3: Setting up the groundsheet

1

Lay out the groundsheet, unfolded. This will allow you to determine the correct placement of the poles.

2

Spread out the basha where you intend to pitch it up. You would want to position the groundsheet such that the length of the groundsheet is the length of your tent (as shown in picture).

Part 2 of 3: Placing the poles and string

1

Once you have done that, set up the two gadget poles and tie a string across. To set up the two gadget poles, you could either mallet them down and/or secure them to pegs pulling in opposite directions. You could set the string across higher up or lower down depending on how waterproof you want you tent to be and how easy easy it will be to move in and out of it.

• It is better to set up the basha between two trees, as they tend to be more secure than gadget poles.

Part 3 of 3: Putting up the tent

1

Pull the opposite corners first.

2

Spread the groundsheet over the middle line. Tie the four corners to the string and peg in the four corners. Pull the guy-lines tight.

3

Pull on diagonally opposite sides together for best tension (as shown in picture). Having the guy lines go away from the basha at around 45 degrees is best.

4

Adjust the corners till the tent is taut and well spread.

5

Adjust all four corners one at a time until the groundsheet is taut and evenly spread out.

6

Put a groundsheet in the middle and your shelter is complete.

Astronomer

Athlete