Thai Dance

Blue house performing their Thai dance

What was the activity?

Loy Kratong is a Thai festival celebrated every year. At our school we celebrated it on the 30th of October and it was a day filled with many Thai cultural shows, one of which I was a part of. I signed up for the inter house Thai dance competition which involved daily practices for a week leading up to our final performance.

What were my aims?

My aims were to develop my Thai dancing skills, step outside my comfort zone, to memorize all the dance moves, contribute my own ideas and help put on a good show.

There were eight people involved in this performance and we met every lunch time to practice our dance. After about two weeks of practicing we performed our dance on the 30th of October. On the day we had to first of all get ready which involved getting our hair and makeup done and getting dressed up in our traditional Thai outfits. We ended up coming 3rd place out of the four positions and even though we didn’t win we were all really happy because we knew we’d done our best. Overall I feel the activity was a success, everyone involved had to push themselves and learnt something new.

What did I do?

I took me a few rehearsals but eventually I learnt the whole dance off by heart. On the day of the performance I didn’t have to rely too much on looking at the other dancers in order to remember all the moves. I definitely feel that I stepped outside my comfort zone as I haven’t put on many dance performances in my life and definitely not Thai ones. I have only Thai danced a few times before so this was a big challenge for me. Since our final performance was quite a success I feel that I reached most of my goals successfully. One of my aims was to contribute my own ideas however this was something I struggled with as I have a very limited Thai dancing background. Next time I will try to have a little more input.

Were there any difficulties along the way?

During the first few rehearsals we had to design the actual dance which we struggled with a little bit but we managed to get a hold of a Thai dance DVD which helped us immensely. Another major problem we came across was that two of our dancers decided to drop out on the day of the performance. We had to solve this by finding two new dancers and teaching them all the moves in just a few hours. Fortunately they learnt the dance very fast so our performance was a success.

What did I achieve?

This dance allowed me to develop my creativity skills as I haven’t done much Thai dancing before. I also became more of a risk taker seeing as this was a new experience for me. Next time I come across a new and unfamiliar situation I will know that if I try my best I will be able to overcome the challenge.

Costume Design (Blood Brothers Senior Production)

The whole cast in their costumes

What was the activity?

This activity involved designing and organising costumes for the entire cast of the senior production Blood Brothers. It was an ongoing activity which I have been working on since last half term. All this work led up to two final performances at the beginning of December which were a huge success.

What were my main aims?

My goals and objectives were to design costumes for every single member of the cast, to develop my creativity skills and to neatly organize all the costumes the drama department already owns. The two performances of the play were very successful and everyone was wearing appropriate costumes. No one was missing any of their clothes and they were all neatly hung on a rack with labels, therefore I feel that I managed to meet my objectives successfully.

What did I do?

During this project I was working with Eline and Ms. Redler who were also part of the costume design team. The first thing we did was collect design ideas from all cast members depicting what they wanted their costumes to look like. We did this by sitting down with them, posing questions and asking them to draw a design idea on a piece of paper we handed out to them. As a member of the costume design team I have been attending all the rehearsals, researched into attire appropriate for this play and I have watched a version of the play done in England. On the nights of the performances Eline and I made sure no one’s costumes were missing and that everything was in place. We were also asked to help out with microphones. This was a new experience as I had never been involved in the technical aspects of plays before.

Were there any problems along the way?

There were admittedly quite a few difficulties which we encountered during this project. Firstly not all the costumes we needed were available in the drama department. This was quite an easy fix though as we hired a tailor to come into school and sew us some costumes. Also when we were checking all the costumes the weekend before the play we realized that some of the clothes which the actors had picked out for themselves weren’t in period or appropriate for the play. We solved this problem by searching through pre-existing costumes in the drama department. On the night of the play Eline and I found out that we would also be helping out with microphones as well as costumes. During the second performance of the play one of the lead actresses was having a problem with her microphone as it simply wasn’t working. We quickly swapped her batteries between scenes but unfortunately it still didn’t work. We finally managed to solve the problem though by using a microphone from one of the minor characters who didn’t really need it. As we were solving these problems I learnt that in stressful situations such as these one just needs to remain calm and communicate with the people around you. It is much easier to fix situations when you work as a team.

What have I learnt?

I have learnt that preparing for a play requires a lot of time and effort, even if you are just helping out backstage. I now have a new found respect for people involved in plays as I’ve realized they aren’t very easy to organize. I have also been able to work on my communicative skills while discussing costume designs etc. with the cast. If I ever get involved in working backstage in a play again, I will know that before you get started you need to do some research to get background information on the play. I also now know how to arrange and design costumes.

Round Square Conference 2010 Steering Committee Meetings

What does the activity involve?

This activity involves meeting with 15 other committee members twice a week to discuss and prepare for the 2010 Round Square Conference which we will be hosting at the Regents. I am the secretary of this committee so as well as sharing ideas I will also be taking notes on all important matters we discuss. This is an ongoing activity which I will be involved in up until October of 2010 when the conference is being held.

The official logo design by Pau yr 11

What were my aims?

My objectives for this activity are to get actively involved in the discussions which we have at these meetings. I hope to become more confident by sharing my ideas with everyone else. As well as this I hope to take good notes during our discussions and then send them out via email to everyone as soon as possible after the meeting is over.

What did I do?

This activity has not yet ended but so far we have already gotten a lot done. The latest project we completed was preparing for a performance which 8 of our members would be performing in India. This was a huge success and we got a lot of positive feedback from the audience. Recently we launched a website for our conference and we have also created a countdown board at our school. We have also met with all our keynote speakers that are attending our conference next year. Another idea we had was to divide our committee up into smaller sub committees which we have now done. This way we can all focus on certain, more specific aspects of the conference. The main thing we have done is agreed upon the theme We Walk Together and we launched a logo competition and picked the winner.

The whole committee

Did I achieve all my goals?

Since this activity is not yet over I have not reached all my goals. I have though been getting involved in our discussions by sharing my ideas and I hope to continue to do so at the rest of our meetings. I have taken notes at all our meetings however some of them I sent out a little late. For next term I hope to get all the notes sent out on time.

Were there any problems encountered along the way?

So far the main challenge we’ve come across was preparing for our performance in India. We had a lot of ideas but the problem was putting everything together into a 15 minute long performance. We decided that in order to get it done we needed to assign people specific tasks. Some people were in charge of the presentation and others worked on the Thai dance. We learnt that delegating tasks ended up being a very wise and successful decision. Everything got done much faster and people were less stressed. We are definitely going to use this strategy in the future.

What have I learnt?

So far I have learnt that the best way to run these meetings are to have a leader to run them so that not everyone is speaking at once. This is useful because I can apply it to any future meetings I have e.g. during barazza sessions which we have a lot at our school. I have also learnt that the best way to take notes during these meetings is to quickly scribble them down as they are being discussed and then to type them up neatly once I get home.

Check out our website: http://www.rs-wewalktogether.org/

Check out our India presentation: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M83W38m_zis

Pattaya Players Halloween Event

Painting kids' faces

What was the activity?

For this activity I had to help out at the annual Pattaya Players Halloween Event. I mainly helped out with the setting up of the area and was in charge of the face painting stall.

What were my aims?

My objectives were to help in making this event as successful as possible, help raise a lot of money for charity, make this event as enjoyable as possible for the participants and develop my face painting skills.

What did I do?

Throughout the evening a lot of people came by dressed up in costumes and everyone actively participated in the events available. Many kids came forward to the face painting table and were extremely happy when they got their faces painted. I can therefore say that I successfully managed to raise a sufficient amount of money for charity and helped in making some kids very happy, thus reaching my objectives.

Were there any problems along the way?

Seeing as I had never face painted before, the biggest difficulty I encountered was to overcome this problem. We had no pictures to work or get ideas from and because we were working at night, the amount of light available to us was far too little. We had to overcome these problems by resorting to two small flashlights and by making up different designs to paint off the top of our heads. At first I was a little nervous as I was scared the children wouldn’t be satisfied with the outcome, however throughout the night my designs were definitely improving and so was the popularity of the face painting stall. There was also an issue with language since a large number of children were Thai and found it difficult to describe to us what the designs they wanted. Luckily I had come across a similar situation before during the Croston House walk (described in paragraph of Croston House Prep and Walk) and thanks to this I was able to overcome the difficulty through the use of hand gestures.

What have I learnt?

I now know that if I ever am unfamiliar with a certain situation I should not panic and do my best to work with the resources which are available to me.

Koh Phi Phi Tsunami Relief Project

What did the activity involve?

During midterm break I went with 15 other student to Koh Phi Phi along with Cobham Hall (a school from England) to continue construction on a community centre for the local Sea Gypsy Village.

Some of us on the building site

What were my aims?

My objectives for the week were to put 100% effort into the work I was doing and to feel that I really helped make a difference in the lives of the local people. I also hoped to meet and interact with the students from Cobham Hall.During the week we were on the island we had to transport heavy sand bags, concrete blocks and pieces of wood from the beach up to the building site which was quite a long distance away. Once we’d finished moving all the materials we had to bend and tie metal wires together to create a foundation for the second floor of the building. All this work required a lot of physical effort and I therefore definitely feel that I tried my hardest and contributed to the construction of this community centre. Our aching muscles at the end of the week represented a sense of achievement. The tasks we carried out required a lot of team work and so during this time everyone was able to interact and meet with new people from the other school which had been one of my goals.

Me tying wires together

Were there any problems encountered along the way?

All the work during the week was very difficult as we were carrying heavy loads in very hot and sunny conditions. But since we were working as a team everyone felt that they had to try their best as to not let the rest of us down. Also since the building we were making wasn’t for us, but for people who really need it we all felt determined to try our very best.

All our new friends from Cobham Hall!

What have I learnt?

I thought the activity was a great learning experience and it truly meant a lot to me to be able to give back to my local community. We got to see the conditions that the locals lived in and it made me realize how lucky we really are. I have learnt to be more thankful for what I have as there are many people out there that are less fortunate than us.

A newspaper article about the project: http://news.bbc.co.uk/local/kent/hi/front_page/newsid_8401000/8401700.stm

Koh Chang Adventure

A couple friends and I playing volleyball in the IDEALS center pool

What was the activity?

The Koh Chang Adventure involved spending three days at the school’s IDEALS centre on an island with all other IB students. We participated in various adventure activities throughout the week.

What were my aims?

My objectives for these three days were to step outside my comfort zone and to participate in at least one activity which I had never done before. I also wanted to participate in team building activities so I could get to know everyone better.

How did I attempt to achieve all of my goals?

While away on Koh Chang I did manage to meet all the objectives I had set for myself. I participated in a four hour trek which led straight through the jungles of Koh Chang to a small deserted beach. While we were trekking we had to cross muddy, rocky uneven terrain as well as several wide rivers with powerful currents. By the end of the journey all our legs were aching. There were times when I wasn’t sure if I’d be able to finish or not but all the support from my friends kept me going. Seeing as I had never done anything like this before I feel I can safely say I managed to step outside my comfort zone and push myself to the limit. I definitely took some risks during this trip and they all paid off. There were many games taking place at the centre which left time for team building so I feel that I managed to reach that goal too.

Why is it adventure?

This was my 5th year back to Koh Chang and once again my expectations weren’t let down. I thought the trip over all was a very valuable experience and everyday a new challenge awaited. All the adventurous activities really challenged all of us physically. Everyone also got to mingle with each other and meet new people so I think the whole team felt the experience was a success.

What have I learnt?

From this activity I learnt that if I really put my mind to something I can overcome a challenge. Such was the case with the jungle trek which at first seemed as though it was going to be too much of a challenge for me. Thanks to my determination and the support of my friends I was able to complete the trek and actually enjoyed the experience. Next time I am faced with a similar challenge I will know not to give up so easily and have more faith in myself.

Find out more about the IDEALS centre: http://www.ideals-centre.com/Welcome.html

Croston House Prep and Walk

What was the activity?

The Croston House Walk is a 15km sponsored walk where all the funds go towards the children at the Croston House. I participated in both the preparation for this event and in the actual walk itself.

Me on the walk!

What were my aims?

My objectives were to sell at least 30 t-shirts in the short amount of time we had, to get as many sponsors as possible, to spend time getting to know the Croston House kids and to help in making this event as successful as possible.

Some Regent's students on the walk

What did I do?

For the preparation I attended all the meetings where I managed to put forward my ideas for the event. I also stuck up posters around the school to advertise the walk and sold t-shirts at school during lunch times. On the day of the walk I had the chance to meet with all the kids and look after them for a while before the event commenced. Throughout the day I was given the task of looking after one of the girls from the Croston House and walk with her for the full 15km.
By the end of the day most people that signed up managed to complete the walk and all funds are now in the process of being collected. We managed to create a successful event in which many of our students participated. Personally from this experience I feel that I did contribute to the occasion as I helped fundraise and advertise. I also found time to mingle with the kids which was something I was really looking forward to. Seeing as I did manage to sell well over 30 t-shirts and collected a large amount of sponsorship money I feel I was very successful in reaching my goals.

Mr. Croston speaking to all our students before the walk

Were there any problems encountered along the way?

While I was looking after the Croston House kids I was a little nervous at first because I know very little Thai and they didn’t really know how to speak English. Even though there was this language difficulty, we did manage to communicate in other ways which has increased my confidence level immensely.

What have I gained?

I personally thought this was a very successful event as the whole school managed to raise a lot of money for a good cause and because everyone seemed to enjoy themselves on the day, including the children from the Croston House. Seeing the smiles on the kids faces really made all the hard work worth it and I will definitely be participating again next year. From the minor difficulty I came across during the walk I have learnt that two people don’t always need to speak the same language in order to communicate and that if there is a will there is a way. Next time I come across a similar problem I will know not to panic and I will feel more comfortable when I speak to people that I have never met before.

Find out more about Croston House: http://www.crostonhousechildrenshomethailand.org/