Winter Camp 2018

On the first weekend of February the 2nd Caledonia Guides and the 1st New DundeeGuides, joined by 2 Pathfinders, 2 Rangers and 5 Guiders headed to Camp Teka for a weekend of winter fun. The theme for the weekend was Winter Olympics, and we also learned lots about guiding around the world! 

Friday night was spent getting to know each other, decorating name tags and making Patrol flags before heading outside for a game of Manhunt. Back inside, we had a Switzerland-themed snack of strawberries and bananas dipped in chocolate pudding and hot chocolate. The evening ended with a campfire, followed by putting out mattresses and getting ready for bed. 

Saturday started with breakfast from the UK (scrambled eggs, sausage, baked beans, fried ham and potatoes, and toast), followed by camp duties and free time. Later, each Patrol learned more about their World Centre and Guiding in that country and made a presentation. We chose Madagascar to represent Kusafiri as that is where the most recent event for that World Centre was held. Keeping with our Olympic theme, the girls were asked to suggest events that we could take part in, then each Patrol had to choose 3 events and suggest how we could run them at camp. More free time and free crafting followed - including some very elaborate hair-dos!

Lunch was brought to us by Mexico (tacos, followed by strawberries and cream). After lunch, we had camp duties and our fire drill. Most of the afternoon was spent outdoors taking part in our Olympic Games! We split the girls into two groups, with one group trying cross-country skiing, while the other went sledding and played games. Before switching, we played a game of snow soccer to get everyone warmed up. 
We came inside to a Korean snack of Hotteok (sweet pancakes) and hot chocolate. While dinner was being prepared, the girls had quiet and free time. Dinner was a feast from India (Rice, Stir-fried Vegetables, Chicken, Garlic Naan Bread). Dinner was also a monk's meal, where anyone who spoke lost their utensils and had to eat using a kitchen implement (i.e. spatula, potato masher, slotted spoon, chip clip, whisk).
The evening was spent with free time, cleaning up the craft area, playing games, and desert - chocolate cake iced as the World Flag!. Everyone was settled into bed earlier than Friday after a busy day.

Sunday morning went quickly, with breakfast, packing, clean-up and Guide's Own. 

Tekarama 10: Coast to Coast to Coast

This past weekend, 5 Guides and 1 Guider attended Tekarama 10: Coast to Coast to Coast with over 100 other Guides and Guiders, at Camp Teka in Paris. A huge THANK YOU to the organizing committee - we had a great time and will definitely go again!

On Friday night, we set up our tents and explored the camp as 4 of the girls had only been there in the winter. I also had the fun of introducing the girls to SWAPS and trading - something I love! Our first camp activity was to make Dreamcatchers, followed by a big campfire and snack. The campfire songs were suggested by the different units attending the camp and included Tall Trees, One Bottle of Pop, If I Were Not a Girl Guide, Get Loose, Mamma Don't Allow, Purple Stew and Black Socks. It was a bit of a late night as everyone was excited, but we were all eventually asleep.

Saturday started very early as the girls were up with the birds at 5.30AM - and were told by their very tired Guider to BE QUIET! The day officially started with Opening and Flag Raising, where the Patrols and Groups for the weekend were explained. All of the Guides and Guiders were divided up into 12 colour Patrols (my Patrol was light blue), and then the Patrols were grouped into 4 larger groups for the morning and afternoon activities. Patrols took part in activities together, ate together, and did camp duties together. We then all headed over to the Guide Kitchen and pavilions for breakfast (waffles with strawberries and whipped cream - yum!). After breakfast, each Patrol saw to their assigned camp duty - my Patrol were the "Lumberjacks" and had to gather wood for the campfire and lay the fire ready for Saturday night.

The four stations for the day were:
1. Central Canada
2. Atlantic Canada
3. Western Canada
4. Northern Canada

Groups did two activities, followed by lunch in the middle (tacos-in-a-bag!), and then the remaining two activities in the afternoon. It was a very hot weekend, and we all sought out spots in the shade as much as possible.

Western Canada
My group started our travels in Western Canada, where we took part in Roping, Racing, Milking, and Singing! For the first part of the session, the Guides were divided into 4 groups:

• Roping - Girls were given a lasso made from a loop of glowsticks attached to a rope and had to toss it over the head of a wooden horse
• Racing (1) - Girls rode pool noodle horses around a track of milk canisters
• Milking - Plastic gloves filled with water were attached to a pole laid across chairs, and the girls had to 'milk' them into a jar to see who could get the most liquid in 2 minutes
• Racing (2) - Girls split into two teams and used water pistols to move a plastic cup along a string - racing to see who could get their cup to the end first

We finished our time in the West by dividing the girls up into small groups and having them create songs using 6-7 words chosen from a hat.

Northern Canada
Heading North, our next stop was the Territories. Here, the girls gathered, washed and polished stones to make an Inukshuk. Once these were finished, we played a relay game on Canadian Symbols where a question was read out and girls had to run up, find the correct picture on a poster and then race back to their team.


Central Canada
After lunch, we headed south to explore Central Canada. here, the girls took part in a CN Tower trivia game (played like Four Corners) and completed to see which team could build the highest free-standing tower using only spaghetti, toothpicks and marshmallows.

Atlantic Canada 
Our final stop was Atlantic Canada, where we explored Newfie lingo, raced boats and learned new knots! For the first activity, the girls split up into smaller groups and each group had a sheet of Newfie phrases to try to match up with their meanings. Afterwards, we made boats and raced them in an inflatable pool, then moved onto tying knots to make Knot Boards to take home.

The afternoon ended with some free time, where everyone received a Canadian Atlas for Kids with activities, but were also free to nap, chat, swap, etc. Dinner was BBQ chicken with baked potatoes and Caesar salad, followed by cupcakes and ice cream to celebrate Canada's birthday.

Our evening activity was a Wide Game with nine stations where the girls learned something about a Province or Territory and did an activity. While moving between activities, we had to be careful not to get caught by a Sasquatch and sent to the penalty box! My group made it to Saskatchewan, where we played horseshoes; BC, where we learned about the Capilano Suspension Bridge and walked over a raised rope bridge; the Yukon, where we dug for gold; PEI, where we learned about Anne of Green Gables and talked in pairs about Canada and Girl Guides; and Ontario, where we peeled apples - seeing who could make the longest continuous peel!

We ended with Campfire, planned by one of the Patrols, and including Fire's Burning, One Bottle of Pop, Three Sharp-toothed Buzzards, There Was a Great Big Moose, Land of the Silver Birch, Say Why and Taps. Everyone settled down to sleep much more quickly tonight!

Sunday started at a much more reasonable hour than Saturday, but we still managed to get everyone packed and our tents down before opening and breakfast. Opening included flag raising and a short ceremony planned by one of the Patrols. Breakfast was leftovers, fruit, English muffins, cereal and oatmeal. After breakfast, each Patrol had a new duty to perform - my Patrol cleaned one side of the Lat Building, and then we all headed off to finish packing or for free time. Camp closed with a short Guides' Own Ceremony planned by two of the Patrols in the Reflection area at camp.

Winter Camp at Camp Teka

On the first weekend of February the 2nd Caledonia Guides and the 1st New Dundee Guides, joined by 2 Pathfinders, 2 Rangers and 4 Guiders headed to Camp Teka for a weekend of winter fun. The theme for the weekend was Performing Arts, but we also made lots of time for outdoor activities and completed the Alberta Camp Challenge Winter Segment.

On Friday evening, as the girls arrived, they decorated Warm Fuzzy Bags. They were then challenged to put a 'warm fuzzy' in very other girl's bag by the end of the weekend - a warm fuzzy is a nice message, picture, thank you, etc.

Our first craft was Masks. Each girl was given a mask to paint and decorate.While we waited for the paint to dry, we went outside for a Glow Stick Scavenger Hunt (over 40 glow sticks were hidden around the camp buildings and the Guides were divided into teams to find as many as they could!). We came back inside to a snack of oatmeal muffins and hot chocolate before finishing up our masks. The girls then played cards, talked, and crafted until bedtime.


Saturday morning got off to a good start with a pancake and sausage breakfast, followed by morning camp duties. Our first activity was Garbage Bag Skits. The girls divided into small groups and each group was given a garbage back with 8 random props. Their task was to create a skit using all of their group members and all of the props!


After the skits were performed, we headed outside for the rest of the morning. The 3rd Year Guides set out on a hike with one Guider and the 1st and 2nd Year Guides went off with two other Guiders. Both groups were challenged to use their senses while they walked and to look for signs of life in winter. The 1st and 2nd Year Guides had an unexpectedly adventurous hike when we ended up on the old rail line trail and had to climb over, under and around undergrowth, branches, and downed trees!


Returning to camp, we enjoyed tacos for lunch, followed by camp duties and free time. Later in the afternoon, the 3rd Year Guides headed out on another hike, and 4 younger Guides choose to stay inside and make simple marionette puppets while the remainder of the Guides went outside for some sledding. More free time was followed by a dinner of home-made pizza.

Our evening program started out with a series of drama games:

• Rag Doll Shake - In this activity, girls stand in a circle and relax one body part at a time (Head, neck, shoulders, elbows, wrists, arms, etc.). Once they have relaxed each body party, they flop forward at the waist with the arms and head hanging loosely.
• Moving Together - The whole group does this activity together. An instruction is given, and the group has to act it out. All instructions start with 'move as though you are moving through ...' and end with things such as a bowl of marbles, a roomful of feathers, a swamp of mosquitoes, a swimming pool of ice water, a bowl of lime jello.
• Without Your Voice - This activity challenges the girls to use their bodies to make short statements - no sounds or words allowed! Examples include: say "stop" with your palm, say "I don't understand" with your eyes, say "I smell fresh pie" with your tongue, say "I'm slipping" with your legs.
• Let's Pretend - Use your body to show how you would react if you were ... - stung by a bee, an elephant getting leaves from a tall tree, a cat following a mouse, leaping over a mud puddle
• Wax Candle Melt - We added Snowman as an option to this activity. Girls stood or sat in a relaxed position and imagined being a snowman or candle. They then acted out how they would melt.

After these games, it was time for our Art & Talent Show, which ended our program for the evening.

Sunday morning was busy as we packed, finished off the leftovers for breakfast, and cleaned the building. Our Pathfinders and Rangers planned and led a closing for us before every one went home.

Tall Trees

Land of the Silver Birch & My Paddle

Purple Stew

(Camp Likes & Dislikes)

Bananas

On My Honour

Barges

Daylight Taps

The discussion of what everyone liked and disliked about camp showed us that the girls loved the hikes and making new friends, followed closely by crafts, drama activities, and the food! Most girls would either change nothing about camp or add more "adventurous hikes"(!), while more crafts and more sleep were both suggested by others. 

December Camp 2016

On December 2nd, the Guides, Pathfinders and Rangers headed to Camp Teka in Paris for a weekend camp. We were joined by two Guiders and one Guide from the 1st New Dundee Guides, making our total numbers 11 Guides, 1 Pathfinder, 1 Ranger, and 4 Guiders. Our program was very relaxed, but we still managed to work on the Alberta Camp Challenge - Fall Segment, Camp-Out Emblem, Explore the Outdoors and Nature and the Outdoor Cooking Badge.

Once all the girls had arrived on Friday night, we sat down to decorate Warm Fuzzy bags. These are paper bags that the girls put their name on (and decorate) and leave on a table for the weekend. The challenge is for each girl to put something nice - a "warm fuzzy" - into the bag of every other girl over the course of the weekend. The bags also make a handy place to store drawings, activity sheets, friendship bracelets, crafts, etc. We reviewed the rules for the weekend, discussed how to stay safe at camp, why we do head counts, and what to do in the event of a fire. Snack was bagel cheese pizzas with veggies and dip. Afterwards, the girls spent the rest of the evening playing card games, drawing and colouring, and talking.

Saturday morning started late due to a late night beforehand, and we started the day off with a breakfast of waffles, fruit, scrambled eggs, blueberry muffins and yogurt. After breakfast, the girls tackled their camp chores - washing dishes, sweeping floors, wiping tables, replacing toilet paper rolls, etc, and then we were ready to move on to our program. We started the morning off with a craft - clothespin candle holders. We made ours with small round cardboard boxes from Michaels, clothespins, battery operated tealights and paint. They turned out very well - and apparently double as hats...

The remainder of the morning was spent building a massive chair and blanket fort in the middle of the room.

Before lunch, our Ranger and one Guider showed the girls how to make a box oven and how one works. They removed all of the old tinfoil and duct tape from the box and rebuilt it ready to use to make brownies!

Lunch involved outdoor cooking. The girls were sent off to find tinder, kindling and wood for our fire, practiced separating the wood (although it was a rather scattered woodpile...), lit the fire and kept it burning. They also learned how to operate and light a camp stove, which we used to cook Chicken Noodle Soup. Once the fire was burning well, everyone cooked hot dogs, and once it burnt down, we were able to toast marshmallows and make S'mores! After we finished eating, the box oven was set up to bake the brownies for after supper. We all cleaned up the cooking supplies, washed dishes, and went back inside for quiet time. The fort building continued, along with colouring, drawing, card games, and working on challenges. Later in the afternoon, our Ranger and one Guider took the majority of the girls on a hike before supper.

Supper was the ever-popular taco salad (tortilla chips, meat, lettuce, tomatoes, cheese, salsa and sour cream). The evening was spent with more activities chosen by the girls, and also an enrolment ceremony. We enrolled both our Pathfinder and Ranger into their respective branches by candlelight.

We had our "Worms and Dirt" (Brownies, chocolate pudding and gummy worms) as a nighttime snack, about 10pm, before getting ready for bed. Although we had bedding out and pyjamas on, it was closer to midnight before we actually went to bed!

Sunday morning was busy, with packing and cleaning. We had leftovers, fruit, chocolate chip muffin cake and toast for breakfast (who would have thought tacos for breakfast would be so popular?) Our Ranger and one Guider did camp evaluation while the other Guiders worked on checking off the cleaning tasks on the list so that we would all be ready to leave once all the girls had been picked up.