International – Phase 3

Phase 3 of an octant is a long-term commitment and should take at least 30 hours, can include gaining a qualification or teaching something to others. I used my phase 3 as an opportunity to gain another Girlguiding award…

Phase 3: Commonwealth Award

As my final year in Senior Section I hoped to complete the Commonwealth Award before it was too late.

I began in September 2014 by creating a PowerPoint presentation on the History of Guiding. This was a fun unit to work on. I bought a couple of books on Guiding, including the Centenary ‘Something for the Girls’ book, ‘How The Girl Guides Won The War’ and a Brownie Handbook from 1931. These resources, along with accounts on the internet, went into my work. I really enjoyed discovering more about the history of our organisation.

Next I looked at the Commonwealth. I practised remembering all 53 countries with help of website sporcle.com, drew up on a map of each continent where each country lies and learned a little more on the timeline.

For my chosen country to learn more about I picked South Africa. While I have family in other Commonwealth countries and previous knowledge of other Commonwealth countries I decided on South Africa as this would be completely knew to me. I made a page of scenic photos, culture photos, local crafts, and recipes on Pinterest to collect my ideas together. I then studied the cultures and religions, a day in the life of its people and guiding in South Africa.

For the practical element I first decided to look at beadcraft from South Africa and found lots of images of the types of jewellery made. I then created my own beadwork bracelets. I also wanted to try a dish from South Africa so tried cooking Bobotie. It wasn’t something I had ever tried eating before so couldn’t be sure it turned out as it should, but it looked like the images and tasted really nice!

For my community action I continued my work with Post Pals. I chose this as I feel passionate about sharing happiness with those that might need it, and it is an action that I could fit into my busy weekly schedule.

For the two optional units I chose ‘Fit For Life’ and ‘Investigation’. I studied Yoga, starting with the theory behind it and completing Yoga 101 through Universal Class. I then tried out some online sessions to practice the asanas. I then investigated the education and conservation work of three local zoos, visited two of them to see the work in action and compared what they do the United Nations Environment Programme.

I enjoyed working on the Commonwealth Award and found some new hobbies and interests to pursue. I think my favourite aspect was learning more about Guiding, but I also found that Yoga is something I want to continue on a regular basis and hope to find a class on a weekend morning.