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Leadership Camp 2003

For the newly elected, excited leadership team, the School Council and House Captains, as well as an enthusiastic staff, Rocklands Adventure Centre in Simonstown, with its spectacular sea and mountain views, provided an ideal inspirational setting for the brainstorming and team building that took place in order to lay the foundations for a successful year of change.

Before departing for Rocklands at noon on Monday, 13 October, Mrs Harding gave the School Council a glimpse of what was to come with an icebreaker which involved passing oranges from neck to neck without the aid of hands! This prompted the first of many bouts of uncontrollable laughter!

We then took part in an interactive lesson on leadership where the laws of leadership were discussed, the last of which succeeded in leaving a lasting impression in my mind: the law of victory, to which, Mrs Harding emphasized, there is no alternative. By the end of the discussion it was clear that our leadership team is abounding in determination! (A rather unconventional addition to these laws was Abbey’s law of smarties, which states that one of each colour in the box should be saved until the end, when they are then eaten in order of favourites, ranging from least favourite to most favourite – ask Abbey.)

When the scenic drive to Rocklands came to an end and the house of almost every relative of each School Council member had been pointed out, we arrived at Rocklands and were later joined by Mrs McEwen. After many intense discussions and much planning, we enjoyed a braai followed by roasted marshmallows on Marie biscuits for pudding, another one of those special things
associated with a camp.

After an enjoyable and much appreciated outing to The Meeting Place in Simonstown for coffee, we were joined by the Heads of Houses followed by their respective house coordinators. Ms Lawrence then lead an energised discussion about the roles of the Heads of Houses and zealous renditions of High School cheerleading by Mrs Freed, the girls jumped on the trampoline, did some spectacular whale- watching, chatted, took loads of fun photos with the school’s stunning new digital camera and generally got to know each other better.

A delicious meal, defying all myths of unpalatable “camp food” was enjoyed on Tuesday evening, compliments of Mrs Cartmel and her committee from the school tuck shop.

A motivated team of focused new leaders with a little more insight into the skills required to be an effective leader returned to school on Wednesday ready to begin their term of office. Ms McCallum kindly sacrificed her break time in order to give us a crash course on public speaking, a vital skill in leadership, before Mr Burrell concluded the camp.

The School Council and Heads of Houses would like to thank Mrs Harding, Mrs McEwen, Mr Burrell and the many other committed staff members who gave of their time and energy and imparted knowledge in an attempt to equip us for the year to come. We are grateful for such enthusiastic support and hope that we use these skills wisely and succeed in making a difference and laying a foundation for a dynamic and effective leadership system.

Snaps for the camp!

Jessica Groenewald

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This page was last updated on 25 October 2003 06:11