Final CAS reflection

My time in IB has come to an end, and so has my CAS experience. Those two years influenced my life, my personality and skills in ways I did not expect. Now I am going to sum up this experience and describe how CAS helped me to develop myself as the IB learner.

During the course I have undertaken numerous activities. For Creativity I was drawing and organizing art classes (as my CAS group project) concerning three techniques: origami, quilling and decoupage. Also I have decided to continue preparing ornaments with quilling technique on my own. I fulfilled the Activity part mainly by attending tennis trainings, iceskating during the winter and by rollerskating. For Service I wrote letters with Amnesty International, I collected money for Great Orchestra of Christmas Charity and for the main part of my Service hours I was a volunteer in Guardian Angels' Charity. Initially, I helped children at the Charity with their homework, but later my cooperation with them expanded and resulted in art classes for kids (group project), summer trip and help with gingerbread cookies sale.

CAS was a great opportunity for me to increase awareness of my strengths and areas for growth. I managed to do that during the most of the activities I undertook. My tennis trainings helped me to notice my strengths and weaknesses, to appreciate them and work on them. I can say the same for iceskating and rollerskating, drawing, quilling or helping with homework at Guardian Angels' Charity. Thanks to those activities I got to know my character better, I understood what I am capable of, what my abilities are and in what ways can I improve them. In a way, it was the chance for me to improve myself as an inquirer – apart from inquiring about the world around me I learned more about my personality.

It also gave me the chance to undertake new challenges. The activities that I was doing for the first time were the most challenging, including tennis, rollerskating, working with children at Guardian Angels' Charity and most of all the organisation of art classes for my CAS group project. The challenges that I experienced connected with Activity only required overcoming the fear of falling down or overcoming the limitations of my body, but the CAS group project demanded from me the whole set of skills I did not have before, since I have never organised anything until now. But as with most challenges, it turned out not to be so scary and difficult as I thought it would be. This learning outcome required of me as of an IB student to show that I am risk-taking.

I have planned and initiated an activity which was one of the most important parts of CAS for me, and had the most influence on me: art classes for CAS group project. The idea came from me and my two class mates, and the series of lessons where fully planned, organised and performed by the three of us with the guidance and support of the workers from Guardian Angels' Charity. I am extremelly thankfull to them for their valuable clues, for the help we received and the atmosphere they created, which made the whole action an absolute pleasure.

For the part of my CAS activities I had to work collaborativelly with others. I have managed to do that successfully during my tennis classes when I had to cooperate with my team, during the volunteering in Guardian Angels' Charity – on the field trip or during doing homework, and mainly during CAS group project. Those events have shown me how important the good team work is. Everything seems to be so much easier when there is a great cooperation between people. It helped me to become a communicator and to be open-minded. Without those traits the cooperation would not be possible.

Once again CAS project has given me the opportunity to show perseverance and commitment, as without them the whole action would not have taken place. Also my entire collaboration with Guardian Angels' Charity has allowed me to develop those traits, since I managed to volunteer there regularly almost every week and later on, to engage myself more in their work i.e. by helping them during the summer field trip with kids. The time I spent working with children has made me more principled then I was before, since I felt that I need to set the example and to be the person they can trust.

One of the greatest things about CAS is that it allows to engage with issues of global importance; the issues that we would not normally be interested in. Activities like writing letters with Amnesty International or raising money for Great Orchestra of Christmas Charity have given me the chance to be a part of the fight for human rights and for decent healthcare for the children and the elderly. It was my opportunity to show that I am a caring IB student, involved and interested in the world around me.

CAS has also helped me to consider ethical implications of my actions, mainly during my volunteer work at Guardian Angels' Charity, raising money for Great Orchestra of Christmas Charity and writing letters with Amnesty International. It has mainly involved considering different points of view of people, e.g. Great Orchestra of Christmas Charity is perceived in two very different ways, and I had to consider if I am helping the people in need of health care or the people who organises this event to gain more money for themselves. Events like this have required of me to be a thinker and to acknowledge both sides of various issues.

CAS is also a great occasion to develop new skills. Most of the actions I took part in have allowed me to develop skills, either physical or social. The most enjoyable skill I have gained is the iceskating, while the most important is the skill I obtained during the organisation of art classes. All the skills and knowledge I posses now thanks to CAS is valuable and I am extremelly happy I had the opportunity to obtain it. The range of disciplines that I was striving to be good at and that I learned things about has made me more knowledgeable than before.

Managing all those activities along with learning and writing essays was really difficult for me but I think that it has made me at least a little more balanced – I am capable of managing my time and coping with difficulties to a greater extent than I used to. In addition, writing CAS reflections has made me think about my experiences from different perspectives – it made me a much more reflective person.

For me, CAS had the strongest influence on the way I perceive the world, the situations I encounter and people I meet. Before the IB Diploma I have not observed the world with such an open mind as I do now. The participation in numerous events have broadened my way of thinking and taught me to consider a lot more sides of the story than I used to. It will certainly bring me many benefits in my future life and it will help me avoid unpleasant misunderstandings and conflicts.

The thing I am proud of is my involvement in the Guardian Angels' Charity. I feel like I have done a great job helping them. Also they have taught me so much and I have met so many incredible people that I think both me and them benefti to the same extent. I really enjoyed my time there and I know I will keep coming back to them even after I finish IB Diploma.

The one thing I regret is that I did not continue my tennis trainings. I could transfer to a place closer to my home and maybe find someone who would make it more challenging, but I just gave it up. I chose the easier way and I am not proud of it. I hope that this can teach me to pursue my interests, because otherwise I could be dissapointed with myself.

Generally, I feel like CAS has brought me only benefits, developed my personality and my understanding of the world. CAS was a huge part of the most challanging two years of my life so far and I hope that the experience I have gained through this will help me in the future.

Quilling

Group project I have organised with my classmates have made me appreciate forms of handmade art – I have always admired them but haven't considered creating them. As I focused more and more on our lessons I found it enjoyable to create ornaments from i.e. scraps of paper; it calmed me down and I felt relaxed during this activity. As a highschool senior and IB student I have been subjected to a lot of stress in previous months, so this kind of relaxation during which I could ease my mind from constant stress, focus only on pieces of paper in my hands and think of nothing was really helpful. That is why, after my quilling classes, I have decided to engage in this activity myself.

Since I have gained a little experience before and during my classes I knew what I was supposed to do. To begin, I have found pictures of ornaments I liked and tried to creat similar shapes.

It is incredible how with paper straps, glue and a few moves of the wrists one can quickly create complex looking ornaments. The best thing about quilling is that you do not have to be constantly focused on what you are doing. I could watch a movie or talk with somebody and in the same time create a great amount of colourful spirals which then were to be parts of snowflakes, stars, flowers and many other interesting shapes.

Despite the good and easy things about quilling I have also encountered some difficulties. Rolling straps of paper into spirals is just the initial part of creating an ornament. Then I have to fold them so they resemble various shapes and connect them together to finish my work. At the beginning it was difficult for me to do some of the folds and it has taken some time after I managed to make them each time properly. Also I need to make sure that the spirals are of similar size if I need to create ornaments with repeated shapes. When I started to use quilling I often forgot to control the size of the spirals and then I was not able to construct a decoration resembling the one from the picture. But with time and with more created ornaments I rarely make these kind of mistakes.

Despite the relaxing effect of quilling on me unfortunately I was not able to focus on this activity recently. Now I hope to return to it and entertain myself with creating ornaments more often.

Learning outcomes:

- Increased awareness of strengths and areas for growth

CAS group project - one class more

In this school year me, Marta and Kinga decided to organise additional art classes for children from Guardian Angels Charity as an extention of our CAS group project. We decided to use one of previously introduced techniques but to give our classes a theme. In the end we chose to organise origami classes connected with Christmas. They were led by Kinga, since she also was the leader of the previous origami classes. We helped children to make beautiful stars which they could take with them and decorate their houses with them.

The shapes Kinga introduced to children were a bit more difficult than ones she used on the previous lesson, so it was a bigger challenge for children to fold them properly. It has led to the same problem as before: children were discouraged easily as they could not achieve the same shape as the rest of the group or their stars were crooked. During the classes I observed the differences between individual children, their skills and attitude towards their work. Even though they were all in the similar age, some of them coped with the task better, some worse than the others. It shows how each child is unique and develops with its own speed. To even out those differences and encourage each of them (so that no one would feel worse) we would help those who had some problems but also pay attention to those who managed on their own. We would compliment each person similarly, we would point out how well colours they chose work together. I think we managed to keep their spirits and to convince them not to give up if something goes wrong.

The different speed of work brought one more difficulty; children who already finished their stars were getting bored and were making things a little more chaotic as we were focused on those who needed more help. They were getting noisy and interrupted us since they wanted to draw our attention to them. Fortunately we managed to make them wait for their turn and to wait for others to reach the same moment as them.

Comparing these classes to our very first lesson I think that we did a great job. I noticed that I definitely improved as a tutor. I gained more confidence and was able to control children more than before. I was no longer afraid that they will not listen to me; I perceive this as my biggest success during this project, since it was my biggest fear when we first started. Thanks to these art classes I learned how to organise and coordinate such events, also how to keep children entertained but at the same time well-behaved. These skills will definitely help me in the future, i.e. if I will have to watch after kids and spent time with them.

Learing outcomes:

- Developed new skills

- Increased awareness of strengths and areas for growth

- Working collaboratively with others

- Showing perseverance and commitment

Christmas time volunteering

Me and my colleagues grew more and more connected with Guardian Angels Charity. Our weekly visits and our art project strengthened our cooperation with the Charity, encouraging them to ask us to perform certain additional tasks apart from just doing homework with children.

As they were impressed with our work connected with decoupage, they asked us to help them in money raising and to prepare some christmas-themed decorations using that technique so they could sell them. They provided us with bunch of resources, glues, paints, pieces of wood and napkins required to create pretty christmas decorations.

It has reminded me of the times of childhood when I used to prepare my own christmas ornaments with my parents: I used to make white paper snowflakes, colourfull chains, I painted angels and created small Nativity scenes out of a box and colourfull pieces of paper. I recall that when the end of December was coming my room used to be covered with them. Hand-made decorations have some kind of spirit in them, as they require my time and commitment but also because they give some sort of sense of fulfillment and pride that I have skills good enough for ornaments to look pretty. Now I had a chance to experience these feelings once again as I was working on my decorations.

Decoupage seems to be a complicated technique, but once someone gets a little experience it becomes really easy to master it. The results look amazing with minimal effort, which is encouraging. As for me, its only disadvantage is that it is very time consuming. Fortunately I did not have to work alone. We created decorations in the group of 3 – thanks to this collaboration we saved ourselves a lot of time and trouble, as one of us has much greater experience with this technique than the rest and without her we would have spoiled some pieces irreversibly. Also we know each other quite well and I think it has contributed to the fact that we worked good as a team. The cooperation is always easier when we have to cooperate with people we like and we are familiar with. But one has to be carefull when working with friends rather than with strangers, as there is the danger that you will focus more on the conversation, having fun and spending time with them than on the actual task that you undertook!

Workers in Guardian Angels Charity loved our decorations and were extremelly greatful for our commitment. It was very nice to hear about their sincere gratitude for our voluntary work. I felt really appreciated; I think that it is one of the most important feelings in life. If we know that our work is appreciated we have the sense that our actions are not pointless and have an aim.

Since they saw our commitment and the fact that we are eager to help we were also asked to engage our class in baking gingerbread cookies. Each year during Christmas GAC organizes several events during which volunteers sell great deal of cookies. This year me and 9 other students from my class decided to help them and provide them with some.

I engaged with this activity with pleasure, since baking gingerbread cookies at Christmas is one of my favourite parts of Christmas preparations. Until now, eah year I only helped my mum with cutting out the shapes, but this time I baked cookies entirelly on my own. 

This winter I have also taken part in the final of the Great Orchestra of Christmas Charity – annual fund raising for the equipment used to treat and to take care of children and the elderly. I took part in it third time in a row as a volunteer.

In previous years I have not raised much money but this time I was surprised by the generosity of random passers-by. It only gives evidence that people care about those in need and are ready to give up on some small pleasures in order to donate money and actually help others. In my opinion in most cases unfortunately they do it only on that day. But I bet they would be able to do this more times in a year since the sums they give up individually are not high. If we raised awarness of people and encouraged them to give up on those little things that they do to entertain themselves, i.e. every three months and give the money they usually spent on them to those who need help the most it would be beneficial to the society. Personally, I think I would be able to decide not to go to cinema once in a while and to donate the money I planned to spent on this to some charity. It is not a great sacrifice, but if more people would make similar decision, we would be able to raise more. In my opinion events like Great Orchestra of Christmas Charity should be organised more often. Well in fact there is a variety of different charity events, what I mean is that they should be as recognizable and catch as much attention as GOCC, since in my opinion it is so successful mainly because of its popularity.

I am happy that once again I took part in this event and helped to collect money for children and elderly people. It shows me how powerful people can be, how much can they do if they unite to achieve one aim; more than 40 millions raised in this year by the charity prove it entirely.

Learning outcomes:

- Developed new skills

- Worked collaboratively with others

- Shown perseverance and commitment

- Engaged with issues of global importance

Rollerskating

I used to iceskate during the winter season and I enjoyed it, so I decided to continue this activity during the summer and the following months by regular skating.

I undertook this activity because I thought that it would be easy for me as I considered rollerskating to be the same as iceskating. It turned out that I was wrong. As much as I enjoy iceskating and actually improve my skills in it everytime on the ice rink, regular skating is more challenging for me. The biggest difficulty is the fact that the surface on which I am skating is not smooth and that there is not proper rollerskating track in my city and that I constantly encounter hills and slopes. At the beginning for quite a long time I did not manage to learn how to brake without falling down on my back, so slopes were, and sometimes still are, the worst part of skating for me. I aquired speed I did not wish for and then I was unable to slow down until I reached some kind of barrier or a person that could catch me. It was frustrating, because I could not skate alone, since always there had to be someone that could assist me. I also feel discouraged since on pavements and parks there are other people I could do harm to if I fall down or if I would again be unable to slow down safely. That is why I usually choose places where there is no one around. But despite all of this, I think that as soon as I gain more skills in skating I will find this activity as enjoyable as iceskating.

Learning outcomes:

- Undertaken new challanges

- Developed new skills

- Increased awareness of strengths and areas for growth

Summer with Guardian Angel's Charity

In August 2015, I was asked by GAC's workers to take part in the field trip to Pszczyna as a tutor. My task was to help watch out for the kids, spend time with them and take care of them. When I was asked if I would like to go I felt a bit anxious, since watching out for kinds on the trip outdoors, where there is a greater chance that something bad might happen requires more responsibility than helping with homework (something I usually do at GAC). On the other hand it felt nice that they believe I am actually responsible and trustworthy enough to help them with more serious stuff like trips.

It was a big challange, since the nice weather and being outdoors encouraged kids to behave more frivolous, and it made it more difficult to control them, though it wasn't so bad as I thought it would be. My previous experience with children taught me how to react when there is a conflict between them or when someone misbehaves. Also, the workers from GAC where a great help. They supported my decisions and encouraged children to obey my commands. I saw that my presence was helpful and took much off their shoulders, as they knew I was there, watching when they weren't around or when they could not divide their attention. I was glad I could help and integrate more with children and workers.

Learning outcomes:
- Worked collaboratively with others
- Increased awareness of strengths and areas for growth

As one can notice, a lot of time has passed since I have posted my last reflection. The past few months were a bit difficult for me, I was overwhelmed with work I had to do for internal assessments and extended essay. Unfortunately, my poor time management skills resulted in the situation where I was not able to write any reflections. Although I neglected my CAS journal, I managed to keep doing my CAS activities. I intend to post missing reflections and keep writing new ones and I hope I still have a chance to catch up on this.

CAS group project

On the beginning of the year 2015 me and my two colleagues from IB course, Marta and Kinga, have started our CAS group project. We have decided to organise series of art classes for children from Guardian Angels' Charity.

First, we have met with tutors at Guardian Angels' Charity to discuss our propositions, to set the rules and to assign duties each of us would take care of. It was not the first time when I had to work in group, to exchange ideas and to cooperate, but no matter how often one works with others, it always is a challange. In different groups there are people with different personalities, views and attitudes; one has to adjust to them and not to create conflicts, but also one should not hesitate to express one's ideas with confidence and should be sure of one's value. During our meeting we managed to attain compromise, though at the beginning we had quite differing views on the project. As we talked, we understood each other and appreciated each others ideas, which resulted in general agreement and in coherent plan of action.

We have finally decided to organise 3 art classes, concerning techniques of origami (Kinga's classes), decoupage (Marta's) and quilling (my task); each of us also had to prepare conspectus of her lesson, rules which should be obeyed during classes and a poster encouraging kids to take part in our project.

It is essential for people working with children to set the rules indicating proper behaviour and containing punishments for not obeying them; on our classes we have used the system of yellow cards which had been already working in Guardian Angels' Charity, so children were familiar with it. For each forbidden behaviour we were to give yellow cards, and if any child had more than 2 yellow cards he/she could not participate in our classes and had to leave the room. Rules were really helpful in maintaining order, but to be honest, I was not able to punish participants for their behaviour. I am only 4-6 years older than these children, so I was not sure that they would respect me as a tutor and obey my comands. Also I was afraid I could exaggerate and overreact or do quite the opposite. Neither of us had any experience with that kind of situation, so workers from the charity were present at our classes to keep an eye on children and to evaluate our lessons.

Few days before the first classes I had asked Kinga to show me how to fold each figure she wanted to introduce to children. I was familiar with the technique, but not with these specific shapes so I had decided to practice them in advance, so I could help children to fold the paper properly. Decoupage was not a problem to me because I have been using this technique to decorate plenty of boxes, jars and vases during art classes while I was attending middle school. However, I had never used quilling before, so I had to learn this technique from scratch. During preparing my poster I had a chance to practice. I had started with shapes for the beginners and with each trial I had been and more confident in what I was doing. Then I had chosen the easiest, the prettiest and the most colourfull ones to decorate my poster. I have found out that quilling is really simple and produces attractive effects without much effort when using basic shapes.

My poster and a list of volunteers

When the day of origami classes had finally come I was really stressed out even though I was not the one to lead them. I was afraid I would not manage to help the children or I would seem not confident and not competent so they would not like the classes. When we started I could not help thinking how chaotic it all was; children were loud, sometimes not attentive, and were easily discouraged because the figure they folded was crooked or they could not fold something properly. Yet despite this we cooperated with children quite well. We managed to encourage them to keep trying untill they finally succeeded to fold the paper properly. After the end of the classes tutors from the charity evaluated our work and gave us hints for the future. We had heard that the classes were a complete success, that children loved them and that we have done well. I was surprised at what they were saying, because I kept in mind the memory of chaos I could not control; I thought that we had done very poorly. On hearing this, I came to a conclusion that I cannot control everything what will happen. On the following classes I had just kept in mind that these classes are also about having fun, and not keeping strictly to the programme. I was more relaxed and confident, especially when I had heard that children on seeing the poster announcing the next classes looked forward to it.

My classes were organised last, so I had more time to get experience and to prepare myself to the role of the tutor and the leader of the group. I was not as stressed as in the case of our very first classes. I was rather excited, because it finally was my turn to see if I can cope with the task. I have brought a great amount of colourfull straps of paper and ready versions of the shapes I was about to introduce as example for children. At the beginning it was difficult to me to focus on one person, because other children wanted my help or my opinion about their work immediately. But as the classes went on I have managed to pay attention to everyone, to be accessible, helpfull and encouraging. However, I still have to learn how to cope with naughty children; I am aware that I am not able to control them or to punish them if it is needed. Fortunately, there were not any children that behaved badly enough for receiving the warning or the punishment. I know that I could not cope with that kind of situation, and that is the area in which I would like to improve as a tutor. 

Kinga and I during quilling classes, helping children

I was happy to see that children enjoy the art classes and are eager to learn. Thanks to this kind of activities they develop, improve their skills and have fun at the same time. It especially developes their creativity and imagination as they try to come up with their own patterns to use during decoupage or try to arrange their own compositions of colourfull circles during quilling. It can also broaden their interest; maybe thanks to our classes some of the children felt passionate about origami and Japanese culture. It is important for kids to have a contact with plethora of different ideas, cultures, hobbies and activities, so that one day they can choose something to be passionate about, something that develops them, is challanging for them or just simply gives them joy.

Thanks to the CAS group project I have fulfilled some of the Learning Outcomes:
- Increased awareness of strengths annd areas for growth

- Undertaken new challanges

- Planned and initiated activities

- Worked collaboratively with others

- Shown perseverance and commitment

- Developed new skills

A few more drawings

During past few months I made a few more drawings; I drew a tea set, a brush and a flowering strawberry bush.

First of all, I have noticed that drawing gives me plenty of joy; especially when results of my work resemble the object I am drawing! After 2 hours of continuous sketching it is relieving to see that a picture similar to the model emerges on the paper.

But I am quite far from stating that the quality of my pictures is satisfactory; I have still many things to work on. I have noticed that I have a tendency to use a pencil as a crayon when I start to lose patience. The longer I work on one picture the less focused I am. I just wish to finish as soon as possible and I am literally colouring some parts of the drawing with pencil instead of focusing on showing the shadows and differences in brightness created by the light.

Also I have a great problem with being systematic; it is my general weakness not only with this activity and it has already made my life a bit more difficult so I try to fight it. It is discouraging that I experience it also during drawing. Being systematic is essential for completion of one of the Learning Outcomes - Showing perseverance and commitment. Now I set myself a goal to achieve: during summer holidays and in the following school year I am going to work on being systematic. I am willing to actually show my commitment to this and other activities I am involved in.

Tennis - final reflection

I have decided to quit tennis trainings and I would like to summarize my whole experience connected with this activity.

I have started playing tennis in the previous school year under influence of my class mate and continued it in this school year. At the beginning I have been doing this only to fulfill my CAS hours. I had zero contact with this discipline before and it was a new experience to me. Until IB course I rarely had chance to put myself in a situation when I had to learn something from the basis. This activity gave me an opportunity to challange myself and to force myself to put more effort than usual in what I was doing; thanks to this I had fulfilled the Learning Outcome - Undertaking new challanges.

At the beginning I have been experiencing more failures than I expected, which was discouraging. I have felt each mistake quite personally. But as I kept practicing I have come to a conclusion that complaining is not a solution to anything. If I wanted to get rid of mistakes and imperfections I had to work on it instead of talking about it. It is true not only in this case but also in everyday life. People often have tendency to brag about their failures. They come to a conclusion that if they cannot do something they should stop doing it. We should approach this issue from the other perspective. Failures should point out areas for possible improvement. If we realize this we will broaden our perspectives and possibilities. We can achieve more in more fields. As the time passed I learned to work on my weaknesses and to appreciate my strengths. Thanks to this I have fulfilled the Learning Outcome - Increased awareness of strengths and areas to growth.

Attending tennis classes also broadened my interest in the field of this discipline and sports in general. I have started to watch tennis matches and tournaments, to follow WTA and ATP rankings. As my knowledge about this activity was growing I started to appreciate its complexity. For me it greatly ressembles some kind of art. Players are like artists; with moves of the racket, ressembling the brush of the painter, they create beautiful pictures. They master their technique and play with impressive precision similarly to performing dancers. Matches and tournaments often can entertain us, provoke emotions and surprise us with turning points as spectacles in theathre do. For some people it can be nothing new, but for me it certainly is; I have never associated the word 'sports' with the word 'art'. It is interesting how different areas of culture intertwine and fit together like pieces of the same puzzle. Thanks to tennis trainings I gained much more than just physical benefits. It changed my perception of sports and gave me an opportunity to develop new areas of interests. Even when I quit trainings the knowledge I have gained and the interest I have developed will not disappear.

Also I have fulfilled the Learning Outcome - Developing new skills. As the time passed I was shown many types of shots. I practiced them on each training. I managed to perform them properly, but not without some problems. Most of the time I was just not focused enough; when I have pulled myself together and remembered about proper position, used enough strength, synchronized the move of the racket with approaching ball, my shots got better. It certainly has allowed me to improve myself.

It is true that tennis trainings have taught me plenty of things and brought me many benefits, but after some time I have noticed that I have stopped to learn anything new. To be honest I have become a little bit bored. Also the trainings have stopped to be challanging; we haven't got any warm up and generally I was more tired after PE lessons at school, than after tennis classes. Also to get to tennis court I had to travel for 1.5 hour, and for another 1.5 hour to get back home. Overall I have been gaining some skills and values during 1 hour of training but also wasting 3 hours on the ride. So I have decided to change this activity for something that is nearer.

To sum up I am glad I have been attending tennis trainings. It was a short but valuable experience and I do not regret taking part in it.

Reflections during iceskating

On January 24th, February 5th, 14th and 22th 2015 I have been iceskating.

With more hours spent on the ice rink I am more confident while skating. Also after skating constantly for an hour I am less tired then I was before. It is rare in my case - usually during winter I don't excersise and my stamina is very low at that period. It is the case for a lot of people actually - they stop doing activities during the colder months. It negatively affects their health - they start to gain weight and it is more difficult to lose it afterwards. It we have developed habit of excersising during winter we would prevent some minor diseases like flu because our immune system would be more effective. We would improve our general health and what is more important  - improve our mental well-being. Personally during winter I am more tired and have worse mood than usual. This year I have noticed that after an hour of iceskating I had more energy and I was in much better mood than on regular winter days.

Last time I wrote about my problems with skating on my left leg. Since then I have observed great improvement. At the last session I have maintained proper balance and I was able to skate on both legs without any hesitation. Now I don't even know why it was so difficult for me. I guess the greatest obstacle was in my head - the fear of falling down. When I think about it now it seems so silly of me because it was nothing difficult and even if I had fallen it wouldn't have been a big deal. I wonder how often people are afraid of things which are not really chalenging. They often don't even care to try because failure seems to be so likely. People should take their chances and do their best to achieve the goal. Afterwards probably it would turn out that it was one of the easiest things to do and they would laugh at themselves just as I did.

During one of the sessions on the ice rink there was a women who was practicing figure skating. As I have observed her I was really impressed by her skills. It was obvious that she was doing it with a great passion, that she was doing something she loved. It made me realize how important in life is to keep doing things that give us joy. If we do so we can be more efficient, we can achieve goals while entertaining ourselves. It brightens up one's life - no matter what we do, it can be gardening, playing instruments, painting, running, writing. As long as we are able to do what we love we have purpose in our lives. I wish that someday I will find an activity that will give me such satisfaction and joy, that will make me feel like it is significant and like it matters. Even if it only matters to me. All in all, doing things that we love is about our own wellbeing.

Learning outcomes fulfilled:
- Developing new skills
- Increased awareness of strengths and areas for growth

Iceskating

I have decided to develop my skills in iceskating this year. Up till now I have been iceskating three times. This was enough time for me to overcome my fear of falling down, but not enough to learn how to skate properly.

During my first time on ice rink this winter I had to recall what possition I should skate in, how to properly place my skates to move smoothly. Although I am not afraid of skating far from the barrier, I have noticed I am skating more on my right leg - I have figured out that I cannot maintain balance while skating on my left leg. It means I am still a bit afraid of falling down.

During next sessions I tried to teach myself to skate on both legs - but it is more difficult than it seems. I don't know why I could not force myself to do more than 2 long slides on my left leg, and then again I was skating only on the right one. I was also observing techniques of other people, hoping that I would learn something useful. I have noticed that they often skate with the fixed pace, one leg after another, sliding more to the sides then forward. I have been practicing it and I think that at the end of the last session I have made some progress. During the next session I am going to check if I improved much and to try to get better and better.

Learning outcomes fulfilled:
- Increased awareness of strengths and areas for growth
- Developing new skills

Raising money for Great Orchestra of Christmas Charity

On 11th of January I have participated in the annual final of the Great Orchestra of Christmas Charity. On this day I have been volunteering and raising money on the streets. This year's goal was to raise money for equipment for diagnostics of diseases and for treatment of children and elderly people.

As I was wandering through the city and collecting money I was thinking about how much good can be done if great deal of people show a little bit of commitment to one matter. The majority of people passing me that day had put some money into my box - for them it was a tiny sacrifice, but for sick people it is a chance for new life. It is incredible how greatly we can influence the world around us if we gather to achieve the same aim. People tend to think that their actions do not have any meaning or effect on the surroundings  - sometimes I think this way too - but actually we have a great power in our hands and we just don't know how to use it. Events such as Great Orchestra of Christmas Charity show that each of us is a part of something bigger. People just have to be more aware of the simple truth - the more voices are spreading the same message, the same action, the more important, noticable and meaningfull it becomes. But there is other side of the coin - we have to be able to evaluate this message - if the idea is presented by the majority of people it does not mean that it is a right and valid one. The majority can be wrong, and we have to decide if we are for or against, using our own conscience.

Learning outcomes fulfilled:
- Considered ethical implications
- Engaged with issued of global importance

Guardian Angels' Charity

I have spent 3 more hours at Guardian Angels' Charity helping children with homework. During that time I have noticed how people who work there try to implement patterns of good behaviour, of rules of coexistence in the bigger society. It is important for young children to have people they look up to, to have chance to observe adults and to learn from their experience. 

Tutors show them the importance of being principled and organised. Every kid has its duties - cleaning up, sweeping the floor, helping in the kitchen - which have to be done in a time given in timetables. Everyone have got their work to do. It shows children that every member of the society is important, everyone fulfill their duties - and if they don't do it, the balance in the society is destabilized. It teaches them that no effort made for the common good is meaningless.

Also tutors show children how to solve conflicts and to take under concideration feelings of others. Usually it is difficult for people to walk in somebody else's shoes. It is natural for us to rely on our survival instinct and to believe only in our opinion. Especially when we are children. When we are young we need guidance to discover that point of view of others actually has a great meaning. It is a source of diversity of the world, it makes it more interesting but also challenging, because it creates conflicts. We need to learn how to accept different opinions, how to be open-minded and empathetic - and that is not easy at any stage of our life.

Kids at Guardian Angels' Charity are shown values which should be known by every young person in the world. These values do not make anything easier - they only allow to notice the honest way to live our life and to become better people. On the other hand, children sometimes show greater understanding of what is good and what is bad than many adults. Their purity and often their gullibility allow them to see world beyond artificial boundaries created by people - that shows that sometimes grown-ups should learn from children, not the other way.

Learning outcomes fulfilled:
- Considered ethical implications

I begin to draw

As my creative part of CAS I have decided to draw. On 16th December 2014 I have done my first drawing for CAS.

Of course I have been drawing before, just like everyone during their lives. But I've never been learning how to draw, how to use different techniques properly, so I've decided to start drawing at home, trying to develop my skills and new techniques on my own.

I have tried to draw my hand holding pencil. It was illuminated by the bright light from above and I tried to show the shadows created by the light, e.g. the one cast by pencil - but I've forgotten about the shadow  fo the pencil on the paper, not on hand and the one cast by the whole hand!

Also in this drawing my thumb is too thin and my forefinger is too thick. But overall proportions are not bad as for the official first time drawing.

I have been drawing this picture for about 2 hours - I think that I could do this in much shorter time, but I've been erasing a lot of lines that I thought were not drawn properly. I'm neither experienced nor skilled drawer, so I've been correcting fingers way too many times - and in the end they don't look like I wanted them to look.

I will use this picture to make comparison - I will draw it once again after few months and compare both versions - it will show if I make any progress.

Learing outcomes fulfilled:

- Developed new skills

- Increased awareness of strengths and areas for growth

Writing letters with Amnesty International

On 13th of December I have attended the event connected with the activity of Amnesty International. I have been writing leters driving attention to the problem in Bhopal, India.

30 years ago in factory in Bhopal there was a toxic gas leakage which contaminated the whole area. The toxic waste is still there, at the site of the former factory. People are forced to live there and are exposed to the dangerous remains of the factory. Also, people responsible for the tragedy were not punished yet. It is terrible that all over the world there are incidents including the violation of the human rights or putting people in danger, while governments seem to not to notice them.

First, when I heard about the event I thought that writing letters cannot help to improve world around us, I was sceptical about it. But then I read some more information about the organisation and it occured to me that this way of protesting against the injustice does matter. Amnesty International shows how significant can be our voice and how big is the effect of work of volunteers - organisation had freed many people and made governments to make an action and solve the problems the organisation had been writing about.

I am happy that I could attend this event. It was an opportunity for me to participate in something bigger, to notice problems around the world and to act on them. It is great that people from different countries unite and fulfill the same goal - to help those in need, to fight with injustice and violation of human rights. 

Learning outcomes fulfilled:
- Engaged with issues of global importance

Visiting the graves of deceased Mickiewicz teachers

My school has a tradition, that every year, before the All Saints Day the delegation of students brings wreaths and lights candles at the graves of the deceased Mickiewicz teachers. Me and my class have done it this year.

On 29th of October we prepared wreaths that were to be put on tombstones. We made them from twigs and cones of coniferous trees, also from dried leaves and flowers. They all had red shields with name of the school on them.

On 30th of October me and my class went to two cemeteries, at which these teachers are buried - at Francuska Street and at Sienkiewicza Street in Katowice.

As we were walking among the graves one of our teachers has been telling us stories of the deceased - what subject were they teaching, etc. When we came to one of the graves, our teacher said that she can't say anything about the person lying there, because no one at the school could tell her who that teacher was. That was the thing that made me think about the memory. It is sad how easily we can be forgotten - we live our lives, but after we are gone there will be few people to remember us, to light a candle on our grave, unless we do something which makes our name recognizable all over the world. One day we have families, friends and colleagues, we work, we learn - we live. And the next day we are just another person lying in the graveyard with neglected gravestone and no candle on it - the mourning after our death will end, people will move on, and memory of us will fade.

Another thing I have noticed during the walk were rows of little tombstones - graves of little children. Some of them didn't even live a day. It seemed unfair to me that they didn't have chance to experience the life - its good and bad sides. I wondered who would have they become if they had lived longer - maybe some of them would cure cancer, AIDS or other fatal disease. Or some of them would become criminals and do a lot of bad things. There is no way we could possibly know that. But everybody should have their chance to be alive, to grow up, to feel loved and to make choices. These are things every human being should experience and its terrible to see that these kids weren't able to do so.

Volunteering at Guardian Angels' Charity again

Last year I have been a volunteer in Dom Aniołów Stróżów (Guardian Angels' Charity) - a place where kids and teenagers with troubles can receive help. They can come there after school, eat a dinner, tell others about their problems and try to solve them.

I have decided to volunteer there also in this year. I am supposed to spend there one hour every Friday, helping children with their homework, with learning and revising for tests. As for now I have spent there only 6 hours since September - it was due to several projects I had to do for school, which took part at the same time. I was there on 17.10, 7.11, 14.11, 21.11, 28.11 and 5.12.2014.

During first few visits I have noticed that several kids, when asked to do certain tasks, often say that they don't know how or that they can't do them. But later it turned out that they needed only a small guidance and that they could do their homework practically on their own. The only thing they lacked was self-confidence. It made me think how often people are capable of doing something, but they don't try to do it because they don't believe in themselves. I wonder how many have missed opportunities of a lifetime because they lacked self-confidence - and the only person they could blame for it was themselves. It shouldn't happen to anyone. We should leave our comfort zones and take our chances. Of course there are other factors that can affect our fate but we can't take our opportunities away from ourselves when we still have them.
Kids at Guardian Angels' Charity are insecure about their skills while doing homework, but this insecurity can show up someday and make them hesitate in the important moment of their life. Next time when I will notice kid not being confident about what he/she is doing I will try to encourage him/her to think, to try solve problems on his/her own at the first place, and then look for help, not the other way. 

First tennis trainings in the new year

I am taking part in tennis trainings as a part of my CAS activities. I had started to play tennis in the previous year. I have decided to continue attending these classes also in this school year. I have attended 5 trainings since September - on 6.10, 20.10, 27.10, 3.11 and 10.11. 

The first training after summer holidays showed that I had lost part of skills I have developed in the last year. Once again my shots were mainly not on target or even did not pass the net. It was difficult for me to adjust the power to properly hit the ball. Sometimes my shots were too weak, sometimes too strong, just like at the very beginning of my trainings. Also I noticed that I felt quite tired after the 1-hour training though it was not demanding at all. But I did not give in, I knew that it was my first training after a very long break. I hoped that with every following training I would get better and better.

Next classes were slightly better than the previous one. I started to recall the proper moves I had learnt in the last year of trainings. But that did not mean that I used things I recalled - I have discovered my major weakness about tennis - I do not focus enough on each shot. There were only few times when I hit the ball with the proper strength, I worked properly with my legs, and I did the full move without stopping the tennis racket. Most of the time I do not do at least one of them. As soon as I realised it I focused on the next shot and tried to do it in the right way. Of course it was better then my usual shots. Most of the time it is difficult for me to do all of these things at once. I cannot do them automatically yet - it is a thing I am willing to improve.

Edit:
Since last post I have been attending trainings on 24.11 and 1.12.2014.

At this point I don't see many improvements, mostly due to the fact that I had done something with my ankle on a PE lesson. During these two trainings I haven't been moving much because I was afraid I would worsen the state of my ankle and that I wouldn't be able to run at all. I excercised only using my hands - it affected the quality of my shots, they were even worse than before.

On the next training after Christmas I will be able to move properly, so I will excercise in a proper way. 

Learning outcomes achieved:
- Increased awareness of strengths and areas for growth