CAS Wrap Up: The End
Tuesday 31 January 2017 • 2017, activity, creativity, cystic fibrosis, project, reflection, service, weekly
CAS is finally over! It seems like just yesterday that it was September 2015 and I was planning out which activities I was to undertake as part of CAS. So, here is a wrap up or all the reflections I've done for each of the areas of CAS:
CREATIVITY:
CREATIVITY:
- Baking for Halloween
- Baking for Christmas
- St. Martin's Day - Making a poster
- Making Christmas Cards
- Drawing (1)
- Drawing (2): In My Sketchbook
- Running a photography blog
- Practicing piano
- Blogging: IB related tips
- Video editing: Arizona
- Video editing: Mauritius
- Video editing: Budapest
- Spelling Bee Contest for Years 9-11
- Running club (1)
- Running club: Reflections
- Running club (2)
- Yoga practices
- Hiking in Arizona
- Hiking in the Eifel
- Swimming
- Skiing in the Alps
- Photography presentations and running competitions
- St. Martin's Day - helping the teachers to lead the 'parade'
- Reading with the lower school kids
- Helping with homework club
PROJECT (SERVICE):
PERFORMANCE EVENINGS:
Photography Blog // An End?
Wednesday 25 January 2017 • blog, creativity, photography, reflection, year13
After almost a year of running a successful photography blog, along with Cailin, we have decided to give it a rest. Although we have thoroughly enjoyed the whole experience of looking for quotes and choosing which of our million pictures will make it into the post, we have decided to focus on studying towards our exams. Personally, I will not be stopping photography completely, but rather not focusing on the blog itself. Instead, I will be posting any new photographs on this blog if I take any amazing pictures that I feel need to be shared.
Wrap up:
Running: Reflection // September 2015 - March 2017 - with a few breaks
Friday 20 January 2017 • activity, reflection, running, year12, year13
Due to my extremely busy schedule of each Thursday afternoon filled with driving exams, university entrance exams, freezing cold weather and TOK presentations, I haven't been able to attend running club as often as I would have liked. In fact, I only went 2 times so far this school year - completely unintentionally. Each week I had something that would stop me from going, but I made sure to go running on the weekends to make up for the lost time.
Even though I no longer plan on attending running club, I am determined to maintain my running. So far, I've been running every single weekend and often in the evenings when the weather and boarding house allow it. I've seen such a huge improvement in my running style and technique. I finally managed to achieve my GOAL of running 5km in under 30minutes. I'd managed before, but not at a continuous running pace and without taking breaks.
On one of my recent runs, I managed to snap a few picture of the gorgeous area in which I go running. I am lucky enough to live near a river/lake where I like to go running. Even though it is cold and icy most days, this day was much warmer than the others. The weather made a huge difference and it was one of the best runs I've been on yet. Not my fastest, but definitely my favourite.
Running is another activity that I definitely plan on continuing on with after I have finished CAS. I hope to do it more regularly and more frequently than I am now. Hopefully, I will continue to see improvements.
Reflections:
Although at the start of CAS I was not the biggest fan of running, I have to say that this has become my favourite activity part of CAS, by far. I often get excited before my runs and even though the run itself is not 'fun', the feeling of accomplishment and achievement afterwards makes up for it.
LO1: Identify own strengths and develop areas for growth
As I was undertaking this activity alone I had to identify my own strengths and weaknesses. This allowed me to decide how to tailor my next runs to suit my goals (that I set for myself at the start of the CAS programme). I have actually been very strict in working towards my goals for running and have seen myself working towards then every time I go for a run.
LO2: Demonstrate that challenges have been undertaken, developing new skills in the process
With running, I found that the challenges I faced were not the start of the activity, but rather the points where I was pushing myself further towards my goals. In this case, I had to run faster or with better technique.
LO3: Demonstrate how to initiate and plan a CAS experience
As this CAS activity was something that I was doing alone, rather than going to class or club towards the end, I had to plan out when I was able to fit it in and take it upon myself to actually stick to it.
LO4: Show commitment to and perseverance in CAS experiences
Of all the activities I've done under the huge umbrella that is CAS, this one definitely demonstrates a huge amount commitment and perseverance. Not only did I manage to go for a run almost every week though the whole two years, I am also planning on continuing on after I no longer 'have' to do it for CAS.
LO5: Demonstrate the skills and recognise the benefits of working collaboratively
Even though I no longer plan on attending running club, I am determined to maintain my running. So far, I've been running every single weekend and often in the evenings when the weather and boarding house allow it. I've seen such a huge improvement in my running style and technique. I finally managed to achieve my GOAL of running 5km in under 30minutes. I'd managed before, but not at a continuous running pace and without taking breaks.
On one of my recent runs, I managed to snap a few picture of the gorgeous area in which I go running. I am lucky enough to live near a river/lake where I like to go running. Even though it is cold and icy most days, this day was much warmer than the others. The weather made a huge difference and it was one of the best runs I've been on yet. Not my fastest, but definitely my favourite.
Running is another activity that I definitely plan on continuing on with after I have finished CAS. I hope to do it more regularly and more frequently than I am now. Hopefully, I will continue to see improvements.
Reflections:
Although at the start of CAS I was not the biggest fan of running, I have to say that this has become my favourite activity part of CAS, by far. I often get excited before my runs and even though the run itself is not 'fun', the feeling of accomplishment and achievement afterwards makes up for it.
LO1: Identify own strengths and develop areas for growth
As I was undertaking this activity alone I had to identify my own strengths and weaknesses. This allowed me to decide how to tailor my next runs to suit my goals (that I set for myself at the start of the CAS programme). I have actually been very strict in working towards my goals for running and have seen myself working towards then every time I go for a run.
LO2: Demonstrate that challenges have been undertaken, developing new skills in the process
With running, I found that the challenges I faced were not the start of the activity, but rather the points where I was pushing myself further towards my goals. In this case, I had to run faster or with better technique.
LO3: Demonstrate how to initiate and plan a CAS experience
As this CAS activity was something that I was doing alone, rather than going to class or club towards the end, I had to plan out when I was able to fit it in and take it upon myself to actually stick to it.
LO4: Show commitment to and perseverance in CAS experiences
Of all the activities I've done under the huge umbrella that is CAS, this one definitely demonstrates a huge amount commitment and perseverance. Not only did I manage to go for a run almost every week though the whole two years, I am also planning on continuing on after I no longer 'have' to do it for CAS.
LO5: Demonstrate the skills and recognise the benefits of working collaboratively
My favourite run from the two years of the activity, was the single run that I did with a group of other IB students. We did the run as part of our Cystic Fibrosis Charity Project, which also made it much more fun as it was all for a good cause. It was very beneficial to practice together and motivate one another to practice often, so that the run would be as successful as possible (which it WAS!!)
Winter Break: CAS Reflections
Friday 6 January 2017 • activity, art, awareness, baking, christmas, creativity, cystic fibrosis, drawing, photography, piano, running, service, video editing, year13
Over the winter holidays, I managed to do much more CAS than I had initially imagined. Obviously, knowing me, most of it was Creativity and least was Service. Activity always lies somewhere between the two:
Creativity:
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Creativity:
- Having purchased my new '2017' sketchbook, I couldn't not try it out and so I completed my first sketches of the year. For this year, I have undertaken the 'One Drawing a Week' challenge. Initially, I was going to do the 'One drawing a Day' Challenge, but with exams approaching sooner than I could every have expected
- Photography - Winter is one of the best times to take beautiful pictures and over the christmas break, there was nothing stopping me from getting up really close to the frosty leaves and clean-cut icicles. These pictures will soon be up on my CAS Photography Blog
- Practicing piano - After ending my piano lessons early this year, I found that I was practicing piano much less than I had planned. I intended on playing at least 5 times a week for around 15 minutes each time, but this ended up being more like 10 minutes about once or twice a week. Over the winter break, I managed to fit in more practicing.
- Baking for christmas - This one is a given, as during the Christmas season, it seems only right to make (and eat) as much gingerbread and other festive treats as possible.
- Running - Despite the cold weather and occasional snow, I managed to force myself out into the frosty air and went for a run. Although I came back with an icicle on my nose and no feeling in my hands, I was generally always glad that I had gone on a run. Because of the weather, my runs were most about getting out and moving than to improve my speed and technique.
- Yoga - During the festive season, it was nice to stay inside and do yoga by the fire while following along to videos or making up my own 'routines'. Having practiced my yoga more and more, I am now at a point where I know enough moves and poses to create my own practices.
- Stretching - Although this is encompassed within yoga, I wanted to incorporate daily stretching into my 'exercise routine' to get closer to the goals I set for myself at the start of the CAS programme in my introductory blog. I am much closer to achieving all three splits and my crow pose is coming along nicely (but I am still miles away).
- Planning our last Cystic Fibrosis Activity - It's sad that our CAS project is coming to an end as I have genuinely enjoyed every single minute of it. I've loved working in a group with others who are just as motivated to raise awareness for this cause as I am. We are currently planning out our final CAS project activity and how we want to end our time working towards the cause. A post detailing the whole CAS project and reflecting what we have achieve will be coming very soon.
Yoga Practices // September 2015 - March 2017
Monday 2 January 2017 • activity, creativity, reflection, year12, yoga
I have been practice yoga every week for a few months, but took a break at the beginning of the school year. I am going to be starting it again because I want to increase my strength and flexibility. I did gymnastics when I was very young and although I no longer want to do it, I would like to have some of the specific skills again. My goals are to achieve certain poses, including: headstand, splits and crow pose.
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12th September 2015
This was the first yoga practice I did during the school year.
19th September 2015
26th September 2015
I worked on my strength in my hands and balance for doing headstands by doing a handstand against a wall. I then repeated the same without the wall to further practice my balance, but I could only hold myself up for around 5 seconds.
2nd October 2015
18th October 2015
During this yoga session, I developed a new technique for practicing headstands which involves holding your hands differently. I find this method a lot easier than the normal tripod method.
7th November 2015
21st and 22nd November 2015
29th November 2015
Today I decided to do a yoga practice based on a YouTube video, unlike my usual practices based on some basic poses that I know from research and classes that I try to improve on. The video I chose was Yoga with Adrienne's ...
6th December 2015
Having really enjoyed the way in which I practiced yoga last week, I decided to find another video to use this time.
11th December 2015
It's finally the holidays and that can only mean one thing... more time to do CAS (yay!), especially yoga practices.
13th December 2015
I am actually seen improvements in my splits, mainly my right splits (which were already the best). It is quite difficult to tell if I am making any progress because I cannot see how close to the ground I am, but I can hold my splits for a lot longer without feeling any pain. My middle splits are still the ones I need to work on the most (I am miles away from the ground).
6th December 2015
Having really enjoyed the way in which I practiced yoga last week, I decided to find another video to use this time.
11th December 2015
It's finally the holidays and that can only mean one thing... more time to do CAS (yay!), especially yoga practices.
13th December 2015
I am actually seen improvements in my splits, mainly my right splits (which were already the best). It is quite difficult to tell if I am making any progress because I cannot see how close to the ground I am, but I can hold my splits for a lot longer without feeling any pain. My middle splits are still the ones I need to work on the most (I am miles away from the ground).
4th January 2015 - 2nd March 2017
I continued doing weekly practices throughout these months, especially during the holidays. Although I am writing this reflection in January, I plan on continuing my yoga practices at least until March and then restarting after my exams in May.
Reflection:
Doing yoga practices has been one of my favourite activities within CAS and although some weeks I managed to fit in 5 practices and others I managed 1 or even none, I did maintain this activity very regularly throughout the 27 or so months that I have been doing it. 18 months of this has been part of CAS.
LO1: Identify own strengths and develop areas for growth
As I was undertaking this activity alone rather than going to yoga classes, I had to identify my own strengths and weaknesses. This allowed me to decide how to tailor my next practices to get me closer to my goals that I set for myself at the start of the CAS programme. I'll admit, I haven't been as strict in working towards my goals as I had planned and rather used my practices as a method to relax and enjoy the exercise.
LO2: Demonstrate that challenges have been undertaken, developing new skills in the process
Starting yoga in the first place was a huge challenge for me due to the amount of flexibility I was lacking. From the ages of 4-12 years old, I was a gymnast (a very serious one) and at the time I was very flexible. After moving to Denmark, I wasn't able to continue and although I stretched at home, my flexibility soon became almost non-existent. Part of the reason why I decided to start practicing yoga was to regain this flexibility that I once had. Although I am far from achieving the same level of flexibility, I am much much closer to where I was when I started. I can now almost reach the floor in my right and left splits!!! I'm a few centimetres away for my right splits.
LO3: Demonstrate how to initiate and plan a CAS experience
As this CAS activity was something that I was doing alone, rather than going to class, I had to plan out when I was able to fit it in and take it upon myself to actually stick to it.
LO4: Show commitment to and perseverance in CAS experiences
Of all the activities I've done under the huge umbrella that is CAS, this one definitely demonstrates the most commitment and perseverance. Not only did I manage to practice yoga weekly though the whole two years, I am also planning on continuing on after I no longer 'have' to do it.
LO5: Demonstrate the skills and recognise the benefits of working collaboratively
Although I was doing my yoga practices alone for the majority of the time, there were a few occasions on which I managed to convince a family member, friend or fellow IB CAS student to do a yoga practice with me. I found that practicing with someone else made me more accountable and more motivated to try my hardest.
I continued doing weekly practices throughout these months, especially during the holidays. Although I am writing this reflection in January, I plan on continuing my yoga practices at least until March and then restarting after my exams in May.
Reflection:
Doing yoga practices has been one of my favourite activities within CAS and although some weeks I managed to fit in 5 practices and others I managed 1 or even none, I did maintain this activity very regularly throughout the 27 or so months that I have been doing it. 18 months of this has been part of CAS.
LO1: Identify own strengths and develop areas for growth
As I was undertaking this activity alone rather than going to yoga classes, I had to identify my own strengths and weaknesses. This allowed me to decide how to tailor my next practices to get me closer to my goals that I set for myself at the start of the CAS programme. I'll admit, I haven't been as strict in working towards my goals as I had planned and rather used my practices as a method to relax and enjoy the exercise.
LO2: Demonstrate that challenges have been undertaken, developing new skills in the process
Starting yoga in the first place was a huge challenge for me due to the amount of flexibility I was lacking. From the ages of 4-12 years old, I was a gymnast (a very serious one) and at the time I was very flexible. After moving to Denmark, I wasn't able to continue and although I stretched at home, my flexibility soon became almost non-existent. Part of the reason why I decided to start practicing yoga was to regain this flexibility that I once had. Although I am far from achieving the same level of flexibility, I am much much closer to where I was when I started. I can now almost reach the floor in my right and left splits!!! I'm a few centimetres away for my right splits.
LO3: Demonstrate how to initiate and plan a CAS experience
As this CAS activity was something that I was doing alone, rather than going to class, I had to plan out when I was able to fit it in and take it upon myself to actually stick to it.
LO4: Show commitment to and perseverance in CAS experiences
Of all the activities I've done under the huge umbrella that is CAS, this one definitely demonstrates the most commitment and perseverance. Not only did I manage to practice yoga weekly though the whole two years, I am also planning on continuing on after I no longer 'have' to do it.
LO5: Demonstrate the skills and recognise the benefits of working collaboratively
Although I was doing my yoga practices alone for the majority of the time, there were a few occasions on which I managed to convince a family member, friend or fellow IB CAS student to do a yoga practice with me. I found that practicing with someone else made me more accountable and more motivated to try my hardest.
Skiing (1)
Friday 30 December 2016
Each year, just after Boxing Day, my family and I head off into the snowy Alpes in France for our favourite holiday: SKIING. The combination of constantly moving throughout the day and beautiful sights from the top of the slopes, makes skiing one of the best holidays ever!
Having not been skiing since last year, I could feel that I was uneasy skiing for the first day or so. I'd forgotten how tiresome it can be when you do not have enough speed and momentum to push yourself all the way to the ski lift at the end of the slope and have to 'walk' towards it. With each day, I could tell that all my lessons as a child had paid off and I was able to ski without focusing merely on technique, but enjoy it more.
Weekly Activities (2)
Friday 25 November 2016 • activity, art, creativity, cystic fibrosis, drawing, serivce, weekly, year13, yoga
For the last few months of CAS, there are some activities that I've decided to take a break from and others that I am continuing until the very end. This post outlines the activities that I've decided to continue doing:
CREATIVITY:
ACTIVITY:
SERVICE:
CREATIVITY:
- Photography. Although Cailin and I have decided to take a break from the photography blog, I am definitely not going to stop taking and sharing pictures.
- Developing my art portfolio. Recently, I've spent more and more time working on updating my sketchbooks and work on large scale pieces
- Video editing. Recently, I have finished making two new video compilations using iMovie. One of these was my CAS Favourite Memories video and the other was a 'vlog' from when I went to a concert with a group of friends.
ACTIVITY:
- Running. As mentioned in a previous post, I have been going running regularly on the weekends rather than attending running club.
- Yoga. This is another activity that I have been doing regularly at home.
SERVICE:
- Cystic Fibrosis Project. Our CF CAS Project is nearing to a close and we are in the process of planning our last activity.
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