Just beginning my CAS journey and getting into the gist of everything, I thought it would be a good time to talk about my choices for CAS. For my creativity aspect, I am doing two things. Firstly, journalism in the Yearbook club, and secondly, a member of the cast of Candide (the 2017 Grade 11&12 theatre production). For my service, I chose to do RDA Riding with the disabled. My activity is Healthy Girls for Life.
For my creativity aspect, I wanted to choose something that involved more initiative than I was used to, as well as something that got my involved directly with the school spirit. My reasoning for this is because I realized the limited time I have left at UWC, and I wanted to make the most of it by trying to be more involved with the community. The Yearbook club gave me a brilliant opportunity to incorporate these requirements while still engaging my passion for writing, hence my choice for being part of the journalism team.
In regards to Candide, this was my first ever proper theatre production I have been a part of, excluding the skits and plays me and my friends would put on in front of a handful of people when I was younger. Previously, I was part of the backstage of a production, but never on stage. Whilst wanting to be more involved in the school spirit, I thought it would be a nice opportunity to try out for, seeing as I enjoyed reading the play and how I wanted to push myself out of my comfort zone and try something new. I also think this experience will give me skills transferable to my SL Theatre course, such as the Grade 11 production later on this academic year.
For my activity, I was quite conflicted on what to choose, as I had been part of sports teams before, but I wasn’t ready to commit to one just yet. However, I still wanted to be active until I get more accustomed to the IB lifestyle and feel ready enough to try out for a team or join preseason. Healthy Girls for Life offered certain sports/activities that I had not previously been exposed to, such as Pilates, Yoga, and Body Pump. While still sticking to my desire to step out of my comfort zone and push myself to try new things, this activity stuck out to me.
For my choice of local service, I wanted to do something that allows me to interact with the youth community, as I find that it is quite hard for me to create those types of relationships. However, I found myself wanting to overcome whatever barrier I had and actively looking for services that involved bonding with children. When I came across the RDA service, I was incredibly intrigued as I had never heard of a service that involves horseriding. After reading into the nonprofit service and discovering the many benefits horseriding has regarding the disabled youth, I once again found myself excited by the opportunity I had. I saw this as my chance to work with young children and help them become more and more confidence as riding a horse, all the while learning not only more about their certain disabilities (and thereby the different activities to stimulate and help the children and cater to their specific needs) but also more about them as people.
This was a quick overview of my choices for each aspect of CAS and my initial thoughts and excitement for them. I’m really looking forward to being involved in these activities and services, I can already see potential personal growth in all my choices and am very excited to try things I’m only as far as acquainted with.
A lovely reflection Snigdha, I like that you draw on the reasons for why you chose and and the decisions you had to make. I hope that you find it a rewarding experience.
Please could you also add the CAS Los that you have reflected on here? Use the OLP to help you.