November Event – Remembrance Day

Event Date: Friday, November 8th, 8:20-11:55am (assembly was during Block 2-3)

Event Participation: Briefly describe your involvement from start to finish.

For the Remembrance Day Assembly, I was one of the team members, aiding the Point Person and Mr. Kerr in the organization and execution of the assembly. I was specifically in charge of organizing the cadets who were in the assembly. Because the time between the first meeting and the actual assembly was relatively short (around 1-2 weeks), we had to work swiftly as a group to get things rolling. Prior to the actual assembly, I attended all meeting where we discussed our specific roles and the setup of the gym. As I had a friend who was doing the cadets, I immediately contacted him after the meeting. We discussed specifically what the cadets needed (such as space for the flags, where to stay while people entered, etc.), and I double-checked with the Point Person so that they could have the space they needed. As many new cadets were doing the march this year, I arranged it so that they would have ample time to practice before the assembly.

On the day of the assembly, I was excused from my Block 1 class early and headed down to the gym at around 8:20am. Getting instructions from Mr. Kerr and other teachers, I moved the podium down through the elevator and helped the cadets set up. As students started to pile in, I directed them towards the end of the gym. I had to yell over the students bustling in, and this was one of the challenging parts. After everyone was settled in, I sat respectfully during the assembly.

After the assembly was over, I directed students out in an orderly fashion, so that it wasn’t everyone trying to leave at once. I quickly debriefed with the team, and successfully handled both assemblies. I was grateful take part in this meaningful and reflective ceremony.

Curricular Competency: State which competency you focused on, aligning it with your course goals.

Curricular Competency: Theme 1 – Recognize why it is important to be a team player

This aligns with my course goal of becoming a well-rounded leader that has many strengths and is able to understand their teammates. In order to do this, this leader must showcase traits of a quality team member, which I strengthened through this assembly.
I was a strong team player by listening attentively to the instructions, completing my tasks, then supporting team members with the extra support they needed.
By recognizing the significance of being a team player,
- I collaborated with teammates on creating a successful assembly
- I enhanced my leadership skills by gaining effective communication skills within the team

Actions Taken: Explain what you did to work towards or achieve this competency.

Before Event: I worked towards being an important team player by successfully completing the roles I was assigned (meaning I did my part in the team). In charge of the cadets, I clearly notified the Point Person of what they needed, and re-checked in making the needs be met. On the day of the event before the assembly, I worked with another teammate in bringing the podium down from the mezzanine. As this was a particularly heavy podium, we needed efficient collaboration and communication in bringing it down without either of us being injured.

During Event: Being attentive and reflective were the two main actions I did during the event to achieve the competency. During the first assembly, I was attentive of my teammates near me, so that I was evenly spaced out while doing the crowd control. I constantly checked in with my teammates to see how they were doing with crowd control, to make sure that communication was being done effectively to the students piling in. Between the two assemblies, I was reflective with my teammates by sharing what could have gone better, giving constructive feedback for each other. As a result, crowd control for the second assembly was much better.

After Event: Collaborating with my teammates, we efficiently cleaned up the chairs and picked up the fallen poppies after the assembly. As a team player, I cleaned up areas where my other teammates weren’t cleaning up, and cooperated with teammates in bringing the chair rack out for the chairs. I additionally put the podium back away.

Conclusion: Through working in a team, I learned that communication is most important when being a well-rounded team player. Effectively asking questions allowed me to find areas where I was needed, working together to create a respectful assembly atmosphere.

Evidence: Provide strong, concrete examples of your efforts and achievements. Ensure your leadership teacher can understand this evidence.

Acting as a Middle Person (before event)
- I was the middle person between the cadets and the assembly organizers, hearing both sides and conveying each point clearly to each side. As the cadets needed the gym to practice one day before the assembly, I made sure this was arranged and that the PE teachers were notified of the specific time the cadets would use the gym.
Crowd Control (during event)
- I directed students to their designated area while they were piling in, so that the assembly ran on schedule. For the first assembly, I held up the arrow sign (on paper), clearly communicating on where to go for the students. Upon realizing that all the bleachers were filled, I started directing students to sit on the gym ground, and to pile in altogether. I also asked the teachers if students could sit on the steps, which they agreed to, effectively squeezing everyone into the gym.
Event Reflection (after event)
- After the first assembly during the debrief, I actively participated in suggesting what could have gone better, such as more clear and direct directions when controlling the crowd. As it was an extremely crowded area, strongly communicating to the crowd was much needed.