The beginning of a new age

What a way to start your secondary school life!

The venue for this year’s secondary 1 induction camp was the Lembah Hijau Ciloto Hotel & Resort, located in Cipanas, Puncak, a peaceful getaway with verdant thickets of trees, grassy hills and warm timber bungalows.

At the start of each academic year, newly-minted Secondary 1 students, accompany several teachers and senior prefects, to enjoy a three-day Orientation Camp away from school.  

This year’s camp was from 18th  to 21st July.

The camp acquaints new students with the secondary school life through all kinds of games and interesting talks..

On the first day, the camp opened with an introduction to different aspects of the camp and school itself. Broken up into teams and led by different seniors, the Sec 1 students then played numerous ice-breaker games and toured the school Amazing Race-style. A three-hour bus-ride later, they arrived at the resort and had their lunch, before the activities began.

Throughout the three days, the young students would go through experiences crucial to becoming a successful student. They played numerous group games, either icebreakers or related to an important characteristic such as teamwork and compassion. Some games involved cold water, earthworms, and the nighttime Courage Games had students venture into the night in search of brightly-coloured pieces of cloth.

The young students also listened to different sessions in order to learn more about the student life ahead of them. These sessions were similar to lectures, led by a senior student or teacher, accompanied by fun activities according to each session’s theme. There were sessions about time-management, disciplinary issues, Bina Bangsa School Values, Bina Bangsa School activities and spiritual growth, as well as talks by the Headmaster and Vice Principal.

Between the sessions were snack breaks and more group games to keep the students active. On the second night, they were encouraged to write a letter to their parents after the bonfire, before being sent to bed. Students also hiked through the refreshing vegetation in the morning, doing exercise and stretches, as well as undergoing training, or marching, for Indonesia’s Independence Day. This was in addition to a Talent Show, where teams competed against each other to show off a variety of skills and everyone had a good laugh.

To end the orientation camp, after one last photoshoot at the resort, the students and teachers returned to school. Here, the Sec 1 students were greeted by their jubilant parents, who gave them presents as part of the official closing ceremony. At the end of the day, although many were exhausted, the orientation was deemed a success. The Sec 1 students could now more confidently navigate and adapt in secondary school, and there is no doubt that next year will yield equally successful – if not better – results.