anjakecman

[anjakecman]

Christmas fair 🎅🎁

🎄Activity title: Christmas fair in our school

🎄Duration and time: December 27th, 5 hours

🎄Type of activity: creativity and service

Activity description

On December 27th our school organized the annual Christmas fair, where we, together with students from IB2 and state curriculum, sold old books, handmade Christmas ornaments, handmade hats, scarves, bags, key-chains, and soaps that we made in our chemistry lab. The idea was to donate money to those in need, organizations in our town that don't get that many donations. We gathered around 8AM and went home at 3PM. We finished earlier than we thought we would, since we sold everything we had made!

Reflection

The whole preparation for the fair, and the fair itself, were very interesting and, surprisingly, not exhausting at all. This is mostly because the Christmas fair encouraged our creativity, helped us work on our organization and salesman skills and all while directly helping other people. It feels amazing to know that the effort that we put in will make someone's life better .

Learning outcomes

🎄Demonstrate the skills and recognize the benefits of working collaboratively.

🎄Recognize and consider the ethics of choices and actions.

🎄Demonstrate how to initiate and plan a CAS experience.

[anjakecman]

₊‧°𐐪♡𐑂°‧₊Making a gingerbread house ₊‧°𐐪♡𐑂°‧₊

🍪Activity title: Making gingerbread house and cookies

🍪Duration and time: December 2nd; 10 hours

🍪Type of activity: creativity

Activity description

On December the 2nd, I invited my friends over in order to make a gingerbread house together. The preparations started even earlier, when we were deciding on what we wanted our house to look like, projected it and calculated the dimensions, and when I made the dough the previous day. We rolled out the dough, and cut the walls and the roof out. We baked the cookies, decorated them, and then assembled the house. We put it together using hot caramel, and used the leftover dough to make some gingerbread cookies. The pictures below show our dedication to the whole process :D

Reflection

Four years ago, my best friend and I made our first gingerbread house using the dough that my mom made, and store-bought cookie cutters. Three years ago, we decided to make the dough ourselves, and last year, we made our own patterns and designs. Our goal is to improve every year and to have a lot of fun during the process. The other thing that changed during the years, is the amount of my friends who were happy to undertake this challenge with me. This year it was the seven of us working hard (or hardly working ;D), listening to music, singing, dancing, eating, talking and laughing. The feeling of the full house and hanging out with my friends is heartwarming in general, and knowing that something beautiful, like this house, came out of it is just a huge plus.

Learning outcomes

🍪Show commitment to and perseverance in CAS experiences

🍪Demonstrate that challenges have been undertaken, developing new skills in the process

🍪Demonstrate the skills and recognize the benefits of working collaboratively

[anjakecman]

Soap making

🫧Activity title: Making soap

🫧Duration and time: about 2 hours

🫧Type of activity: creativity

Activity description

With the help of our teacher and lab assistant, we made soaps in our school lab. We mixed olive oil, sodium hydroxide, essential oils and food coloring, and put them in various molds. We waited for them to cool down and were left with dozens of beautiful and colorful soaps, meant to be sold on the Christmas fair.

Reflection

Making these soaps was a very interesting experience, and it was nice to know how an object that I use every day is made. The technical part surprised me with its simplicity and the decorating part allowed a lot of room for creativity. It was, overall, a very fun way to spend a class, and knowing that these soaps would be sold during the Christmas fair, and that that money would be donated to those in need, made it even better and more fulfilling!

Learning outcomes

🫧Demonstrate that challenges have been undertaken, developing new skills in the process

🫧Show commitment to and perseverance in CAS experiences

🫧Demonstrate the skills and recognize the benefits of working collaboratively

[anjakecman]

Chinese paper cutting workshop 🧧🇨🇳

🧧Activity title: Chinese paper cutting workshop

🧧Date/duration: Friday, 24.11.2023; 10.00h-11.00h

🧧Type of activity: Creativity

Activity description

Our school organized a creative workshop, which focused on learning about the Chinese culture and more specifically, the art of paper cutting. The Chinese teachers attended and were the supervisors. They introduced us to the cultural significance by giving us a presentation on the history and types of paper cutting and afterwards, they split us into groups and taught us these different styles.

Reflection

This was a truly interesting experience and I am really thankful for our school that never disappoints me with all the creative workshops. I learned a lot about the Chinese culture, and the symbol that I was cutting out was the Chinese symbol for good fortune. I found the paper cutting to be very interesting and relaxing, whether I am following a set of instructions or doing a freestyle!

Learning outcomes

🧧Demonstrate that challenges have been undertaken, developing new skills in the process

🧧Identify own strengths and develop areas for growth

🧧Demonstrate the skills and recognize the benefits of working collaboratively

[anjakecman]

˖⁺‧₊˚ ♡ ˚₊‧⁺˖BaLMUN school club ˖⁺‧₊˚ ♡ ˚₊‧⁺˖

🌐Activity title: BaLMUN- school Model United Nations club

🌐Duration and date: long term activity; 1-2 hours a week

🌐Activity type: creativity

Activity description

BaLMUN stands for Banja Luka Model United Nations, which is our school's model United nations club. This club simulates UN conferences and students have the chance to be either a delegate of a certain country or chair (lead) the conference. Just like in the real UN, there are multiple committees and the topic is always an actual current world problem.

We meet on Saturdays, and the big BaLMUN conference will be held in April, with students from the whole region coming to participate.

Reflection

I first heard about this school club last year, when my friend asked me to keep her company since she did not want to attend it by herself. I had no expectations, and no idea that I would fall in love with it.

As someone who is really interested in politics, likes to keep up with ongoing world events and issues, and loves debate, I couldn't have found a better club. An amazing thing about Model United Nations is the fact that I get to work on my English language, and debate skills. Especially since I do not always get assigned a country whose stance I agree with, but I still have to defend its interests. Also, it is because of BaLMUN that I met some great people, and the big BaLMUN conference is something that I truly look forward to every year!

Learning outcomes

🌐Identify own strengths and develop areas for growth.

🌐Demonstrate that challenges have been undertaken, developing new skills in the process.

🌐Demonstrate how to initiate and plan a CAS experience.

🌐Show commitment to, and perseverance in, CAS experiences.

🌐Demonstrate the skills and recognize the benefits of working collaboratively.

🌐Demonstrate engagement with issues of global significance.

🌐Recognize and consider the ethics of choices and actions

[anjakecman]

₊‧°𐐪♡𐑂°‧₊Volunteering at American Corner ₊‧°𐐪♡𐑂°‧₊

🇺🇸Activity title: Volunteering at American Corner

🇺🇸Duration and time: Once a week, 1-2 hours

🇺🇸Activity type: Service

Activity description

This September I joined the American Corner volunteering team. Volunteering at ACBL means participating in a bunch of well-thought out workshops and listening to amazing speeches about various topics held by interesting and credible people our coordinator invites. Being a volunteer also means helping out about some practical tasks, such as decorating the Corner or helping prepare some events.

Reflection

For me, being a part of any team always feels great, especially when it means that I am surrounded by ambitious and hardworking young people. The American Corner allows us to express our creativity, and supports any ideas of ours that are directed towards bettering our city. Our volunteering coordinator Bojana makes volunteering very fun, and our sessions feel like hangouts.

Learning outcomes

🇺🇸Show commitment to and perseverance in CAS experiences

🇺🇸Identify own strengths and develop areas for personal growth

🇺🇸Demonstrate engagement with issues of global significance

🇺🇸Demonstrate the skills and recognize the benefits of working collaboratively

[anjakecman]

Art exhibition and picture book promotion

📙 Activity title: visiting an art exhibition and a picture book "Mala" promotion

📙 Duration: two hours

📙 Type of activity: creativity

Activity description

On October 17th my class visited an art exhibition and a picture book "Mala" promotion in "Dom Omladine", together with our homeroom teacher and our Serbian professor. Both the exhibition and promotion were reflecting on today's societal issues, uniting numerous generations that stood before it in a truly interesting and inspiring manner. Everyone who attended this event also got a chance to listen to Mile Kekin preforming a couple of songs, as well as interesting explanations behind them.

Reflection

Visiting this exhibition and promotion was something quite unexpected but also something I truly enjoyed. The artwork was representing societal issues in an engaging way that we could easily understand, and I felt honored to be visiting the first collaborative exhibition between art schools from Banjaluka and Sarajevo.

After the exhibition I got to listen to Mile Kekin presenting some of my favorite songs, and also background stories about them. In my opinion Mile Kekin is a truly charismatic man, who made an amazing atmosphere, but also discussed a serious issue about our patriarchal society. His picture book and song "Mala" talk about the the way they are perceived and the challenges women face. As a woman, it is always comforting to know that someone else recognizes our struggles, because that is the only way the change will be made.

Learning outcomes

📙Recognize and consider the ethics of choices and actions

📙Show commitment to and perseverance in CAS experiences

📙Demonstrate engagement with issues of global significance

[anjakecman]

Volunteering at Marija Zvijezda Monastery

📚 Activity title: Cleaning and dusting off old books

📚 Duration: 3 hours

📚 Date: 07.10.2023.

📚Type of activity: Service

Activity description

On Sunday, October 7th, a few of my classmates, my homeroom teacher and I decided to volunteer at the Marija Zvijezda Monastery. There, we were instructed to clean old books by using a big brush to dust them off, open them and close them in order to get rid of the dust. After doing that for a while, a friend of mine and I were told to go to the library to find all the books that were published before 20th century and pack them in boxes.

Reflection

I truly enjoyed this activity, even though I must admit that I never expected to take a part in something like this. Cleaning old books wasn't tiring to us, on the contrary; we got to admire books from the 17th, 18th and 19th century all while helping someone.

As someone who's lived in Banja Luka their whole life, I'm a bit ashamed to say that I haven't visited this monastery before. Fortunately, during small breaks, a man working there was kind enough to give us a tour of the monastery.

I am very grateful for having an opportunity to help someone, and to get to know this historically and culturally significant place for our city. Overall, this was a very special volunteering experience, and I am looking forward to doing it again soon.

Learning outcomes

📚Identify own strengths and develop areas for growth

📚Show commitment to and perseverance in CAS experiences

📚Demonstrate the skills and recognize the benefits of working collaboratively

[anjakecman]

Hiking field trip

🌿 Activity title: Hiking field trip 🌿 Duration: 4 hours 🌿 Date: 01.10.2023 🌿 Type of activity: Activity

Activity description

On October 1st my classmates and I decided to take part in a hiking field trip on Manjača. The bus left our schoolyard at 8am, and after arriving there and making a small break, we started our hike at 10am. The plan was to have a relaxing walk through nature and visit the Stričići village. We were walking for 4 hours, and afterwards shared a meal in front of Petar Kočić school.

Reflection

I really enjoyed this activity for numerous reasons. Besides spending some quality time with my new classmates and homeroom teacher, I got to enjoy the landscape and start the month in the best way possible. The hot weather and steep mountains did make this a bit physically challenging but I had a lot of fun nonetheless.

Learning outcomes:

🌿 Identify own strengths and develop areas for growth 🌿Show commitment to and perseverance in CAS experiences 🌿Demonstrate the skills and recognize the benefits of working collaboratively