Term Three | 2019/20

It has been another busy term for both participants and leaders.

Bronze DofE

Participants have been involved in a wide range of activities for their Bronze programmes, including:

• Volunteering – litter picking, charity shop, science club, sports coaching, helping at a local horse stable, helping at school, and helping at a local community centre.
• Physical – badminton, horse riding, cricket, keep fit, walking, basketball, biking, bowls, football, trampolining, and swimming.
• Skills – playing an instrument, drawing, baking, cooking, iDEA, dog training, media skills & journalism, pet care, photography, Scouting – life skills, singing, and writing.

Silver DofE

Participants from the 2018/19 cohort have been completing their outstanding Sections. It is hoped they will have their DofE programme completed before the end of the school year (July 2020). Congratulations to Leticia Cahu and Jemma Paterson on completing their Silver DofE Awards - the first two young people ever to achieve this at St Machar Academy. Well done!

Participants from the 2019/20 cohort have been involved in a wide range of activities for their Silver programmes, including:

• Volunteering within school – helping in the science and art departments, organising P7 Smart Start sessions, and maintaining DofE equipment.
• Physical – badminton, basketball, table tennis, and volleyball.
• Skills – drawing, first aid, playing an instrument, photography, and religious studies.

Bronze & Silver DofE Expedition Training

Participants have covered the following expedition training sessions: first aid & emergency procedures; an awareness of risk and health & safety; navigation & route planning; preparatory map skills; campcraft, equipment & hygiene; food & cooking; Scottish Outdoor Access Code; observation recording & presentations; and teambuilding.

Silver participants have been involved in mentoring the Bronze participants on various aspects of the expedition training.

Thank you

A big thank you to all the DofE Leaders that work with the participants on a weekly basis, and the staff & local community that provide activities for the participants to do on a regular basis.

A special thanks must go to Bethan Raynes, a 4th year Geography student at the University of Aberdeen who has volunteered with us over the past two sessions. The service Bethan has given to St Machar Academy is much appreciated.

*** DON'T STOP YOUR DOFE ***

Just because we're staying home, doesn't mean we can't keep working towards Duke of Edinburgh Awards. If your usual DofE activities are cancelled, there are loads of new ones you can try from home instead. For more information, visit https://www.dofe.org/dofewithadifference #DofEWithADifference

For further information on The Duke of Edinburgh’s Award, please visit www.dofe.org or speak to Mr Scott, DofE Co-ordinator.