Balmela is an event that is organized every year in order to give underprivileged children a day full of fun, joyful and energetic activities. This year, me and 2 other people (Aashi Jariwala, Vaishnavi Contractor) were the event coordinators for this program. During the planning of this event, we were supposed to finalize all the activities for the day, make sure we have enough volunteers for all the activities, finalize the venues for all activities, finalize the resources and their quantity, coordinate with all the volunteers, assign them their tasks and make sure that the event was a success. We decided to split the tasks, however, still communicate with each other after every task got completed in order to avoid any miscommunications.Â
LO1 (Identify own strengths and develop areas for growth)-
As we started going through the process of planning and organizing the event, I started identifying my own strengths and weaknesses. I believe my biggest strength throughout the event was my ability to coordinate with my peers. Even though, at times it was difficult for me to compromise, I understood that that is how teamwork works. Another strength for me was my patience. I think my ability to be patient under stressful circumstances really helped me cope on the day of the event. For instance, when on the day of the event, a few stalls lacked a few resources, I did not panic; I was patient and thought logically which helped me overcome my problem sooner. As for my areas for growth, I believe I need to develop my leadership skills further ahead. This is because I am not very outspoken and hence I am not good at leading people. However, I do believe that I have gotten better at it over time.Â
LO2 (Demonstrate that challenges have been undertaken, developing new skills)-
Going into the project, I knew that this was going to be a task for me but I was motivated to give it my all, in order to give the impoverished, young children a day they would remember. The main challenge throughout this project was deciding the resources and its amount. It was quite a tedious task because we had to make sure that there were enough resources available for all the children, however, at the same time, no resources were getting wasted. In order to achieve this task, I decided to talk to volunteers and teachers who would have more knowledge about these resources and asked for their guidance. This instance taught me the importance of communication in order to get a fruitful outcome.Â
LO3 (Initiate and plan a CAS experience)-
As we had a limited amount of time and a lot to accomplish, I believe that planning for this particular project was rather challenging. I made sure to have a to-do list throughout the entire project in order to keep track of everything, which helped me successfully organize myself. Even though I don’t tend to be very organized, this was very helpful. I made sure to come up with good ideas for activities for the children. We divided the activities in three categories: arts and crafts, games and sports. I think this was a perfect blend of different activities that every kid could enjoy. We had planned about 35 activities and had over 2000 children attending the Balmela. Due to the heavy number of children, we chose around 130 volunteers to be at the stalls and make the kids play.Â
LO4 (Show perseverance and commitment in CAS experience)-
Due to the scale, purpose and cause of the event, it was integral for me to show perseverance and commitment throughout the project. I made sure to follow all the guidelines and complete all the tasks in time to get a good outcome. I was consistent and on time during all the activities and meetings held for the event. Even though it was difficult for me to manage my time with all the other things, I managed to do it at last. Even though this endeavor required a lot of time and effort at times, I wouldn’t trade it for anything. I knew that I was helping the community and giving back to society in some way. I am quite passionate about it, therefore when it came to organizing Balmela event, I was on time and consistent.
LO5 (Demonstrate skills and benefits of working collaboratively)-
Throughout the project, I was working closely with my peers (Aashi Jariwala and Vaishnavi Contractor). We were the ones chosen as the event coordinators and hence had to work together in order to make the event a success. This was not a very difficult task for me since I am a calm and patient listener. However, during the planning of the project we did hit a few speed bumps. For instance, when I had a different opinion for the venue allocation from my peers. I had to logically convince them of my choice. Even though this was a tough, time consuming task, I learnt a lot from it. Working together was definitely a benefit since we were able to complete a lot of work in a very short time.Â
LO6 (Engagement with issues of global significance)-
We talk about Sustainable Development Goals when we talk about engagement with issues of global significance. For this project, we decided to focus on ‘quality education’ and ‘no poverty’ as the SDGs. This is because, organizing this event involved us thinking of creative ways to involve kids in fun learning activities which would interest them but also be beneficial for them. This would help them develop their gross motor skills even further, while spending the day enjoying. Quality education is a stepping stone towards no poverty. Consequently, our purpose for the event was to give the impoverished kids a day they would remember, while also learning something.
LO7 (Recognize and consider the ethics of choices and actions)-
This project made me recognize and consider the ethics of choices and actions. I am able to make this claim because of how this project tested my endurance and resolve. Throughout this project, I had to be available and on time in order to give the best possible results which was a necessity owing to the purpose of the event. I had to be completely devoted and organized throughout the project in order to get the outcome I required.Â
Evidence –
 
 