Friday provided the perfect weather for 28 aspiring Year 5 leaders to partake in a leadership day camp at the Shearwater Broadwater Park and then the Runaway Bay Super Sports Centre. The camp is designed to further develop the leadership and team work skills of students who are seeking to gain a badged position next year, in particular, as Head of School or Head of Student Council.

Students were introduced to the CAR leadership model which stands for Communication, Action and Resilience and their resilience was certainly tested.

Stand-up paddle boarding was probably the highlight of the day and saw students working in pairs to manoeuvre the board from one end of the beach to the other. Students needed to contend with the wind that kept pushing them towards the shore but they didn't let this deter them from making the most of their time in the water.

After paddle boarding, students then headed back to the Sports Centre for a shower and lunch. Competition was fierce in our next activity where students learned a game that resembled 'stuck in the mud' but was played with a pool noodle. This was a game that encouraged strategic thinking and team work and the best part was probably being allowed to whack one another with the noodles!

The final task for the day was the team building challenges where students moved around an obstacle course that appeared relatively simple if you needed to complete it on your own. However when students needed to join themselves together with a partner, the difficulty increased dramatically. Some students even managed to complete the course with 4 of them joined together. These challenges required our aspiring leaders to not only think strategically but also to communicate effectively, consider and be patient with their team mate and when something didn't work, reflect on how to improve.

Staff from the Sports Centre were once again blown away with the calibre of leadership qualities our students already display and we are very confident that the role of our 2020 Head of School and Head of Student Council are in good hands. The next step is to short list this group of 28 to just 12 students who will then move on to an interview phase. To say this is a difficult decision is an understatement.