Monday, April 26, 2010

Certified

This last seven days have gone by very quickly indeed. Week commencing 19th April I have to go on a First Aid course for work. It was of three days duration run by St John Ambulance. Very informative and lots of changes in practise since the last first aid course I did. I learned my ABC's all over again together with practical skills. The assessment was on Wednesday afternoon. I got dibbed to go first which was a double edged sword. It was really nerve racking. I have not been this nervous since my radio operators course. It is the idea that you are given a scenario and you have to act from that point. As soon as you make the first step the training kicks in, hopefully and you are away. It is that first step! Once I got into it the butterflies settled down.

The fencing club needs another qualified coach. There are plenty of people who can coach but few that have a formal qualification. After several pleas from the current boss I relented and let them enroll me for a coaching. That was a mistake. They booked on the course for the weekend just gone. It is a fast track course. A minimum of 30 hours study prior to the course then two full days of intensive training. The course material was on the mat when I got home from work on Thursday evening. I immersed myself in the book and CD. The technical aspects were fine since I can fence. The safety stuff is partially known but not the precise detail. Then there was the delivery of the teaching aspect which is all new to me. The weekend was very intensive but at the same time interesting. Lots of practical work and role playing (which I hate). Not to forget the discussions and analysis. The nature of the course was that the practical stuff was continuous assessment and every time you thought you had reached the requirement a new requirement or consideration was plugged in. There were eight students and two coaches so I got lots of coaching. My technical fencing improved and I learned some new tricks. I was lucky in that I lived the nearest. The course was in Nottingham but folks had travelled from as far a field and Durham and Milton Keynes. The eight of us ranged in age from 14 to 50+. It gave a good mix of people and styles. In the end we completed the syllabus were tested and came away with a great deal both professionally and personally.

I am chuffed to say I passed both courses. The courses are pass or fail however the examination elements have very high percentage rate to pass. I should get my first aid certificate in a week or so. For the fencing one I have to attend a child protection seminar then all the boxes are ticked and I get that certificate too.

In the meantime the weather continues to be warm in the sun but a little colder in the wind and at night. The greenhouse is groaning with seedlings that need planting out. Because of the weekends activities I am doing the poo trailer this evening which will give me a chance to check over the lottie. Then I have to go the fencing on Tuesday to give them the news. I hope to get a chances to go to the garden centre this week to get some more potting compost for the next lot of seedlings.

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