by Shimmy Nauenberg, grade 11 student
Over this Summer I participated in several different programs including The Canadian Lifesaving Society’s instructor course, as well as in their National Lifeguard Service program. Additionally, I was a participant in the Learning Enrichment Advancement Program at McMaster University, specifically in the Bioengineering sect of the program. It was a very interesting program that taught me a number of topics that related to Bioengineering.
The Bioengineering program ran for two weeks, from July 13th to July 24th, Monday to Friday. Participants came from all over the world to participate in this program; from as close as Hamilton, to as far as Saudi Arabia. The participant from Saudi Arabia and I had no problems getting along, though we did successfully avoid discussing Middle East politics. Throughout the program we heard from professors at the university about topics such as biomechanics, medical imaging, (MRI, ultrasound, etc.), medical robotics, prosthetic limbs, stem cell research, and genetic engineering. We did several design competitions, including developing a mechanism that can assist in the medical condition of foot drop. We were divided into groups and were given the task to create a prototype. Additionally, we spent a day at OCRIT (Ontario Consortium for Regeneration Inducing Therapeutics) where we learned about stem cell research and how the advancements in this field are being used for medical treatment. Throughout the duration of the program, we did experiments in the Biology and Chemistry labs on the university campus. This program showed me many different fields of Science and allowed me to get a taste of some Biology, Chemistry and Physics. During the program I was constantly applying the knowledge that I had learnt in Science class at YOC.
[callout template=”Quote”] “During the program I was constantly applying the knowledge that I had learnt in Science class at YOC.“[/callout]
During the summer I also took two Canadian Lifesaving Society leadership courses, Lifesaving Society Instructors and National Lifeguard Service. Both these courses taught me many different skills. During the instructor’s course, we were taught about different learning styles, and how to address them all when teaching a class. We were evaluated throughout the week on skills such as communication, leadership, and responsibility. We had to prepare lessons plans, as well as teach mock classes. I learned many different skills that will come in handy when teaching lessons and in life in general. We were also taught about healthy child development, and the behavioral norms for different age groups. I can now teach CP-R as well as Emergency First Aid. Additionally, I now have obtained the knowledge in order to fulfill the requirement of teaching children to swim, like it says in Masechet Kedushin. This course was a very valuable course and also has led to some summer job opportunities. Closer to the end of the summer I took the National Lifeguard Service course through the city of Toronto. Throughout this course we were taught skills such as emergency scene management. Also, we had to run mock scenarios where we were had to guard on deck as teams and do mock rescues. Throughout the course the instructor evaluated us on our fitness, our leadership skills, our communication, and our ability to control emergency situations. Finally, because of this valuable course that I took I will hopefully be able to fulfill the mitzvah of Pikuach Nefesh. Both of these courses have taught me an immense amount of skills and knowledge, and I am very glad that I took them both.
