How the societies at Warwick are keeping students connected while at home

At Warwick, the student societies and sports clubs have taken the initiative to create activities for their members to do at home. In this blog, undergraduate student Zari discusses some her favourite activities that you can get involved with online.

We are facing unprecedented times in the first few months of 2020, which is affecting everyone differently. Now, more than ever, we are seeking productive ways to spend time at home and with our families. Fortunately, the societies and clubs at Warwick have recognised that a lot of us can get a bit bored at home and have taken the initiative to create activities for their members to keep them engaged and connected with fellow friends while away from campus. The main areas that I am going to cover within this blog are the daily challenges, online classes and social bingo – as personally I find those to be the most fun.

Daily Challenges

• Warwick Calisthenics Society (WUCS)

The Deadly Dozen Push Up Challenge isn’t for the faint hearted. It’s a series of push ups but each time you come off the ground you do a movement with your hands in between the push ups. Of course the society could not set a challenge like that without proving they could do it themselves, on the societies Instagram page you’ll find a video of the president of the society taking part. While doing push ups he stretched his hands out in front of him, clapped his hands in front of him, clapped his hands behind him and even jumped off the ground at a considerable distance to stretch out his hands during the push ups. I am always amazed at the things the exec team can do while we have our weekly workout sessions, but don’t worry, the weekly workouts themselves aren’t that tough.

The 10 Second Handstand Challenge is the easier of the two for most people but there is also a variation for the those who are at the beginner level. All you need to do is get up into a handstand and hold it for 10 seconds. You can use the wall for assistance if you need it like me, but if you do use the wall you have to hold it for 25 seconds. If you are interested in doing either one feel free to tag the society on social media and nominate your friends for some healthy competition.

• Warwick Discourse Society

Warwick Discourse has made daily lists of things for us students to do. The only thing I haven’t done on the list is read a book which is up next for me as I have been trying to read ‘Becoming’ by Michelle Obama since last year. On the list they had exercise, bake something and upcycle some clothes to name a few. Although they are simple what I really like is that they involve us going offline away from the screens we are usually glued to during quarantine. Furthermore, we can incorporate our family to make it more fun.

Lately I have found myself either cooking or baking something different everyday with my family. It’s a great bonding session and the results are very tasty and satisfying. Just this week I made a traditional Trinidadian dish called Pelau which is stewed chicken, rice and peas and macaroni pie along with some brownies for dessert. It was delicious!

• Warwick History Society

This society has organised a weeklong challenge for its members called the “7 day photo challenge”. Each day you upload a photo based on the different requirements that they set and tag them on Instagram with their hashtag. You might have to go back into the archives for this one, but a loyal member should be able to get the majority of the photos.

• Warwick Law Society

If you’re a law student or passionate about law then this challenge is the one for you. It’s a 30-day long challenge that is mostly based on Law (not surprisingly!). Each day members should complete one of the activities corresponding with the day. They are related to the society’s events and your law degree as well as members’ personal preferences. For example, Day 5 asks you to name your best law related TV show and mine has to be ‘How to Get Away with Murder’ because Viola Davis is my favourite actress. It’s great to see everyone taking part and tagging the society.  

Society Bingo

A few societies have found that creating Bingo cards is a fun and easy way to get their members to reminisce on the memories created with them on campus. It’s a great way to remind yourself of all the fun times you’ve had and one of the best ways to get your friends involved. They have taken this approach because individuals can complete it online and nominate their other friends who continue to circulate it to others. Some societies and clubs that have done Bingos are Warwick International and European Law Society (IELS), Warwick Salsa and Warwick Girl Boss Society. You can check them out and do them with your friends.

Online Classes

• Warwick Aerobics Club

Their first online class focused on a glute workout by one of the former Exec members of the club. If you are looking for a routine to integrate into your weekly exercise this can be the one for you. The instructor uses a pair of weights for most of the 14 minute session that can be done in the comfort of your home. So, grab some water and head over to their social media to checkout the workout and remember you can always improvise if you don’t have weights! Additionally, they have collated a list on their Instagram of 9 Aerobics accounts that anyone can follow for more training. If you do not want to lose your progress or you are just starting with Aerobics these accounts along with the Warwick Aerobics Club’s video can help you avoid boredom while being at home.

• Warwick Belly Dance Society

On Tuesdays and Thursdays at 18:00-19:00 you can catch Warwick Belly Dance Society on Zoom for their virtual online classes for everyone. There was one week where they had a Latin inspired theme for the class so if you always wanted to try something new this is the perfect opportunity for you. If you check their Facebook page, they post the links there about 30 minutes before each class.  Warwick Belly Dance also has Arab fusion themed virtual classes led by their former exec. Please don’t be worried about not having prior experience because the classes are tailored for beginners, intermediate and advanced dancers!

I would like to commend the societies above and all other societies and clubs for their efforts to spread a little positivity through these uncertain times to the Warwick community. I’ve only covered a couple of societies/clubs that I have come across but I’m sure there will be one out there for you!

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