Weekend News
In Reception year, we focus a lot on the importance of reading, and it is always such a pleasure to see the smile on a little one’s face when he or she mastered a new skill in reading or writing.
Every Monday, students come to school excited to share their weekend news with their friends, and now as their reading and writing skills have progressed, they also write down their weekend news in their writing books.
This year has been particularly challenging for our students, but despite this they have made tremendous progress in learning to read. It is wonderful to see the progress from week to week, as students gain more confidence in their own abilities.
We would like to share some of our weekend news with everybody:
Tilda Rohlandt (6) “I watched Peppa Pig on TV”Kirby Melvin (5) “I went to the strawberry farm.”Juliana Baruti (5) “I went to the shop. I went swimming.”Dora Wang (5) “I ride my bicycle.”
Reception Teacher
Lockdown Learning
What Shakespeare can teach us about surviving online learning.
What do we English teachers do when times are tough? We look to the Bard of course! Who better to guide us through the online educational space than a writer who has been dead for over 400 years! Now before you scoff “nonsense” over the rim of your coffee mug and scroll to the next page, let’s consider this in a little more depth. The transition to online learning has been challenging for students and teachers alike and we have all been plagued by fears and doubts. First Language English is a subject which you may consider one of the easier subjects to study online and perhaps you have a point. I can email you a poem- you can read it- you can write me an essay about it. Bob’s your uncle, done and dusted. Bring on the next one… Well, not quite.
Why does an author write a book? Obviously they want people to read it, but more than that, they want people to talk about it; it’s the hushed conversation in smoky cafes, the heated discussions over a plate of Thai chicken niblets at an annual Book Club meeting and the dog-eared, coffee stained pages of a favourite book passed from parent to child. Literature provokes dialogue and debate and as I always say to my students “It’s okay to hate the story you’ve just read, but you must be able to tell me why”. Stories, poems, plays- they are meant to be read and shared and isn’t it a truism that it is just as satisfying to discuss something you love as something you hate?
This is why I want to be back in my classroom! Not just for my view of the mountain, but for the interaction; the back and forth across the classroom, the heated opinions and different perspectives which mingle and lap the edges of the room like a gentle wave on a summer’s day.
Simply put, it’s a lot more difficult to discuss a work of literature isolated from each other as we currently are. You can read the play yourself, sure, but where’s the fun in that? A play isn’t meant to be performed by one person, now is it? My belabored point is that teaching First Language English online is a challenge and no Zoom meeting or Google Hangout Meet can replicate the wonderful disorder of a good class discussion.
Back to my original point. So, what do we do when we feel the pressure, the stalking fear and self-doubt that comes with being chucked in the deep end of the pool and having to paddle like a crazed duck to stay afloat? To whom do we turn when the challenges of online learning become all too real? Why, to Shakespeare of course! As usual, our dear Bard has a few life lessons up his sleeve to help us cope.
- “Our doubts are traitors, and make us lose the good we oft might win, by fearing to attempt.” We have all suffered the pangs of fear and self-doubt in navigating online learning and adapting to different methods of teaching. We should not doubt our abilities, for nothing ventured is nothing gained, and I am fairly sure our students are prey to the very same emotions which trouble us. We are capable of a lot more than we think- from teachers, to students and parents and self-doubt is the enemy of success.
- “Give every man thy ear, but few thy voice.” Learn to listen. Perhaps the most valuable exercise I have done during online learning is to have my students to talk to me, rather than I to them. “Tell me the truth”, I say to them. “How is it really going?” I have spent many minutes at the beginning of online sessions just listening… listening to the complaints, the fears, the excuses and you know what? I really have learnt a lot. I am learning what is working and what isn’t. Online learning is a collaborative process and if both sides are honest about their expectations and progress, then the game is half won.
- “Better three hours too soon than a minute too late.” Don’t be late. Shall we leave it at that and move on?
- “Pleasure and action make the hours seem short.” Keep busy and keep your mind active. I always imagined myself as the perfect lounge lizard, but to be honest, if I wasn’t working, I would’ve gone mad on Day 3 (Day 4 if Netflix released Outlander season 4). It’s important to keep ourselves busy and I don’t just mean with hours of admin and slog in front of the computer; I mean busy with activities which stimulate the mind. This goes for our students as well- research tasks which require them to think and engage with material. I enjoy setting argumentative and discursive topics for my students; topics which require them to have a good think and do a bit of research to support their opinions. They had to write a magazine article on the topic of cosmetic surgery and boy, the opinions flooded the room like bees after Pooh’s spilt honey pot. But they were engaged, I can promise you that.
- “The miserable have no other medicine, but only hope.” I’m sure we’ve all felt the cold tickling of misery at least once during lockdown but on the bright side, as the saying goes, there’s no way but up from here. Shakespeare reminds us that the doldrums only increase our focus on the horizon and the calm flats which lie ahead. Let us remain positive and instill this positivity in the students. Complaining may be temporarily cathartic but does little good. We are learning new skills, finding hidden talents and drawing on resources we never knew we had. It’s an adventure and like all good tales, it starts out filled with peril and looming disaster, but by the end we’re all safe at home with a nice cup of tea. Or more aptly for our context, by the end we’re all in each other’s homes sharing a nice pot of tea.
Take the Bard’s words to heart. Enjoy a good book and don’t try and argue with me that Shakespeare is no longer relevant! Stay safe everyone.
Alice Pryor
High School English Language and Literature Teacher
An amazing article compiled by Catherine Fortuin (Year 8) while using the e-learning systems from Blouberg International School.
Young Authors Club 2020
What’s the best part of being a school age author, you ask! Why, the fun of writing, of course – but meeting other young authors is a blast too. The Young Authors’ Club started off the year by getting to know each other through name poems – read on if you’d like to know a bit more about us too!
Sarah:
Super girl power
Amazing at singing
Real deal girl/boy
Active all the time
Helping hand
Akhula:
Awesome at cooking
Kind to others
Hysterical with friends
Unhappy when others are rude
Loves to dance
Always hungry or thirsty
Gabriella:
Great at swimming
Amazing at being a friend
Bright and always positive
Reading is one of my favourite things to do
Interested in new things
Extremely funny
Loves puppies and dogs
Loves reading books
Always wants chocolate
Mia:
May be the most kindest person
I can play piano
Awesomest girl ever
Aimee:
Amazing
Intelligent
Magnificent
Exquisite
Exciting
Vrithi:
Very funny
Really positive
I’m kind
Terrific
Hugs are my favourite
I’m curious
Noa:
Never, ever, ever negative
Observe how beautiful she is
Amazing at singing
Karabo:
King of everything
Accepted everything
Race champion
Apple eater
Big and strong
Orange eater
Isabel:
Incredibly funny
Stunning
Awesome at everything
Beautiful hair
Eating strawberry
Loves Boxers (They’re her favourite kind of dog!)
Hannah Kirkaldy
Club Facilitator
Creative Writing in Year 1
In Year 1 the students study a range of text types and genres in their English lessons. The texts are carefully selected to include an appropriate balance of fiction, non-fiction and poetry. The students are encouraged to actively explore, investigate, understand, use and develop their knowledge of English and in particular reading, writing, listening and speaking skills through the use of regular, guided group and paired work, independent group work and individual work.
Our Year 1 students recently read the story of The Jigaree by Joy Cowley. After much discussion and a great deal of imagination, the students then wrote their own story about meeting an alien.
At this stage of the year the students are encouraged to use punctuation, full stops and capital letters, in their stories and apply their phonic knowledge to spell words.
These are some examples of the stories.
My alien’s name is Bob and he has an oval body. He has one eye on his forehead. Also he has two legs and two hands and most of all, fat wings with spots on his fat wings. I took him home.
Sinddhizhai Divakaran
Once upon a time I went to the moon and I saw an alien. She has two eyes at the top of her head and she has two wings. Her name is Shaldan. We went to the planetarium.
Ayaana Kuthas
I was at the moon when I saw an alien that cried because she had lost her mom and dad. So I helped her find her way back home. I loved her but I needed to let her go but she came back every time. She told me her name was Summer.
Isabella Heidmann
I saw an alien in the bin. He was peeking out the bin. I walked close then I went in his space ship. He drank juice. He had purple skin and he had a T-shirt with a skull. He went back to Mars and he went home. His name was ET.
Aidan Bezuidenhout
My alien’s name is Jasper. I met him at the park. We had an adventure. After that he went to his house.
Caleb Ajayi
Ann Cordner
Year 1 Teacher
Creating Our Own Poetry in Year 1
In Year 1 we have been learning about poetry. Poetry is so important because it helps us understand and appreciate the world around us. Using poetry, as teachers, enables us to teach our students how to write, read and understand any text.
Poetry uses powerful imagery, can be inspiring and can elicit powerful emotions, giving students a healthy outlet for their emotions.
Reading original poetry aloud in class can foster trust and empathy in the classroom community, developing speaking and listening skills. In our class the students had copious amounts of fun creating and writing their own rhymes and poems.
Charlotte Cronje
Year 1 Teacher