The medium of instruction is English and Afrikaans is the first additional language. It is a beautiful school with great facilities. Teacher: spent my two week school visit with Miss Sleigh De Mesquite. She is a grade 3 teacher and there are 26 learners in her classroom.
She is patient, friendly, kind and the children are very fond of her. Learners: There were 26 learners in her classroom, 10 girls and 16 boys. Which in my opinion is a large number for one teacher to handle by herself. The learners came from diverse backgrounds and many traveled from the township to attend school in town. The learners required a lot of attention from the teacher and were easily distracted if not stimulated continuously. They asked a lot of questions and were very eager to talk to their teacher about just about anything.
It was obvious from the appearance of some of the learners that they came from poor backgrounds and that they were hungry for love and attention. Teaching and learning styles: The teachers follow a work schedule set up by the school, each grade follows the same schedule to ensure that the different classes do not fall behind and receive the same daily education. The daily schedule has been planned in detail for each day of the week and covers all the learning areas. The daily schedule and its activities are set up to meet the requirements of the CAPS curriculum.
Teachers assess the learners on the following things:
English:
- Class work
- Handwriting
- Listening skills
- Homework
- Oral presentations
- Reading – Spelling
- Class tests
Formal Tests Afrikaans:
Life Skills:
- Individual project
- Art
- Physical education
Math: The learners also write departmental tests and were busy with ANA’s (annual national assessment) during my school visit. The work was explained to the learners in detail before each activity and those learners whom had trouble understanding were assisted by the teacher.
Learners also had to follow written instructions for some activities which they had to read on their own and then complete. Class activities: Class activities were written on the black board which were accompanied by printed worksheets that they pasted into their books. The learners did all of their work in their scripts provided by the school. They had the following workbooks:
- English workbook
- Afrikaans workbook
- Life skills workbook
- Math workbook
- Test book
- Homework and spelling book
Classroom environment: The classroom was large, well lit and well ventilated.
The walls were decorated with colorful posters; there was a ‘big carpet’ and reading corner. There was enough space for the learners to move around and all the children had a desk and chair and could see the black board properly. The classroom atmosphere was very relaxed and the learners looked very comfortable and did not hesitate to ask their teacher questions or make small talk. School environment: The school was safe, clean and more than big enough to accommodate its learners. The facilities were regularly maintained and there were helpers employed to ensure that the classrooms and school grounds were cleaned and well maintained.
The staff was friendly and much loved by the learners of the school. The school took matters of discipline and respect very seriously.
Activities:
The school has many extra mural activities, such as:
- Athletics
- Choir
- Chess
- Hockey
- Netball
- Soccer
- Cricket
- Squash
- Swimming
- Youth club
All these activities are given by the teachers. The school takes part in a number of leagues and compete with other schools in the area. The school also took part in the eisteddfod and did very well.
