WILGEHEUWEL – Dios Los Ninos School got off to a happy start this year with new developments, fun activities, new pupils and new teachers.
“We want to say welcome back to all the teachers from 2016 and welcome to the new teachers, Retha Prinsloo (Afrikaans and English), René Christiane (English) and Rika Jackson (assistant teacher for grades 0 and 3),” said principal, Leonie de Kock.
Christiane is also responsible for applying the Davis Methods at the school. This therapy is specifically for pupils with dyslexia, dyscalculia, dysgraphia and ADHD. Her therapy room is now part of the permanent arrangement at the school.
“We started working on day one. Our Grade 0s already started with letter formations and the Grade 1s are busy with reading – something we are very proud of. We are also paying attention to physical aspects by doing sport/gross motor skills on a daily basis,” De Kock, explained.
From the middle of last year, the school spent a lot of time getting the little ones involved in technology and interacting with Smartboards. The pupils each bring their own devices to school, which then connect to the WiFi and the Smartboard in class.
“Our learners are registered with IXL Learning, an additional online maths programme, in order to uplift their maths skills. We also use devices for research on topics and do creative writing. The school also has a computer centre of its own. Here, learners do special reading programmes, memory methods as well as computer skills. Learners are taught from an early age how to use programs like Word, PowerPoint and Publisher,” De Kock added.
The school’s aftercare has also grown drastically, which almost 50 per cent of the pupils attend. “Our aim with this is to do homework with them and create a home away from home. By the time parents collect their children, they have played their hearts out, outside in healthy sunlight. We are the proud owners of a lovely ‘playhouse’ that all our learners make use of for imaginary play. They simply cannot get enough of this. We get wonderful donations for this playhouse from outside people,” said De Kock.
“Our aim with this is to do homework with them and create a home away from home. By the time parents collect their children, they have played their hearts out, outside in healthy sunlight. We are the proud owners of a lovely ‘playhouse’ that all our learners make use of for imaginary play. They simply cannot get enough of this. We get wonderful donations for this playhouse from outside people,” said De Kock.
But the fun continues as the youngsters look forward to a camp at Thaba Marula, a visit to Croc City and the Roodepoort Museum, later in the year.
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