Author: trindadecamara

The Foundation Stage students have returned to school this term with great exuberance.

In Reception, the students could not wait to tell their teachers about all the fun things they had been doing over the holidays. Each student shared their favourite activity with the class.

Ms Nuthall was so proud to see the students very capably writing their very first heading in their book ‘My Holiday’.

Each member of the class took great delight in drawing their favourite activity during the holidays. This is how they described their pictures afterwards:

Ayo Bernardo Honwana (5 years old) “I went to the beach.”

Emmanuel Chukwuemeka (4 years old) “I was at home and my sister went to the doctor.”

Himansh Dammalapati (5 years old) “I went on a drive. It was rainy and sunny and I saw a rainbow.”

Somtochukwu Ezeonye (5 years old) “I went to the beach.”

Xavier Foulds (5 years old) “I went on the monkey bars at the park.”

Lukho Hashe (5 years old) “I went to the shops with my daddy. Mommy stayed at home.”

Jadey Howes (5 years old) “We were at the zoo.”

Melody Kroukamp (5 years old) “I went to Ouma and Oupa and played a lot.”

Ingelam Mabona (5 years old) “I went to the shops.”

Londeka Magagula (5 years old) “I played at the playground.”

Pecresse Muteb Kawan (5 years old) “I played with my friends.”

Charlcy Nyausaru (4 years old) “I was playing in the garden.”

Jan Pani (5 years old) “I went to the rock pools and caught some fish there.”

Daniel Perdigão (5 years old) “I played in my backyard and took a picture with my mom’s phone.”

Arye Shaik Mohamed (5 years old) “I went to see my grandparents in Johannesburg.”

Shivansh Trivedi (4 years old) “I went to the playground.”

Durva Vanjare 5 (years old) “I went to the beach with my family and then we went to the mall.”

Bronwen Nuthall
Reception Year Teacher

2021 started with a bang and now that we have reached the end of the term, I can only wonder where the time has gone.

We were very fortunate that school sport and sport lessons for Year 7 and 8 could resume after February 15^th when the Covid restrictions were eased. We remain positive that we will be able to resume with our winter sport in Term 2.

Term 2 will commence on Tuesday, 13 April 2021. Term 2 is an important term as students will be writing their June examinations. There will be parent-teacher meetings in Term 2, and we encourage parents to attend if they have concerns regarding progress in a particular subject. Parents will receive more information about these meetings next term.

We would like to thank Mrs. Lawrence for everything she has done for us as parents, students, and teachers. We wish her all the best for her new journey.

Finally, we would like to thank all the parents and students for their hard work in Term 1 and we look forward to a busy and exciting second term. If you are travelling these holidays, please be safe.

Julian Harrison
Head of Academics, High School.

My eyes can see the big bright sun.
My nose can smell hot cinnamon buns.
My ears can hear the big loud drum.
My tongue can taste good things. Yum! Yum!
My hands can feel the sand. What fun!
I like my senses, every one!
(Poet unknown)

In Science, this term, Year 3 had a lot of fun experimenting with their senses.  From testing different flavours in a tasting experience to participating in a treasure hunt, making their own telephones, and ultimately culminating in creating a Taste Monster!

Here’s how they did it:
First, students were asked to select one flavour – sweet, salty, sour, bitter or spicy.  They then had to bring pictures of foods illustrating their particular flavour to school. After that, they selected an A3 colour card which matched their flavour. Using their imagination, they drew a Taste Monster which represented their particular flavour. Students needed to pay special attention to their monster’s mouth as the final step was to fill the monster’s mouth with their food pictures.  The results were spot on and some were quite scary…

Well done, Year 3!

Mandy Goch
Year 3 Teacher

Our new curriculum subject, Global Perspectives, has proven to be a hit with the Year 2 students. Over the last few weeks, they have imagined packing a bag and jetting off to a destination.

We started our journey, touring South Africa, made our way to Madagascar (a firm favourite) and then on to Japan. This was particularly of interest to the children, as we have a student, currently studying online, living in Japan. We ended our trip in England and the London Eye was definitely their most discussed landmark.

Apart from learning about the different traditions, cultures, foods, sports, and landmarks, we also explored what it would feel like to move to a new country. The children made posters and discussed their favourite destination during our Show and Tell lesson.

We cannot wait to continue exploring when we return for Term 2!

Kim Coetzer
Year 2 Teacher

One of the most rewarding things as a teacher is observing the students learning as they play and developing their different skills by doing so. Helping them along their journey is part of the fun for everyone!

Everything the Nursery and Pre-Reception students do during their day’s activities contribute to their over-all development.

Children learn creativity, confidence, problem solving, perseverance, focus, dedication, collaboration and accountability through art.

Sensory play also contributes in crucial ways to brain development. Stimulating the senses sends signals to the children’s brains that helps to strengthen neural pathways important for all types of learning.

Children learn through doing. Art is an important part of a child’s world. It’s not only a way for children to express themselves, but it also helps them develop their fine–motor skills. The process during creative activities is more important than the final product. Small–muscle control is needed in order to cut with scissors, paint with a brush and colour with crayons. Creating these works of art builds a child’s self-esteem. The finished product, displayed on the refrigerator or wall, validates a child’s sense of worth.

Another very important activity during our day is building puzzles. Puzzles develop a child’s abstract thinking ability as they must be able to see a space and visualize what belongs in that space. Fine-motor coordination is developed when fitting the pieces into place.

Fine-motor control is developed by playing with a variety of toys such as big and small Legos, wooden blocks, pegboards, beads to thread, play dough etc. These manipulative toys help develop a child’s fine motor skills, which is a precursor to being able to write.

I hope you see play differently, through the eyes of a teacher and the importance of it!

Cindy Nunan
Nursery and Pre-Reception Teacher

 

I have been at Blouberg International for as long as I can remember. I joined the school in Pre-Reception when I was only two years old. Now I am in Year 10 and I have seen the school grow so much over the years.

In Year 9 I was given the opportunity to take Computer Science and Coding as a subject. Since beginning the course I have taken a strong liking to the Coding aspect of the curriculum. In Coding, I am able to stimulate my mind and develop my problem-solving skills.

As the world we live in is continuing to advance in the digital aspect, taking up Coding as a subject is a huge benefit to anyone as it is a more sought-after job and skill set to wield in the current day and age.

Our school also offers a variety of different languages for the students to learn to code in, opening up many opportunities for the future.

With Computer Science, the possibilities are endless for future opportunities, whether you take it further in a career or continue to the code as a hobby.

– Shaylee Brandt (Year 10 Student)

 

Last year, Riaan Vosloo, our high school art teacher, painted games on the corridors of the foundation phase building and on the playground. These games not only keep the students busy at playtime, but also give the teachers opportunity to use them, to reinforce maths concepts taught in the classroom.

Benefits of playing maths games:

1. Increase student engagement –

Maths games are an excellent and fun way for students to practice their maths skills. Although students are thinking, working and exploring concepts, the games increase their level of engagement by adding excitement to the learning process.

2. Reinforce learning –

As teachers we can reinforce the concepts learnt in class and give the students new and meaningful ways to practice.

3. Develop social skills –

Working with a partner or in a small group reinforces social skills such as taking turns, co-operation, communication skills and sportsmanship.

4. Provide opportunities to differentiate –

All students learn at different rates and in different ways and games provide ways to differentiate, so student’s individual needs are addressed.

5. Build student confidence –

When students are playing a game, they are less fearful of failure and work through mathematical challenges and this builds their confidence.

At home parents can play games that develop maths skills and at the same time enjoy family time together. While electronic games are fun, children do work in isolation. Pintrest is a great resource for finding games you can play at home with your children.

Ann Cordner
Year 1 Teacher

The love of reading is something we aim to cultivate in the Foundation Stage classes, and we are so proud to see the little ones embrace this as they practise their letters every day.  Another favourite part of the day is story time and each week a few students are given the chance to go the library and choose stories for the class to read.

Some of the most popular stories in our class are the Mr. Men stories.  The students love hearing what Mr. Tickles is up to, or what misadventures Mr. Bump had. We asked the students to draw their favourite Mr. Men or Little Miss character.

I think we may have a few future illustrators in our class.

Monique Meyer
Reception Year Teacher