Author: trindadecamara

“¡Hola amigos y amigas!”

This year, I am focusing on working with simple and effective resources to get the students into routines in Spanish class.

I believe that routines are essential for them to practice basic and simple expressions – every day, in a way that all our students can participate. Starting my lessons the same way, it helps students focus and start thinking and interacting in Spanish.

It takes time to establish a routine but once they get familiar with the vocabulary, the students can complete the tasks by themselves in less than 3 weeks.

The worksheet is designed to help students begin to understand themselves and be aware of how they are feeling each day (feelings), as well as what is going on around them. (The date, the season, the weather). It practices simple and practical language in a visual way that makes it accessible to the whole class.

To print less, I hand out a copy of the worksheet to students, at the beginning of the year, asking them to stick it on their notebook first page.

Then I use the projector in class to help them write down the same information in their notebook at the beginning of each lesson, especially at the beginning of the year.

I can say that I am very impressed with the positive impact that a solid beginning of the class routine creates, especially with the youngest students.

Having a repetitive start gives students the opportunity to settle in and feel comfortable with the change in language. It gives everyone in the class a chance to speak and sets the tone for the class.

In my classes, we start with general information (day, date, weather, feelings) and we will be adding more sections, especially in the last years of Primary school (express likes and dislikes, describe themselves).

It is important to note that I only see my classes once or twice per week, but they can still write down their routine in Spanish every day.

This is what I do at the beginning of class:
(It might take a few classes for students to master these basic routines but in 3 or 4 classes they will be familiarized with it and it will make the beginning of class smooth)

Routine 1 – Greetings.
I say, “Hola”
Students say, “hola”
Then I say, “buenos días” (good morning) or “buenas tardes” (good afternoon/evening)
Students say, “buenos días” or “buenas tardes”
Then I ask, “¿Cómo estáis?” (How are you?)
Students say, “bien. Gracias, ¿Y usted?” (Well. Thank you and you sir?)
I say “Bien. Gracias” “Well. Thank you.”

Routine 2 – Days of the Week – ¿Qué día es hoy?
I have a poster in the class with the days of the week, the months and colours (please see the photo)
The first week we sang the Spanish days of the week from Rockalingua, which the students will use later in a practical way to write down the date.
I ask, “¿Qué días es hoy?” (What or which day is today?)
I call on a volunteer and he or she says, “hoy es martes.” (Today is Tuesday)
I ask, “¿Qué día es mañana?” (Year 3 and 4) (What or which day is tomorrow?)
I call on another student that says “mañana es miércoles.” (Tomorrow is Wednesday)
I ask, “¿Qué día fue ayer?” (Year 5 and 6) (What or which day it was yesterday?)
Another student says, “ayer fue lunes.” (Yesterday was Monday)

Routine 3 – Months 
We do the same thing that we did on routine 2 with the days of the week. We watch the months of the year song in Rockalingua.  I ask “¿En qué mes estamos?” (Which month are we in now)
I call on a student and he or she says, “estamos en febrero.” (We are in February)

Routine 4 – Date 
I ask “¿Quién me puede decir la fecha?” (Who can tell me the date?) I call on a student to say the date in a full sentence.  For example, “hoy es viernes doce de febrero de dos mil veintiuno.”  (Today is Friday, the 12^th of February 2021.) I make sure the sentence is correct and then I have the whole class repeat.

Routine 5 – Feelings
“¿Cómo estás?” (How are you?) I ask the students how they feel today.
(I am tired.) Estoy cansado (masculine)  or cansada (feminine)
(I am happy/well/not well.) Estoy feliz/bien/mal

Routine 6 – Weather
¿Qué tiempo hace hoy? (How is the weather today?)

I say, “mirad por la ventana” (Look out the window). I have students look out the window and I call on a volunteer to respond using a sentence about the weather. For example, “hoy hace sol” (Today it is sunny) “hoy está lloviendo,” (Today it is raining) etc. I use the Rockalingua song “¿Qué tiempo hace hoy?” about the weather in Spanish that contains vocabulary and grammar structures related to weather.

Routine 7 – Clothes
The students write down the clothes that they would like to wear according to the weather and have to choose a colour also for each clothing item. For example, (Today I am wearing a red dress or a blue t-shirt.) “Hoy llevo puesto un vestido rojo o una camiseta azul.”

I read the whole routine again for them and in a few minutes the students are speaking and interacting or at least getting compressible information in Spanish while they are reviewing basic and important topics, and most of the class is now focused on only one thing.

During the first lesson of the year, I hang out a copy of the beginning of the class routine (click here to view the document) and during the first 3 weeks we are filling in the document together to make sure that the students understand the vocabulary and time.

We also listen to all the Rockalingua songs that contain vocabulary and grammar structures related to this routine: the greetings songs, what’s your name, the feelings, the weather, so the students memorize the vocabulary in a fun and more effective way.

Javier Vidal
Spanish Teacher

The Year 2 students have been learning many different facts about various animals and their habitats.

“The most important thing is to preserve the world we live in. Unless people understand and learn about our world, habitats, and animals, they won’t understand that if we don’t protect those habitats, we’ll eventually destroy ourselves.” – Jack Hanna

It is crucial that the Year 2 students learn about different habitats as they begin to understand the importance of both living and non-living things in a habitat. In learning this, students have learnt how plants and animals have adapted in order to thrive where they live. They have learnt that without the different habitats, we would not exist, therefore it is important for us to protect and appreciate the different habitats on Earth.

“We don’t own the planet Earth; we belong to it. And we must share it with our wildlife.” – Steve Irwin

Some fun facts we learnt:
-Wolves are part of the dog family.
-The blue whale is much louder than a jet, which only reaches 140 decibels.
-Koala Bears choose their habitat by the group of food trees.
-The Komodo Dragon can weigh up to 150 kilograms.
-Camels have long eyelashes to protect their eyes from sand.

Erin Hierse
Year 2 Teacher

The past two weeks the Year 6 students have been learning how to shade and add depth to their Art. They started off creating their own value scales. Value scales consist of values ranging from white to black with several shades of gray between. These shades of gray help to create the illusion of depth and tone. Once completing their very own value scales, the Year 6’s went on to shade 3D shapes and add depth to their pictures using cross hatching, smooth shading and stippling.

Finally, they had to find a real life object, place it in front of them and draw what they saw, including all the shadows that fell on the object. The Year 6’s really impressed us with their art skills and followed the different techniques perfectly.

We look forward to seeing what they come up with in future art pieces.

Brittney Hakime
Year 6 Teacher

We have been learning about making and recognising basic shapes in Pre-Reception. The students had the opportunity to create and explore with shapes to learn what shapes look like and how to make them

We went on a shape treasure hunt in our playground. The students had to match their given shape with the shapes of the hopscotch and other games on the playground.

In the classroom we used Lego blocks, beads, play dough and match sticks to make different shapes. We also practised drawing shapes and cutting them out. We made even a square man during arts and craft time.

The students will continue to observe shapes in every activity they do and every book they read. Shapes are everywhere and fun to explore throughout the year.

Martie van Dyk
Pre-Reception Teacher

Our top achiever in the 2020 IGCSE’s recounts her experience and shares some advice with future candidates:

“A famous author once wrote “People say nothing is impossible, but I do nothing every day.” That author was Alan Alexander Milne, the creator of the “Bear of Very Little Brain”. A bear who would sit around all day, doing absolutely nothing but he enjoyed every second of it. So, if there was one thing I learned in the 2-year course that is IGCSE, it was that I needed to relax more, to take everything in my stride and to not worry so much about the little things. To take everything step-by-step, day-by-day, and before you know it, you’ll be running.

I remember in Year 9, when the concept of IGCSE was first introduced, everything became overwhelming. I found it tremendously difficult in the beginning. At first, I wasn’t able to grasp most of the concepts for certain subjects and I was very confused most of the time. I’d never say anything though because no-one in my class ever seemed like they were having trouble, so I assumed it was just me struggling. Thankfully I had my friends, parents and teachers to tell me otherwise. My previous idea of studying consisted of working all day at school, then coming home and doing the same thing. It took a lot to make me realise that this wasn’t going to work for me anymore.

So, by Year 10, I changed the way I studied. I stopped studying for long hours on end and began working for shorter periods of time with a little too many breaks. I found that I study better when I’m relaxed and not putting any pressure on myself. I study consistently through the year and study in moderation. In class, I told myself that I was going to start asking as many questions as it took for me to understand because understanding a concept makes remembering it easier. I’d try to make notes for my subjects in a separate book, to make them clear and orderly on paper hoping it would appear that way in head as well.  I found the use of different highlighter colours made certain sections of information easier to recall during an exam because it had a colour associated to it. I tried my best in class to understand the concept first before I made notes on it so that when I did, all I had to do was solidify the ideas onto paper.  My dad would make fun of my highlighters saying , “At school all I had was a pen, one that wrote if I was lucky.”  But I’d like to think that it was the highlighters and the stacks of cue cards with equations that helped me retain the information better. I realised it was also very important to take care of myself first before my schoolwork, through staying healthy and remembering that school is not all there is to focus on. For me , staying relaxed, calm and enjoying my childhood would be my top priority. Getting all A’s was unexpected , my goal is simply to do the best I can.

“The forest through the trees” is something my parents would have me repeat to myself. It reminded me to look at the bigger picture and focus on the important things. Stressing about the small tests and assignments wasn’t going to do anything except burn me out before the race was even over.

My advice to other students would be: “Start where you are. Use what you have. Do what you can.” –  Arthur Ashe  “

Rifqah Price,
Year 11 Student 
Blouberg International School

Blouberg International School is working with The President’s Award for Youth Empowerment (TPA) to offer our learners new ways to broaden their curriculum. TPA delivers The Duke of Edinburgh’s International Award in South Africa, and both our organisations believe that learning should not be confined to the classroom but should also take place in the school environment and wider community.

Blouberg International School provides students with an opportunity to develop soft skills such as leadership, teamwork, and confidence. We are working together to develop confident, responsible, reflective, innovative, and engaged learners and create opportunities for young people to develop skills, get physically active, serve their local community and experience adventure. By offering the Award as non-formal education alongside the academic Cambridge programmes, we are able to provide students with a holistic education.

The President’s Award for Youth Empowerment (TPA) is affiliated to The Duke of Edinburgh’s International Award for Young People and is a full member of the International Award Foundation which oversees the Award Programme in over 130 countries globally, with 18 of these being in Africa, and over 1.3million active participants internationally. TPA is a registered non-profit organisation (004-920NPO) with Public Benefit Organisation status, registered with SARS (PBO#930001329).

TPA motivates young people to develop character, discover their purpose and determine their future to contribute towards building a great South Africa. The Award Programme targets 14–24-year-olds across the socio-economic spectrum, from public and private schools, children’s homes, correctional services centres, universities, etc.

There are more than 100 ISASA affiliated schools implementing the Award Programme nationally.
On the Programme, there are three levels: Bronze, Silver and Gold. Within those levels there are four sections:

1. Skills Development.
2. Physical Recreation.
3. Service to the Community and
4. an Adventurous Journey.

With guidance from volunteer adult Award Leaders, each young person builds confidence by reflecting upon their interests, abilities, and ambitions to set themselves challenges. Youth Participants progress at their own pace through the three Award levels; however, each level has minimum requirements.
At completion of the Award, young people get an internationally recognised certificate that bares the signatures of His Royal Highness the Duke of Edinburgh, Prince Philip, and President Cyril Ramaphosa. The certificates are recognised by employers and universities worldwide.

The Programme was founded in South Africa in 1983 under the banner of the Gold Shield Award, with Dr Ian Player, as the first Chairman. In 1994 the organisation was re-launched as The President’s Award for Youth Empowerment with Mr. Nelson Mandela as its Patron-in-Chief.
Once the individual is registered, participants manage their progress with the Online Record Book (ORB) application.

The Online Record Book (ORB) is an easy-to-use online system in which Participants can record their activities and achievements. Participants can set up activities, record their efforts, upload evidence, and submit assessor reports. Award Leaders can monitor progress behind the scenes and help if required.

For more information about The President’s Award (TPA) email Mr. Riaan Vosloo, email: riaan.vosloo@iesmail.com. You can also visit the official website of TPA: www.presidentsaward.co.za

Ms. Caroline Grix and Mr. Riaan Vosloo are the registered President’s Award Leaders at Blouberg International School:
Ms. Grix: caroline.grix@iesmail.com
Mr. Vosloo: riaan.vosloo@iesmail.com