cambridge primary Tag

During the past two weeks, we have been learning more about birds in the Foundation Phase. We did many hand-on activities to learn more about the fascinating creatures. We made art pieces about penguins, peacocks, flamingos and owls. During Numeracy we counted feathers and eggs and during Literacy we wrote our sounds in bird seed. We threaded beads on feathers, we cut paper feathers and we even made playdough eggs to strengthen our fine motor muscles.

The students enjoyed looking at books and video clips with interesting facts about birds.

We learned the following facts about birds:

·         There are 10000 species of birds.

·         All birds lay eggs.

·         Birds migrate to other countries.

·         All birds have feathers.

·         Birds don’t have teeth.

·         Birds are great communicators.

·         A group of birds is called a flock.

·         Some birds can mimic humans.

·         Ostriches are the largest birds.

·         The smallest bird is a Bee Hummingbird.

I have read a lovely article about birds this weekend and I would like to share this with you. “Here are six life lessons, inspired by our winged friends.

1. Be confident. Birds learn to trust themselves before they take off in the sky. So have faith in your abilities and know that you will find a warm current to soar in.

2. Let your colours shine. Different birds have hundreds of different hues. Be bright and make sure you aren’t hiding what makes you one-of-a-kind.

3. Show up early and often. The legendary early bird gets the worm for a reason. So find something worth showing up for, and then show up every day.

4. Go with the seasons. Birds thrive despite changes in their environment. Be fluid and go with the flow, trusting your ability to always find a branch to land on.

5. Flock together. Birds seek strength and sustenance from one another. Keep friends and family close by as you navigate the days

6. Spread your wings. Eventually, all birds must leave the safety of the nest and become what they are meant to be. Have no fear of falling, and start flapping.”

The students learned that birds are very important. Many people (including myself) keep birds as pets and enjoy watching them in the wild or at the exotic animal world. Farmers raise poultry for their meat and eggs and we also use bird feathers in various product.

Martie van Dyk

Pre-Reception Teacher

“Everyone needs a house to live in, but a supportive family builds a home.”  – Anthony Liccione

As a Year 1 teacher, I have realised the importance of the younger students participating in supporting the older students in their sports. It is also important for the older students to show their support and provide motivation to the younger students. This support can come in the form of attending sports days, watching and cheering on matches, reading to the younger students to encourage reading and by being good role models for the younger studens. Support such as this, helps to build a passion for sport which will motivate young students to later participate in school sports. This is vital for students when growing up as a team sport can teach students things they cannot learn in a classroom.

I would like to encourage all parents and teachers to motivate students to want to support their fellow peers, from younger age groups to the older age groups.

“It is really important that we promote competitive support in schools. It is very important that we recognise that has to be underpinned by good quality physical education and by getting people into patterns of exercise.” – Sebastian Coe

Year 1 Teacher
Erin Hierse

What is a solid, liquid and gas?  This was the question posed to our Year 3’s in our first Science lesson in Term 3. But… instead of telling the students, they set about discovering it for themselves.  In groups, students were supplied with a plastic bottle of water, a plastic bottle of ice and a plastic bottle of air. Together a discussion was held on which material is a solid, liquid and gas and why.

Roll on lesson 3! Gases are invisible! Now this lesson took our Year 3’s by surprise! In pairs, students were given a plastic bottle filled with vinegar and a balloon filled with bicarbonate of soda. Instructions were given to place the balloon at an angle on the plastic bottles and then to lift the balloon and observe what happened. But first students had to make a prediction. With zero faith in their teacher, most students predicated an explosion! On the count of 3, students then lifted their balloons and voila… no explosion!
Faces of students caught completely by surprise… priceless!!

The Reception students came to school this term very excited to see their teachers and classmates again. They were eager to share about all the fun things they had been doing this past holiday.

This term we are focusing on becoming more aware of punctuation and writing sentences. The students are learning about using capital letters to start a sentence, having finger spaces between words and using full stops to end a sentence. Each student told the teacher a sentence about their news. The teacher writes the sentence and the student copies the sentence in their books. They then draw a matching picture about their news. The following sentences are about the students’ favourite fun things that happened in the holidays.

Zion Durojaiye (5 years old) “I played with my truck at the beach.”
Sofia Haskins (6 years old) “I watched a movie with my friend.”
Omime Ogumah (6 years old) “I went to my friend’s house.”
Kaedy Frey (5 years old) “I went to the beach.”
Jonah Atson (5 years old) “I played with my cousin.”
Coco Baur Mazadiego (4 years old) “It was raining on the birthday.”
Ariah Mukubvu (5 years old) “I got an ice-cream at the beach.”
Amelia Engelbrecht (5 years old) “I got a dog called Rocky.”
Tiwatope Olanrewaju (5 years old) “I played with my brothers.”
Marcus de Beer (5 years old) “I saw lions and birds in the savannah.”
Chiamaka Davidson (6 years old) “I got an ice-cream.”
Onyinyechi Okoye (5 years old) “I went to a restaurant.”
Grayson Muller (5 years old) “I played outside.”
Rume Oriesa (6 years old) “My friend came to my house.”

Bronwen Nuthall
Reception Year teacher

I often wonder why I chose to train for (in my day) kindergarten at the teacher’s training college I attended. I mean, they can be frustrating, tiring with their endless energy, impatient, loud… The list is endless. I am sure that most parents will agree. I am not saying that the other age groups are not without their challenges, but the younger ones?

Then Tuesday, 19 July arrived and it was the beginning of the third term. That was when I remembered why I had chosen to teach this age group. Along with the frustrations, comes their passion for learning, enthusiasm, motivation, boundless hugs and just their absolute honesty: Teacher, you look beautiful, but you are still old.

Quite honestly, with the joy our students bring into our lives every day, I would never ever give this up.

I would like to wish our students, parents and fellow teachers a wonderful third term.

Kim Coetzer
Year 2 Teacher

“Life is a beautiful collage of priceless moments and memories, which when pieced all together creates a unique treasured masterpiece” – Melanie M. Koulouris

To start the new term, the Year 5’s were tasked with reflecting on not only the wonderful moments and memories they made during the holidays, but also on why they treasured them as a part of their life’s masterpiece. They were also asked to share these memories and stories with each other in groups and with the class.

Here are just some of the special memories our students shared:

The best moment and memory was probably cuddling with my dogs, because I’m obsessed with dogs! – Zoe Floor

My best moment is when I saw all the pretty trees in Canada and the hotels looked amazing; in Hermanus I went to the beach and saw dolphins and sharks. I love having fun and spending time with my family. – Bohlale Malatji

My happiest moment was a sleepover I had with my best friends in Shanghai. We had it in a hotel, especially for us! – Emily Yu

I went ‘glamping’ with my Mom; Step-Dad and my sister. I loved it because I went with my family and we were not allowed to bring our phones! – Sian-Lia Jenkinson

The best moment I had during the holidays was seeing my Mom. This moment was very special because I haven’t seen her in a very long time. – Unknown

It is, however, important to not only reflect on the past, but also to also look to and dream about the future. So for the second task, the Year 5’s  were required to write down what they were most excited about experiencing this term. Here are some of their answers:

I am excited about the Aladdin play and doing work and getting higher marks in each of my subjects. – Khanya Luthango

I am excited for this term, because I won’t be wearing a mask! – Indiphile Jentile.

Making more friends, being happy and improving my sign language. – Zoe Floor.

I am excited about soccer this term and the new students. I also want to improve my marks. – Etana Mueke.

The Year 5’s are looking forward to a wonderful Term 3!

Jennifer Rose
Year 5 Teacher