Tuesday

Hello everyone,

Tody we had a very early start to the day.  We were picked up at 7.15am to be in schools for 8am.  School starts at 8am every morning and finishes at 2pm.  The day is split up into half hour sessions.  One thing they told me was that every Friday they don't have to wear school uniform as they bring in 1 Rand towards fundraising.

I was priviledged enough to observe a Grade 6 class (Year 6) today having an English lesson.  This was followed by a visit to a Grade 4 class (Year 4) where the children had an African cultures lesson where they cover drama, dance, music and visual arts.  I loved it!  Here are some of their projects on building houses in the traditional african way.

A special part of the visit to school was meeting the Soulbuddyz.  This is a group of children, a little like our School Council, who meet voluntarily after school from Monday to Thursday.  They have a programme to follow which focuses on social issues such as drugs, health awareness, bullying etc.  The children discuss the issues and then they complete tasks to communicate their understanding.  By doing this they collect points which go towards an annual total.  They won the national competition last year and were able to renovate the school toilets. 

After school had finished we were taken to the Hector Pieterson museum and Nelson Mandela House.  This was a very moving experience as the sister of Hector Pieterson, a 13 year old boy who was killed in the protest on 16th June 1976, explained the events of the day.

This is a picture of the bedroom of Nelson Mandela and his favourite portrait of himself. 

Tomorrow there is a strike protest and so we are unable to go into schools.  What tomorrow brings is a big surprise.

Take care everyone,

love Mrs Narraway xx

First day in Livuwani Primary School

Hello there,

Today has been an amazing day.  I finally got to meet the wonderful staff and children at our partner school.  I was greeted at the pickup point by the headteacher, Mrs Lukoto, who drove me to Livuwani Primary School.

I wasn't prepared for the welcome I received. On turning the corner of the street the school is located on I was greeted by a band and children dressed in pure white costumes who gave us a marched escort into the school grounds.  The closer we got to the school I saw hundreds of children waving South African and British flags being waved and children shouting welcome to South Africa.  It was truly amazing! And yes, I did shed a tear which multiplied when I saw Mrs Musiye, the deputy headteacher who visited us at Newchurch.

I was then escorted into the school playground. Some children even had our school uniform on.  They have assembly outside under a huge tree which provides them with shade, Members of the community, parents, staff and children were all there cheering and smiling.

What was to follow was absolutely wonderful.  Members of staff each took turns to greet me and say some wonderful words of welcome.  It is quite clear that they treasure the link they have with our school and hold it precious in their hearts.  Each class then sang or danced.  Just before the end of the one hour assembly the whole school sang 'You are my sunshine', the song Mrs Lawrenson taught them last year on her visit.  It was a sproud moment only to be made even more special when a little boy, about 7 years old, came to the front of the stage and sang three more verses which he had made up himself.  He has promised to write the words down for me so I can bring them home and share the words with you.

I was then treated to a traditional Vendi dance.  This was breath taking!

The rest of the day involved a tour of the school and the opportunity to observe some lessons.  Some classes have up to 60 children in them.  As you walk into each class the children stand up and formally greet you.  Always with a smile.  The children have been so polite and eager to find out about England and how our classes work at Newchurch.

The day went so fast and I can't wait to return tomorrow.

Hopefully, you will see some videos and photographs on the Year 4 website which will give you a flavour of what I experienced.

Take care,
Mrs Narraway x

Day Two

Today has been very exciting!  I have spent the day with the headteacher of our partner school. We have been treated to a real taste of the african wildlife by going on a safari. 

Our school mascot found a friend.  We saw lots of animals in their natural habitat.  We collected some great landscapes for Year 2 to use in their storytelling.

How amazing?

I'm having trouble uploading the video but will try and sort things out for you tomorrow.

Take care

Mrs Narraway xx

Day One

After a 13 hour flight I arrived safely at Johannesburg airport feeling very tired and ready for sleep, only to be welcomed by the headteacher, Anna, whose warm and friendly greeting filled me with excitement and energy.  I have met the other teachers on our trip and I look forward to sharing with you the adventures we have.

Tomorrow is a very busy day, which I am so looking forward to.  I hope to post some photographs and videos on the VLE tomorrow for you to see.  We are visiting Pilanesburg Nature Reserve and going on Safari.  How brilliant!  However, what I am most looking forward to is visiting our partner school on Monday.

I think that is all for today.

Take care, 

Mrs Narraway xx

Only three more days to go!

Only four more days to go!

Well I am on countdown now until I have the priviledge of visiting our partner school in South Africa.

I will hopefully be downloading videos, pictures and messages about my experiences on a day to day basis.  Please send me a message with any questions you would like me to find the answer to.

Love Mrs Narraway x