“The kids were so naughty last year!” was the biggest difference both teachers, Ncobile and Michelle, made when comparing the 2007 students, to the 2008 group. While they’re inclined to blame a couple of mischievous individuals for leading the others astray last year, it seems there’s also other factors at play.
“I think its both because we’ve got more experience teaching, but also because we’ve been able to improve the infrastructure,” said Michelle, now ex-MPS teacher.
Ncobile noted that having more teaching resources and play equipment and better desks and chairs made planning the activities and managing the kids a lot easier. But classroom behaviour is not the only thing that’s changed this year.
We have a few kids who have joined us for the second year, because they’re still to young to go to primary school. It’s wonderful to have them back, but it’s kind of strange.
Last year they were the little, shy ones, who needed help taking their pants off and blowing their noses. This year they’re trying to lead the new kids astray, showing them what to do in class and helping them get their clothes on and off.
The before and after school hangout spot has also changed this year. Most kids wait a couple of hours after school so they can return home with their older siblings, so they need something to do.
While last year’s bunch favoured spending their afternoons hanging out with Make (Mrs) Gamedze at the shop, this year the kids’ favourite spot is the kitchen of Matjana Primary School. It seems they go there for a second lunch! It’s a really kind gesture of the primary school, as their feeding program is stretched and our kids certainly aren’t suffering from the extra meal.
Where the kids go has changed, but what they do remains essentially the same. They continue to wander around in little gangs, proudly showing off what ever they made, coloured or learnt at school to anyone who’ll look or listen (much to the amusement of the older primary school kids).
It seems there’s no end to the amusement they can derive from singing the ABC song, or saying, “My name is so and so, I am five years old, I go to Matjana Preschool, I live in Kaphunga area.” So we continue to be impressed with the kid’s enthusiasm!
There’s been some personnel and responsibility changes in 2008. There’s a new school committee (see last newsletter) and the parents are now looking after the school’s water, buildings and grounds (the grounds are also the premises of Woza Nawe Tours who are now contributing E50 per month to the school because the parents are maintaining the grounds).
Two parents come to the school every fortnight and give the classroom a thorough clean, cut the grass, tidy the yard and fetch water from the spring– it’s about 500m away and the teachers are really glad to be free of this responsibility! It’s also great that the parents are so committed to helping keep the school running smoothly.
There’s been changes to the teaching staff as well. Michelle is no longer teaching at the school. While everyone (including Michelle) is a bit sad that she’s gone, we’re pleased she’s still nearby and will continue helping with the school fundraising. We’re also pleased to welcome Fortunate Sihlongonyane, who’ll be teaching in the classroom with Ncobile from now on. Fortunate s a 19 year old women who has lived in Kaphunga with her parents all her life. She completed high school in 2006 and has also worked at one of the local shops. She’s happy to have a job which will help her develop new skills and loves working with the kids. We’re also extra happy that Ncobile is back in 2008.
Some things change, some remain the same. Most importantly Matjana Preschool continues to educate kids in Kaphunga– that’s something we hope will remain the same for a long time!