It's great to be back!
Today we headed to First Step Right.
The warmth, hugs, smiles, laughter, and 'hello, how are you?'s always fill you with joy when you arrive at the school. You can't help but smile and jump around with the children when they greet you.
For me, I'm now starting to get to know the children and seeing them grow over the past two years of working at GAGA, is just wonderful. It's also sad as I realised it will be the last time I see some of the older children who will be heading off to new schools at the end of this year.
The Leeds students got stuck in straight away. They spread out across the school and in pairs, popped in to different classes to get to know some of the teachers and the children, as well as just generally finding out more about life in SA. Lots of questions!!
Laura, Gael and I spent some time planning the next couple of days, to ensure they can be as much help as possible.
In the afternoon the girls did sports classes with grade 1 - they set out an assault course, something very new for the children, as well as some games of duck, duck, goose. Again, lots of laughs and smiles.
I then had the chance after school, to meet with Gael, Khanyesile and Hlengiwe, who are currently the primary management team at the school. We had lots to discuss, looking a little in to the future and how we can help the school improve even further, as well as working with those in the community around us. The girls meanwhile, planned for their lessons with the children for tomorrow.
A busy day. We headed to buy some more food. Laura and I were on cooking duty tonight but have now planned out a budget and meal plan so the girls will be taking it in turns to shop and cook for the group - great for their personal planning and budgeting skills.
A great day and I think everyone is ready for a good rest after a full on first day.
I was thrilled to see the new fence, put up by Freys Meats, was going a great job at keeping the cows out!
This avocado tree has apparently been on the land for at least the 10 years Gael has known the school. In the middle you can see an avocado - the second one in those 10 years!! Perhaps it's a sign for a good year ahead...
I wanted to share a photo of how lovely the library is looking. The library was only made possible this year, due to the classroom refurbishments and donations from Chameleon (UK charity). The children are definitely loving reading. One day last week when the weather was bad, the grade 4 children asked Gael if they could sit and read during lunch instead of being outside. A great sign!
The warmth, hugs, smiles, laughter, and 'hello, how are you?'s always fill you with joy when you arrive at the school. You can't help but smile and jump around with the children when they greet you.
For me, I'm now starting to get to know the children and seeing them grow over the past two years of working at GAGA, is just wonderful. It's also sad as I realised it will be the last time I see some of the older children who will be heading off to new schools at the end of this year.
In the afternoon the girls did sports classes with grade 1 - they set out an assault course, something very new for the children, as well as some games of duck, duck, goose. Again, lots of laughs and smiles.
A busy day. We headed to buy some more food. Laura and I were on cooking duty tonight but have now planned out a budget and meal plan so the girls will be taking it in turns to shop and cook for the group - great for their personal planning and budgeting skills.
A great day and I think everyone is ready for a good rest after a full on first day.
I was thrilled to see the new fence, put up by Freys Meats, was going a great job at keeping the cows out!
The cabbages are coming up nicely, and they've recently planted spinach, beetroot, onions, green peppers, chillies, aubergines and parsley, so looking forward to seeing them grow a little whilst we're here.
This avocado tree has apparently been on the land for at least the 10 years Gael has known the school. In the middle you can see an avocado - the second one in those 10 years!! Perhaps it's a sign for a good year ahead...
I wanted to share a photo of how lovely the library is looking. The library was only made possible this year, due to the classroom refurbishments and donations from Chameleon (UK charity). The children are definitely loving reading. One day last week when the weather was bad, the grade 4 children asked Gael if they could sit and read during lunch instead of being outside. A great sign!
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