Nonhlanhla Mchunu is a grade R teacher at a primary school in rural KwaZulu-Natal. She has specialist training in early childhood development, so she understands that young children learn through play. Her role is to create an exciting active learning environment and to facilitate a well-planned daily programme.
Mchunu carefully prepares her classroom so that it looks inviting for the children to play in. She sets it up into areas: a block area for building with blocks; a quiet area for doing jigsaw puzzles and playing games like lotto, snap, number and shape games; a home corner where the children can play pretend family games with dolls and tea sets; a creative area where the children can paint, draw, cut out and paste or make creations using boxes and other things.
When everything is in place she plans for the next day, ensuring balance between teacher-directed activities, small group activities and free choice of play activities, as well as an exciting story that would enthral her young learners.
The next day, she arrives early and takes time to chat to the parents or caregivers and each child and checks on their health.
Once all the children arrive, they sit in a circle on the floor with her and discuss many issues of interest. Mchunu has improvised toys and games, using waste materials to supplement learning materials supplied by the department of education. She gives extra care to those who are sick or have lost their loved ones.
During the toilet routine and snack time, the children learn important health and hygiene practices such as washing their hands after going to the toilet and before eating.
To play they use animal facemasks that Mchunu made. They love acting out the stories she tells them. Each child is included and given the opportunity to create his or her own story.
Last year she held a parents’ workshop on a Saturday in which parents constructed a climbing frame and swings for the children. The children love climbing the frame and this helps them develop confidence in their body movements. There is also sand and water to play with outside, so the children learn some of the building blocks of science and maths – the process of experimenting with volume, capacity and the laws of gravity.
She has balls and bats readily available to develop the eye-foot coordination of her learners.
Mchunu also uses small group activities to prepare the children with skills they will need in formal schooling in grade one. These activities prepare learners to follow instructions, complete a task, cooperate in a group and refine their skills and problem-solving abilities.
After completing their activity, they gather for story time with Mchunu using puppets. The story extends their vocabulary and exposes them to new places, people and ideas. When it is time to go home the children rest while they wait to be collected. Mchunu ensures that those travelling by taxi are safe and the taxi is not overloaded. She then prepares for the next day, refreshing her activities so that each school day is an exciting learning experience.
How do you rate your grade R class?
The department of education and government fully support grade R. The goal is that every child entering grade one in 2010 will have come from an exciting, active learning grade R.
But early childhood development (ECD) programmes can take many forms, they can be provided at home, through playgroups, parenting programmes, through informal and formal creches or pre-schools, formal pre-primaries and grade R classes at primary schools.
The key is the quality of the teacher and the quality of the active learning programme. Enormous damage can be done to children when we take under-aged children into grade R because they will struggle with the activities and this can destroy their self-confidence.
Schools need to recognise and support community-based ECD sites, as well as home- or family-based ECD programmes. Parents and caregivers also need to be intimately involved in their children’s education. Teachers need to be supported to understand their young learners in the context of their family and community environment, especially the challenges they are facing through poverty and HIV/Aids.
How do we ensure all our children have access to quality active learning ECD programmes?
Grade R is one of the strategies that our government has adopted to address this. The government has also approved a national integrated plan for ECD that seeks to address the challenges facing children from birth to age four.
Who do we turn to for support to offer quality ECD and grade R programmes?
There are many excellent ECD non-profit resource and training organisations, accredited by the South African Qualifications Authority in most provinces. Many further education and training colleges also offer ECD training. Find the best one closest to you.
Pam Picken is the director of training and resources in Early Education (Tree, & the Tree team). In the next edition of the Teacher learn more about the essential elements of a good ECD programme