Implement good ideas in your grade R and win a prize of R10 000!
the Teacher published a number of articles on early childhood development (ECD) in 2008. We hope the articles encouraged and helped teachers to understand the importance of early childhood programmes.
But, though all of us have read good articles or participated in excellent workshops, we don’t always have the time or space to implement the ideas. This competition hopes to change that by providing you with an incentive to implement some of those ideas.ÂÂ
The main themes covered in the articles included the following:
- Government policy to ensure that by 2014 all learners who enter grade one will have participated in an accredited reception year programme.
- The United Nations’ Convention on the Rights of the Child says: ”… the child should be fully prepared to live an individual life in society brought up in the spirit of … peace, dignity, tolerance, freedom, equality and solidarity … and should be afforded the necessary protection and assistance so that it can fully assume its responsibilities within the community …”
- A grade R teacher is one of the few people in the life of an HIV-positive child who can help to turn a difficult start into a bright future.
- Early childhood is a vulnerable and critical period for growth and development. Research shows that the way adults provide for and treat young children determines their physical, spiritual and emotional development.
- A grade R programme should be based on the following elements:
- children learn best through play;
- all the needs of the child should be addressed;
- children are part of families and communities; and
- children have rights and responsibilities.
The key to a good grade R class is the quality of the teacher and the quality of the active learning programme.
Schools need to recognise and support community-based ECD sites, as well as home- or family-based programmes.
Research shows that adequate nutrition for babies and children is crucial to the equalisation of opportunity, allowing children to benefit appropriately from educational systems.
Think about the above themes, read the articles again, talk to people, read other material and see what ideas you can use in
your grade R class. Work out how you would invest (yes, invest — not just spend!) R10 000 in your classroom to implement those ideas to benefit the children.
This competition is open to all grade R classes that are registered with the department of education. This includes community sites with a grade R group where the educator is subsidised by the department.
To enter you need to send a written report that includes the following:
- your school’s name, your name, the school’s physical address and how we can contact you;
- a description of the situation in your classroom: tell us how many children there are, where they come from, what their parents do and anything else you think is important;
- a wish list of all the things that you would do to improve the situation of the children in your classroom;
- a selection from the wish list of the things you would do if you won R10 000. Tell us what you would do, how you would do it, how much it would cost and, most importantly, how it would benefit your children.
The report must not be longer than eight pages.
The winner will be selected by a committee of experts in the early childhood field. They will use the following criteria to select the winner:
- Did the report include everything we asked for?
- How urgent are the needs of the children in your class?
- Have you used ideas related to the main themes of the articles and, if so, how?
- How creative have you been in how you would invest the prize money?
- How convincing was your description of how the children would benefit?
The prize committee will be selected by a team of adjudicators and the decision of the committee is final. No correspondence will be entered into about the prize or the winner.
If you are one of the finalists a representative of the Teacher will make arrangements to visit your school. You will be asked to do a presentation on your ideas. If you are the winner, the representative will discuss with you how the money will be paid to you.ÂÂ
Entry details
Your entry must be posted to:
the Teacher grade R Competition
PO Box 843
Hyper-by-the-Sea
Durban
4053ÂÂ
Helpline for Q&As about the competition:
Telephone: 031 563 1241
Fax: 031 563 1244
e-mail:[email protected]
Closing date for entries is: November 30 2009. No entries will be returned. The winner will be announced in the March 2010 edition of the Teacher. An article will be devoted to the winning class in 2010.