PENREACH NEWSLETTER Issue 2 2

Penreach Newsletter

July

EDUCATIONAL EXCELLENCE FOR ONE AND ALL SOUTH AFRICANS IN THIS ISSUE

Penreach is all about partnerships. We partner with companies, foundations and other organisations that want to make an impact on the lives of children in South Africa. We partner with government to give support where resources are required and to ensure the long term sustainability of what we do. And we also partner with our beneficiaries – teachers, principals, students and caregivers – to have the greatest possible impact on educational outcomes in Mpumalanga’s poor communities.

The #PenreachPartner campaign is aimed at showcasing these critical relationships and to demonstrate that the sum of the whole is greater than the parts! Some of our featured partnerships in this edition of the Penreach Newsletter include the active support in promoting practical Science with Bayer; local business support of our innovative Early Childhood Toy Libraries, and the continued engagement of the Transnet Foundation with the Transnet Scholar

Ambassadors enrolled at Penryn College.

We invite you to follow us on Facebook and Twitter and comment using #PenreachPartner to proudly promote the impact our joint efforts are having on education in our country. Also see our special section in the newsletter with links to Penreach in the Media.

Soon we will be launching the Penreach Thought Leadership corner, sharing insights from individuals and organisations that make it their business to think about, talk about and ultimately do something about teaching and learning on South African classrooms and homes. As a #PenreachPartner we would appreciate your contributions to the Penreach Thought Leadership Blog.

For more information please contact Susanna Oosthuizen via soosthuizen@penryn.co.za

Penreach celebrates Play Day Children had the opportunity to participate in various activities. Play is a crucial component of development.

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Transnet Ambassadors Ten children recently returned from a very valuable life skills camp.

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Penreach – serious about partnerships

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Play is the highest form of research - if you agree with this, you are agreeing with one of the greatest minds of the last century, namely Albert Einstein. That is why initiatives such as One World Play Project is needed, in support of this critical element in a young child’s education.

As leaders in the Early Childhood Development (ECD) field, Penreach also embraced the philosophy of World Play day and provided an opportunity for hundreds of children to play and learn at Penryn. World Play Day started in 1991 and is celebrated in 25 countries across the globe. It is without a doubt one of the highlights on #Penreach ECD calendar.

According to Ms. Thulisile Makofane, ECD Director at Penreach, Play Day not only offers children the opportunity to explore new ways of learning, but also highlights the importance of learning through play and the role it plays in the development of a child. More than 450 children from disadvantaged and poor communities participated in this event, enjoying games such as sack races, target throwing, potato and spoon races, bursting water balloons and skipping ropes. A surprise science show also formed part of the day to spark an interest and curiosity about science.

“Play develops a child holistically. They learn to socialise, share resources, learn how to behave in a group setting and at the same time develop the various domains of development namely cognitive, emotional, physical and social,” Makofane explained.

According to her there is a significant difference between a child who has been exposed to various kinds of play and one who hasn’t. “Children who have been exposed to various kinds of play adapt easily to changing environments whereas children who are not are often shy to explore.”

“The former tend to make friends easily whereas a child who is left to sit in front of the television could experience low self-esteem as he or she is not familiar with playing with different children.” According to Makofane it is, unfortunately, sometimes

believed by parents and even ECD educators that there is a direct link between the effectiveness of games and the price thereof. This, she says, holds no truth and explains:

“Many parents look at the shops for toys, not knowing that the most valuable learning and development materials might be right within their reach. They mostly look at shops for toys instead of what they have in the home .e.g. using a simple rope to play skip and hop instead of buying a skipping rope.”

“Today we wanted to create an unforgettable fun day for the children but at the same time make parents and educators aware that #toys do not have to be expensive in order to be effective. These common, inexpensive ‘household’ items can be just as effective as educational toys which many people cannot afford.”

4 GAMES YOU CAN TRY AT HOME

Potato and spoon race: What you’ll need: Potatoes, little rocks or anything that can be put into a spoon. Allow child to run from point A to B holding the spoon in the dominant hand.

Filing buckets: What you’ll need: Bucket or little dustbin and a cup. Child can play with filling the bucket with water together with the parent until it is full.

Skipping rope: What you’ll need: A simple rope made with offcut material or plastic. Two children

hold the ends of the rope whilst one is skipping in the middle.

Target throwing: What you’ll need: A box and a ball (any size). Allow the child to throw the ball into the box. The box can be moved further away if the child manages to throw into the target

For more information on our ECD Department, please contact

013-758-9000

Play – a wonderful

way to learn

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Dr. Klaus Eckstein, CEO Bayer SA as well as various other stakeholders, including the Department of Education, attended the event.

FAST FACTS

62.3% Mpumalanga average pass rate for Physical science (2015 National Senior Certificate): 62.3%

81.9% Penreach Target Schools average pass rate for Physical Science (2015): 81.9%

FOR MORE INFORMATION

For more information about the Penreach Mobile Science programme contact

soosthuizen@penryn.co.za

Bayer South Africa launched their first mobile science laboratory in Mpumalanga in Pienaar on May 31. Bayer SA joined forces with Penreach to take Math and Science closer to a number of schools in Mpumalanga. The mobile unit will be known as the Penreach Baylab.

“As a life sciences company, Bayer recognises the significance that science and math can have in children’s formative years and is committed to encouraging the development of the Scientists of tomorrow,” said Dr Klaus Eckstein Chief Executive Officer, Bayer SA. “We believe that we have a role to play in helping to tackle the skill and education challenges facing South Africa, and we believe that the areas of math and science are critical components of this. We will also be exploring the possibilities of making the Penreach Baylab accessible to even more children and teachers in South Africa. Bayer is always looking for ways to provide people with the tools and means to achieve their dreams and goals. We view the partnership with a social impact organisation like Penreach as key to making this happen.”

The mobile lab will attempt to close the knowledge gap between primary and secondary education as well as supporting the Department of Education in achieving their objectives. The facility will also focus on assisting teachers on improving teaching methods in Physical Science, Natural Sciences and Mathematics through practical experiments. Additionally, it will improve learners’ study methods and techniques of exam writing and promote Science through science shows and basic computer skills training.

Mr. Andile Ncontsa, CEO of Penreach, highlighted the importance of creating opportunities and introducing children to the wonderful, practical world of science. “Improving educational quality in schools and improving learning outcomes in the science fields stands out as the greatest challenge of the democratic South Africa,” said Ncontsa. Without a substantial improvement in learning outcomes, the future development needs of the country will be seriously compromised. Our model is based on three core areas of expertise, Early Childhood Development, Teacher Development and Learner Support as well as Management and Leadership Development. We are pleased to join forces with Bayer SA to continue to drive the success and sustainability of the mobile lab.”

The Penreach BayLab will be used by:

•Five Penreach target primary schools with 2 000 learners and 50 teachers in Natural Science, Technology, English and Maths,

•Three Penreach target secondary schools with 1500 learners and 75 teachers in Natural Science, Technology, English and Maths.

•Four Early Childhood Development centres with 400 learners between the ages of three and five years and 15 teachers directly with basic Natural Science and Numeracy concepts.

New partnership set to benefit thousands

Mr Andile Ncontsa, CEO of Penreach addressing the media

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Toy Libraries in the spotlight

Our experience in ECD highlighted the fact that 80% of young children in our target disadvantaged communities, whether they attend ECD centres or not, do not have access to toys.

Some ECD centres have a meagre collection of between 5 and 10 toys -usually old- that needs to be shared between 40 - 80 children. Out of this need, the Penreach Toy Library project was launched in 2015. Penreach has established 2 Toy Libraries in Msholozi village and is planning to extend this much needed ECD resource into other poor communities in Ehlanzeni. #PenreachPartner, Riverside Park, recently donated R3 000 towards toys for the Msholozi |Village Toy Library.

Cost: The initial set-up cost is R50 000 per Toy Library. Thereafter, the annual operational cost, including training, management and maintenance is R50 000 per annum.

Funding opportunity: Investment to establish an additional 3 Toy Libraries to service 11 ECD centres and 1 200 children in Ehlanzeni. Funding options include 100% funding or sponsorship, or co-funding/ sponsorship of 50%.

Branding: All Toy Libraries will be branded according to specific branding guidelines to ensure it is easily recognised as a community-based asset and #PenreachPartner project.

Get involved

The 10 Transnet Ambassadors, who are enrolled at Penryn College for the duration of their high school career, recently returned from the Transnet life skills camp which took place during the school holiday.

The purpose of the camp was to provide continuous psychosocial support to the scholars, as well as getting them to engage with the other grade 9 and 10 Transnet Ambassadors from all over the country.

Scholars furthermore had the privilege to meet the Chairperson of the Transnet Executive Board, Ms Linda Mabaso and also learnt more about different careers.

Monde Shiba was nominated to do a vote of thanks on behalf of the Transnet Ambassadors, whilst Melusi Shabangu delivered a speech on behalf of grade 8’s at the Transnet life skills gala dinner.

Transnet Ambassadors enjoy valuable life skills camp

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Penreach in the media To read the articles, please click on the images