Bidvest & Telkom foundation grade R project
Bidvest and Telkom Foundation have partnered in the sponsorship of the Grade R project from 2014 going forward.
It is READ’s experience that the literacy problem requires intervention at a very early age and that severe deficits in the pre-reading and pre-numeracy skills of children entering the South African school system, particularly those from rural and township areas, contribute to the literacy problem. Resources are provided to give the rural child an equal opportunity and develop them holistically, as well as to enable teachers to apply the training they have received correctly.
YEAR ONE
In the first year resources are provided to help the GrR teacher implement the daily programme and follow CAPS
Theme Packs
Learning takes place in context of themes. Each theme pack provides information on a specific theme as specified in the curriculum. The pack provides for Reading Aloud / Shared Reading or ‘Picture Reading” to take place in the Book Corner. It also includes ideas and resources for Teacher led activities.
Toys
- Construction toys and storage bins (jolly boxes) are provided as the teachers very seldom have any storage facilities.
- Duplo blocks for teaching colour, shapes, size and for developing fine muscles are included. This also helps with basic reason and planning skills.
Games
- To develop perception skills a number of different resources are needed such as bobbles and beads and snakes and ladders.
- Included are also games that will develop Literacy, Mathematics and Life Skills.
This also develops group work and play.
Wooden Puzzles
- The puzzles assist with fine muscle development, body image, colour recognition, shapes and basic mathematics.
Creative Play
- To develop creativity drawing, painting, pre-writing activities and stimulation of eye-hand coordination are encouraged.
Fantasy Toys
- Fantasy play encourages language development, socializing / playing in groups, visual development and working through stress and trauma.
Movement
- Gross motor coordination is the beginning of the basis of all intellectual activities. The body must be flexible before the mind can be flexible.
- A child learns with his /her brain and body.
- Thought which are not translated by the muscles are never fully processed in the mind.
YEAR TWO
In the second year we add to the Year One resources and include more advanced resources in the same categories.
Construction and Storage
- Spatial orientation, spatial relationships, visual discrimination and visual memory are developed.
- Mathematics, Language and life Skills are further developed.
Water and Sand Toys
- The equipment for this is added to the Free Play outside and addresses tactile development.
- It also develops spatial orientation, spatial relations and visual discrimination.
- All of these activities underpin home language, mathematics and life skills development.
Music Instruments
- Music develops perception and perception never stands in isolation to the other developmental achievements.
- Teaching songs and moving to music helps a child develop body muscles and rhythm.
- Rhythm helps with reading as reading has a rhythm that needs to be understood.
- READ trainers are trained on bringing more ideas to the music rings.
- Music develops auditory closure, memory and discrimination skills as well as sequencing.
Creative Material
- Resources are added as well as training scissors for the learners.
Movement
- Additional resources are added for outdoor play and movement lessons.
Games and Puzzles
- More challenging selections are included in Year Two.
YEAR THREE
In the final year the focus is on Fantasy Toys and Furniture. Games are topped-up as well as puzzles and literacy resources.
Games and Puzzles
- Tracing is a more advanced skill and need more specific focus and practice.
- Cubes for counting are included to strengthen math skills.
- Dominoes that assist with identifying emotions are included to assist children in dealing with different traumas.
Fantasy Toys and Furniture
- Under resources schools do not have the funds to spend on Fantasy corners and extra clothes for dressing-up purposes. In year 3 they are given a variety of resources to assist in stocking their fantasy corners.
- Fantasy play also extends vocabulary.
Story telling
- Puppets are added to the mix in order to tell stories in a different way and can be used by the children themselves.
- Flannel board pictures focus on themes and are used for storytelling.
Donor participation
Every day household items and old clothes can be used with great effectiveness in the Fantasy Corners.