Even if your child sometimes tests your patience, the point of being their parent is to help them grow. Everything that you teach your child should come from a place of love. Children need affection. Show your kids that you love them with smiles and hugs. While love is not enough to be a good parent, it is a vital part of raising happy and emotionally healthy children.
At Impaq, we know that every child is unique. Every learner studies at his/her own pace and some might need to spend more time on certain subjects to ensure they grasp the basic concepts. We aim to help learners, who have unique academic needs, achieve their goals.
You just received your matric results and they weren’t what you expected. Maybe you didn’t get the required marks to receive a National Senior Certificate (NSC). Or, you got your NSC, but you didn’t achieve the symbols required to apply to the tertiary institution or course of your dreams. Luckily, you have a few options when it comes to improving your matric results.
In that moment, when this little life first comes into the world, you can’t help but become emotional. I cried big tears; I was overwhelmed with love and pride. The kind of pride that only jumps into your body the second your child is born, and it’s this newfound pride that stays with you from then onwards. “Dads, you are hugely influential in the eyes of your children. Don’t be content with the fact that you’re simply a dad. Instead, challenge yourself to become a dad who is a force in the lives of your wife and children.”
Preschool and prep-school teachers are modern day superheroes. They gently introduce our little ones to a love of learning and creativity, yet they are also tough enough to manage anything that could affect their little charges. Even the horror of head lice in the classroom.
Parenting is not easy. But, parenting a child on the spectrum is even harder. This is because there are numerous challenges that come with it. One of the challenges is explaining to your neurotypical child about their ASD sibling.
South Africa has seen a significant increase in teen deaths and the reality is that 9% of all teen deaths are due to suicide – and this figure is on the increase. Suicide is the fastest growing cause of death amongst teenagers and young adults between the ages of 15 – 24. But children as young as 7 years are now committing suicide in South Africa the question is why?
Parents have an inherent right and duty to form part of their child’s lives. However, it often happens that parents of a child cannot see eye to eye as to what is in their child’s best interest. More often than not, when parents are divorced, separated or not living together, issues arise regarding the children they share. And then there is the case where parents want full custody over their children. These issues may range from the amount of contact the other parent has, the school the child may attend, or what extra-mural activities the child should pursue.
Much like the rest of the world, the typical South African family structure has changed over the years. The prevalence of single parent families is on the rise and increasingly, women head more households. The combined effect of these two structural shifts has seen a growing number of single working mothers in the South African workforce.
Navigating life without following our passions can be like pushing a cart with square wheels uphill says Cindy Glass, Owner and Co-Founder of Step Up Education Centres, “With so many learners getting ready to leave school and make their way in the world, it is essential to consider the role that passion has in guaranteeing success in their lives!”
Holidays are like cats! They creep into your lap for a cuddle and just when you start feeling all warm and fuzzy inside, they jet off to some unknown place, leaving you feeling disappointed and perhaps a little cold! Is this not true of these school holidays? They crept in, had a cuddle and left – just like that!
The word “camp” may conjure up memories of slurry porridge and compulsory exercise, but fortunately there is one camp in South Africa that will have your kids remembering the complete opposite.
While school violence is prevalent and widespread, schools are also being targeted by criminals for electronic devices such as computers and IT equipment.
When it comes to children, strong commitment and love are not negotiable. Unfortunately, not all parents honour this duty, specifically their legal duty to maintain the well-being of their children. Considering this, the child maintenance system ensures that all parents honour their duty to maintain/support their children.
As December rolls around, many parents get to breathe a momentary sigh of relief that a monthly school fee payment won’t be going off this month. That is until you remember that you’ll be expected to re-start payments again in January and this time it will come with new text books, school stationery, uniforms and for the bigger “kids”, you might even be paying boarding school or accommodation fees.
We all tell ourselves stories about who we believe ourselves to be and what we believe we are capable of achieving! “The trouble with these stories is that we accept them to be true, even when they are not!” says Cindy Glass, Owner and Co-Founder of Step Up Education Centres. She adds, “We make decisions and choices based on what we think we deserve, so if our stories comes from a fixed mindset, we are unlikely to achieve the successes that we dream of. If, however, the stories we tell ourselves are based on a growth mindset, we are going to be set-for-success.”
When co-holders experience difficulties in exercising their responsibilities and rights, they must agree on a parenting plan to regulate the exercise of their rights and responsibilities as a prerequisite before approaching the court. They must first seek the assistance of the family advocate, social worker or psychologist; alternatively, they must go for a mediation facilitated by a social worker or other suitably qualified person.
You may have already imagined your child’s first sleepover camp, and everything you could get done. A week or two without your child may sound like a dream come true. However, when you finally get the solitude you have been craving, the house seems dreadfully empty and too quiet.
Most of us are scared of the dentist which means dental care can easily be overlooked but, taking good care of your teeth will not only leave you with a brilliant smile, it will also keep your mouth healthy. By following a good at-home care regime and regular dental visits, you can decrease the likelihood of health problems in the future.
Too often we read about emergency services and the police force spending hundreds of thousands of Rands on wasted resources due to prank or non-emergency calls. Some emergency services report receiving up to 50 abusive or hoax calls every day. Not only does this waste valuable time for the highly trained personnel but it also causes disruptions to responses to real emergencies and puts people’s lives in danger.
Thinking processes,I define as the manipulation of information. Problem solving requires reflective thinking; reflective thinking encourages critical thinking and develops a range of thinking skills. According to Scheffer and Rubenfield (2000), the critical thinking skills are; analysis, applying standards, discriminating, information seeking, and logical reasoning, predicting and transforming knowledge. Analysing, defined as the ability of separating or breaking a whole into parts to discover their nature, function and relationship, is understood as a critical thinking skill (Scheffer & Rubenfield, 2000). When making a drawing, both the content and concept of the drawing are actively analyzed because they must be broken into parts so that they can be understood before the concept can be drawn in a student’s book. Through this engagement each student processes, understands, explores, and integrates, the content and concept they are interacting with in the drawing. For example, ‘global warming’ can be represented visually, left, Examples of how two elementary school participants represented features after learning about global warming, (Katz, 2017, pg. 238). The child draws the factory, water in solid or liquid form, while the symbols for temperature are communicated and thus concepts are mapped through the visual mode of language. In the second example an abstract concept is drawn, how the students feel about global warming. Left, Examples of affective interpretations of two elementary school participants in relation to global warming content, (Katz, 2017, pg. 239). In the drawing, the child wrote ‘Don’t cut me!’ Drawing operates to present two different types of information. In this case, the way the task is directed impacts the way a drawer analyses the content. Since alphabetic language, symbols, numbers have intersubjective meaning drawing a diagram brings together different codes of symbolic thought in a focused ‘slow thinking’ method, because drawing takes time to represent content and concept on the white page. See Daniel Kahneman for thinking fast and low. The literate person develops practices in code breaking, text meaning, pragmatic text use and text critique & analysis (Luke & Freebody, 1997) with the use of critical thinking skills. Discriminating, the ability of recognizing differences and similarities among things or situations is understood as a critical thinking skill (Scheffer & Rubenfield, 2000). Logical reasoning is the ability to make inferences or conclusions that are supported in, or justified by evidence (Scheffer & Rubenfield, 2000). In 1988, Johnson developed a task where students select one English language rule that they want to illustrate in a poster to communicate its conventions to the class. The freedom to select a rule empowered student with agency. “[S]tudents` explain how their drawing represent the rule” (Van Meter & Garner, 2005, pg. 295). Later the visual stimulus is put up in the classroom, arguable to aid memory, support student’s motivation and application of knowledge. This task is an example of concepts being translated across linguistic modes from the verbal linguistic mode of reading the rule to the visual mode of representing the rule. Secondly, encouraging thinking skills to remember because the rule was visualised for memory retention. Also apply knowledge, as the rule was designed in a poster, and problem solve as the child was asked to convert written to visual mode. The development of higher order thinking skills was practiced in this task. Predicting, as the ability of envisioning a plan and its consequences, is understood as a critical thinking skill (Scheffer & Rubenfield, 2000). I propose that ‘innovating’ designs is part of visualising a plan, for example envisioning architectural structures which is a structural example of composition planning in EGD. Also, to predict experiment outcomes in science or colours in art for paint colour mixing. Reflective thinking is part of the critical thinking process defined as analyzing and making judgments (Scheffer & Rubenfield, 2000). Creative thinking is considered as holistic thinking where various parts are considered in unison. One part develops in unity with another part in relation to the problem being solved. Transforming knowledge, as the ability to change or convert the condition, nature, form or function of concepts within contexts,is understood as a critical thinking skill (Scheffer & Rubenfield, 2000). Barbara Tversky from Teachers College, Columbia University explains the benefits of “messy lines [that promote] discovery of new ideas” (Tversky, 2011, pg. 16). She explains how a variety of different marks on a page have “context dependent meaning related to their mathematical or Gestalt properties” (Tversky, 2011, pg.16). She clarifies that marks, which make up the drawings, represent externalized symbolic thought. The act of drawing is a union between perceptive skill and cognitive skill where the perceptive skill involves ‘seeing’ in context of the object and the cognitive skill involves ‘thinking’ in context of the idea. She refers to this as “constructive perception” (Tversky, 2011, pg.16). It seems that when perception and thinking processes operate in tandem creative thinking is operating to innovate new ideas and products from existing knowledge and context. Tversky explains that messy lines aid thought because they are ambiguous, “pre-categorical, so they allow for many interpretations” (Tversky, 2011, pg.16). Messy lines are evident in Michelangelo’s Horse Composition (right, and detail a, Studies of a Horse and a Sketch of a Battle Scene, authors photograph from Ashmoleum Museum Oxford). The lines look like they were drawn quickly to visually externalize memory or observation and understanding of the structure of the horse for manipulation in a new composition. It could be argued that the horse was moving while it was being drawn. Interestingly, the observation of the horse (an uncommon subject for Michelangelo who focused more on the human body) is visible as two different poses from observation drawing on the same leaf of paper. A plan drawing for arranging the subject of the person and the horse is visually explored alongside the detailed horse representation. The drawer is creating from perception towards innovation thus using ‘constructive perception’. According to Ewa Grabska “Although designers during design process can form mental images in their heads, the majority of them do much better when those images are out of
As a father of two boys, I am constantly inspired and challenged, to expose my children to the variety of cultural avenues available to them. For those who are not aware, I am both a music educator and performer and have spent many years collaborating with, or working alongside, artists of many kinds. Being involved in the cultural department here at Crawford La Lucia, I have to been exposed to the various arts disciplines on offer and have been privileged to work alongside colleagues who invest in their pupils with determination, creativity, and excellence.
Although the focus is firmly on the Matric Class of 2019 currently writing their NSC exams, their successors in Grade 11 are also now heading to exam rooms across the nation, and they should not underestimate the importance of these assessments, an education expert says. “The last two years of school should not be viewed in isolation. Rather, Grade 11 should be approached as the foundation upon which Matric success is built,” says Peter Kriel, General Manager at The Independent Institute of Education, SA’s largest and most accredited private higher education provider. “So any idea that your performance in Grade 11 doesn’t count, and that you can chill and make up for it next year, should be discarded,” he says. “Apart from the obvious benefit of doing well in these exams, it should be kept in mind that these marks can be submitted to gain provisional access to public universities or private higher education institutions, which means you can get in the gates before the flood of applications come streaming in next year,” he says. Kriel says although the thought of getting the exams over with and then taking a well-deserved break in December will no doubt be appealing to Grade 11s at this stage, there are 3 things they can take care of during the next 3 months which will see them start their final year of school with a distinct advantage over their peers, and with optimal chances of ending Matric on a successful note. 1) DO AS WELL AS POSSIBLE IN YOUR EXAMS “As mentioned before, your Grade 11 results can be used to gain provisional access to university,” he says, “which means that your performance could mean the difference between having a wide range vs a restricted range of options. “But more than that, if you put in your best effort now, and invest in getting to grips with the study methods that work for you while ditching those which do not, you’ll start to get a good idea of your current capability. If you find that, despite your best efforts, you don’t do well, you’ll know that something needs to be tweaked or adjusted going forward. “However not putting in your best effort, means that you will enter your Matric year not understanding your potential, so the lessons you could have learned during these exams will have to be learnt during your final year at school, when you could have directed your focus to something more productive.” 2) REVIEW YOUR RESULTS & STRATEGISE Kriel says the next step, after the exams are done and the results are in, is to honestly assess your situation. “Did you do your best? Could you have worked harder? Could you have worked smarter? Are there subjects that you know are going to need extra attention, or even extra resources in the form of, for instance, tutors or supplementary materials? “The key here is to look at how you performed, and your experience writing these important exams, and then use that information to plan your final year. Sometimes, if you identify serious red flags, it may even be necessary to consider your subject choices. But keep in mind thatonly one subject can be changed in Grade 12, and it must be done within a few weeks of school opening.” 3) SORT OUT THE UNIVERSITY ADMIN Too often, the decision about what to study and where is left until way too late, because it seems like such a straightforward thing to decide and apply, says Kriel. “Nothing could be further from the truth, however. Choices about qualification and institution are major ones, which will have a substantial impact on your life after school, and your future prospects. “These are not decisions that can be left until June next year, and then you wake up and start to scramble to secure a place somewhere, anywhere. That is an ineffective approach and a potentially costly life and financial mistake, not to mention the fact that you simply won’t have the time or energy to do the groundwork next year,” he says. Grade 11 learners should therefore take a week or so timeout to rest after their exams, but then get to planning their post-school life. “The benefit of doing it now, during your holidays before you enter Grade 12, is that time is on your side. So you will be able to do extensive research about the job market and opportunities in the field or fields that interest you. You’ll be able to visit campuses and speak to career counsellors, you’ll also likely find careers and qualifications you’ve never even heard about. “Doing proper research now means you’ll be able to make an informed choice about your future, and, should you come to a decision, you’ll be able to get the extensive and exhaustive admin of the application process out of the way. Then on to Matric where you will start out on your strongest foot, and without the mountain of planning and additional stress that will be waiting for those who decided they’ll cross these bridges when they get there next year.”
In today’s world anxiety is becoming more and more prevalent in children. While it is a normal and necessary emotion, designed to protect us, it can inhibit as well. Anxiety is the most common mental health condition in children.
Kids all over the world are ditching their cellphones, and switching off the TV in favor of spending a school holiday at Sugar Bay Kids Resort in KwaZulu Natal. But that’s not the surprising part, the real surprise is that kids are going on holiday for an entire week (or two) without their parents. That’s right, Sugar Bay is a kids-only resort where children 7-17 years old can enjoy a safe, fun and parent-free holiday. For the working parent, this eliminates the stress of trying to arrange supervision and entertainment for their kids when the school holidays approach. Sugar Bay provides 24/7 supervision and all-day entertainment. Simply book online or give them a call, and they will handle everything for you, even your child‘s transport! Transport to the Resort Your kids can catch Sugar Bay‘s private bus service from Sandton, or catch a flight to King Shaka International Airport. The camp counselors, which are basically au-pairs also trained in Emergency First Response and Child Psychology, will escort your little ones safely to Sugar Bay – whether from their flight or during the bus trip. These transport options allow children from all over the world to enjoy a tropical beach holiday, and to make new friends from around the globe – without a cellphone in sight. Safety and Security With the highest staff-to-child ratio in the country (1:3) and over 18 years of experience, parents can rest assured that their little ones are safe and supervised. All water activities are supervised by qualified lifeguards, the property is secured by electric fences, 24-hour armed response, 25 CCTV surveillance cameras, night watchmen and fire alarms. The resort boasts facilities like a sports field, 25-metre pool with waterslides, paintball arena, indoor sports hall, theatre, infirmary and a waterfront with private access to the lagoon and beach. Unique themes every holiday Each school holiday is guaranteed to be a unique experience with different themes informing the itinerary and décor. Children are welcomed by superheroes, cartoon characters (and more) in an entirely new and imaginative setting from their previous visits. Accommodation Sugar Bay is a three-star establishment graded by the Tourism Grading Council. Nestled among trees and surrounded by sugar cane fields, the children sleep in spacious wooden cabins with en-suite bathrooms which are allocated according to age and gender. Additionally, all bed linen is provided and laundry is done for guests who stay longer than one week. Activities for all interests: Unlike other holiday camps, there are no compulsory activities at Sugar Bay. The children are free to choose from over 100 activities. Some popular activities include: Paintball and Airsoft Zip Lining Waterslides Bungee Trampoline Surfing Dance Lessons Skateboarding Kayaking Rock Wall Climbing Bmx Standup Paddle Boarding (SUP) Yoga Arts, crafts & baking. Kids deserve a great holiday break too – this is the concept behind Sugar Bay, which has created a winning formula for extraordinary fun and impeccable safety. Sugar Bay is an ideal getaway from today’s distracting technologies, and a perfect opportunity for kids to learn how to enjoy the outdoors. This children’s paradise is situated just 30 kilometers north of Ballito in a little seaside village called Zinkwazi Beach. The cost of a typical 7-day holiday includes accommodation, activities, three meals per day and 24-hour supervision. Naturally, parents may have concerns and questions before being convinced to send their kids away on a holiday alone. Sugar Bay’s friendly office will gladly chat to parents about their individual concerns for their children. Give them a ring on (032) 485 3778 or pop them an email at [email protected] . You can also watch this video for a preview of the camp’s facilities and the activities on offer. Get In Touch: www.sugarbay.co.za [email protected] (032) 485 3778
Self-awareness is an important part of parenting. Knowing, understanding, and accepting our children and ourselves is key in being supportive and successful parents.
No parent likes to see their child worried, stressed or anxious. The good news is that your response and support can make a big difference. Here’s what you can do to help.
The Sunday Times article, ‘Sex lessons for modern grade 4s in new life orientation curriculum’ (12 May 2019), drew strong reactions from educators and parents alike. The article discussed the Department of Basic Education’s proposed changes to the content for sex education as part of the life skills curriculum. According to the article, the revised content includes explicit details for learners as young as ten. The department argues that the inclusion of sex education in the curriculum is aligned to UNESCO’s international technical guidance on sexuality education. In response to the article, the Department of Education denied that explicit information will be included in new textbooks.
Working with unique South African flavour combinations, experimenting with different ingredients, measurements and cooking styles, but most of all family fun, were the highlights at the Spur Secret Tribe Chief Cook competition recently held at Prue Leith Chef’s Academy in Centurion, Pretoria. 15 family teams from across the greater Pretoria came together to create culinary delights and compete against each other to create the best Gourmet Burger and a Mzansi-inspired salad. The teams were made up of a variety of combinations (mother-and-son, mother-and-daughter and father-and-daughter), who went all out to win the top prizes in each category. The event was part of a competition for Spur’s loyal Secret Tribe members – an exclusive club for kids aged 12 years and younger. Each team was given two challenges. First challenge was to create a salad, focusing on freshness, flavour combinations and a salad dressing with a twist, using Spur Sauces. Butternut, biltong, feta cheese where the top favourite ingredients. Next up each team had to create their version of Gourmet Burger, working with the famous Spur burger patty and sauces, as well as a variety of toppings to create the ultimate burger. In each round the teams were judged on their ability to work together, as well as the taste of their food, what toppings they used, how well the flavours worked together and how they plated their food. The ‘Best Burger’ challenge was won by mother-and-daughter team, Anneke Flower and 10-year old Yazzmin, who scored well in the taste category, using a delicious combination of sauces and toppings. Mother-and-daughter team, Funzani Shandukani and 6-year old Pfunzo came a close second. Mom-and-son team, Thobeka Skhosana and 8-year old Nkosikhona were awarded the first prize for their Mzansi-inspired salad, scoring high on the flavour profile and full marks for their excellent teamwork. The runners up were mom-and-daughter team Tshegofatso Motsei and 9-year old Gogontle. “It was a pleasure hosting our eighth Chief Cook event in Pretoria. All the contestants were so enthusiastic and it was great to see how the teams worked together. Our lives are so busy and this event is an opportunity for families to slow down, spend time in the kitchen making great food from scratch and enjoy each other’s company. It was the first time we challenged contestants to make a salad, creating a delicious balance between the burger and the salad flavours!” says Joe Stead, Creative Director from Spur Steak Ranches. “Thank you also to Spur Sauces, Rhodes, Freddy Hirsch, KinderJoy, Plush and SunPick who partnered with us to bring families together in the kitchen”.
A lack of sleep is debilitating, and your pre-schooler’s disruptive sleep patterns can affect the whole family. Children between the ages of 3 and 5 need 11 to 13 hours of sleep a day, and also need a nap during the day. Establishing good sleeping habits as early as possible is recommended. One solution will not suit all children.
