To ensure that children in farming areas receive the necessary help with their school work before the start of the third term, Hazel Booysen, founder of Tutor Spot, a homework centre in Hankey, is planning to host a holiday programme in Andries Kraal and Quagga in July.
As previously reported by Kouga Express, in July last year Booysen hosted her first week-long holiday club during the school holidays in Hankey.
To continue helping more children, in October last year she offered her programme to children in Patensie.
Now Booysen plans to expand her holiday programme to Andries Kraal from July 3 to 7 and Quagga from July 10 to 13.
She said that it is extremely important to her that parents encourage their children to be part of the holiday programme, especially single parents who do not have the necessary finances to get their children to an aftercare facility during the school holidays.
“My goal has always been to help as many children as possible. I consider education to be very important and I therefore believe that it is vital for children to understand that education is the most important part of their lives,” said Booysen.
She said that she often tells parents that in a full classroom it is impossible for teachers to get to each learner individually to determine what the child really needs help with, however, the holiday programme offers children the individual attention they need.
Booysen said,
She said that this time around her expectations are much higher as she expects between 100 and 200 children to join the programme.
With help from Booysen’s team, consisting of teachers, students and young people from the community who want to make a difference, they plan to host a holiday programme filled with fun activities to keep the children engaged.
“We would like to make education fun and exciting for each learner. We plan to read, listen, and offer the children learning tips. We will also pay attention to concentration, eating well together and playing fun games,” said Booysen.
Since they would be helping learners from two schools in each area, she said that they would need a lot more donations to ensure each learner has a meal to eat, and that they are able to hand out enough school supplies.
Booysen said that all their programmes are dependent on funding, and she is therefore hoping to encourage more people to consider donating to their holiday programme to ensure it is a success.
To raise additional funding Booysen said that she often sells food and other goods at local schools.
She said that on many occasions she has also sent letters to potential sponsors, but has not received any feedback.
“It is not always easy to manage the programmes, but I always try my best to make sure everything runs smoothly. Thankfully, God always provides with every attempt,” said Booysen.
For more information or to contribute to the holiday programme, contact Hazel Booysen at 082 508 2105.
