“I am the story sparker. Everywhere I go I want stories to come alive. Through this vibe children love to participate, and they learn without even noticing that.”
So said Nandipha Kolisile, a Nal’ibali Reading Club representative and a VW Literacy Project volunteer, who started her own afternoon reading club in Khayamnandi informal settlement to help children to read for meaning. She is assisted by Ayandiswa Calata a VW Literacy ambassador as well as Philiswa Ngalonkulu an Intersen phase teacher.
“The aim of the VW Literacy Project is that by the time learners reach Grade 4, they must be able to read for meaning. Unfortunately, in many local schools there are too many learners in a class which makes it impossible to give individual attention. Thus, this project is a kind of intervention which is of utmost importance to assist teachers.
“We teach learners through playing and singing songs, especially to demonstrate the importance of phonics which is the relationship between sounds and language,” said Nandipha.
Nandi is a human resources practitioner by profession, but owing to not finding a permanent job, and being passionate about storytelling and children, she decided to build a structure and started an afternoon reading club for Grade R to Grade 7 learners to help bring along change.
Educational items and food needed
Despatch Preparatory School recently identified Nandi’s much needed aftercare, which is free of charge to the community, as a project the school would like to support.
Educational items and food needed
“Our school was looking for a way to support our local community and were delighted when we came across Nandipha’s services on Facebook,” said Madeléne Sachse, Principal at Despatch Preparatory.
“We have drawn up a support list and are going out of our way to ensure she has the items that she needs to support the 23 learners attending her afternoon reading club.”
Currently Nandipha not only runs a reading program and homework facility, but she also does exam tuition, has a fitness program, and does career guidance for children in her community. These services are offered from her one- room informal home.
Vodacom has donated a container which she is currently trying to turn into a form of classroom environment. The facility does not even have the most basic of resources and although Despatch Preparatory is endeavouring to supply much of the educational items, other items such as food and hardware are still needed.
- If you are interested in getting involved in this project, please contact Madelene Sachse on 041 933 2455.
