Building Blocks for Numeracy
We are thrilled to announce the celebration of our annual flagship month in July, commonly known as Mandela Month. This year’s theme focuses on numeracy, addressing the significant challenges in early childhood development in South Africa. Recent research in Foundation Phase numeracy reveals a concerning mismatch between learner competence and grade-level demands, adversely affecting learning outcomes. This issue arises from an overloaded curriculum that teachers struggle to cover adequately, compounded by a lack of consideration for the initial abilities of young learners in South Africa.
Starting Chance aims to make numeracy a fun and enjoyable experience for children, practitioners, and parents, thereby ensuring that children are maths-ready when they move up through the educational phases!
Mandela Month Activities
This Mandela Month presents an opportunity for Starting Chance to change practitioners’ and children’s attitudes towards numeracy through various engaging activities. We have planned several events:
Practitioners Workshop – 13 July
Aimed at equipping principals and practitioners with the knowledge and tools to enhance numeracy education in their centers.
Parent Workshop – 20 July
Focused on educating parents about the importance of numeracy and how they can support their children’s learning at home.
Big Numeracy Event – 27 July
A grand event to celebrate numeracy, featuring interactive activities and games designed to make learning maths fun and engaging for children.
On-going Interventions
Going forward, our approach will be practical, comprising:
providing numeracy kits and training practitioners on their effective use;
in our regular site visits, ensuring understanding and proper implementation of numeracy activities.
HOW YOU CAN HELP
Following Mandela’s example, please consider using the 67 principle to:
Donate R67, R670, R6700
Contributions will help provide 100 numeracy kits to 27 schools
Volunteer 67 minutes, 670 minutes
Assist with organizing and conducting workshops and events
Spread the Word – 67 min on a SM platform, 670 min on a fundraiser
Raise awareness about the importance of numeracy and our initiatives.