Here we are in May with plenty of New and very good progress. New staff. New activities. New developments with our 2023 focus on expressive language and speech facilitation.
New to Staff, Teacher Aides
Baking, New for Winter
Our children love their seasonal special activities, which we carefully select for the additional benefits they bring. This winter it’s about weekly baking. The activity ticks many important boxes, from encouraging calm and focus, through to hand and finger dexterity, and even basic mathematics practice.
Soccer, Still on the Go
You might think, ‘soccer as serious learning‘, really’? Absolutely! Our children get to practice their social skills and work on coordination and spatial awareness. Blood flows and they’re refreshed for the next desk session.
This special weekly was a big hit with everyone during autumn – our teachers too. So we’ll continue with occasional soccer games for our senior scholars through winter.
Focus on Speech, Making Good Progress
Enhanced expressive language is our special focus for 2023. Our teachers have completed basic Makaton communication workshops, via our internal training programme. Now they use Makaton in the classroom to assist with verbal instructions and sentence modelling. While it helps all our learners, it’s an especially powerful tool for those who are not yet verbal.
- As teacher Kellie-Jane says, “Makaton has become a ‘way of life’ in my class. I both sign and verbalize key words using Makaton. It’s become second nature with practice. My hands flow naturally when I verbalize the words. My favourite quote is that ‘every day is a teaching day’. Makaton is part of that learning.”
- See Wiki’s overview on Makaton as a communication tool: Wikipedia on Makaton.
We're Serious About Speech and Communication
- Speech therapy is available on an extramural basis at Mindstretch, provided by three consultant Speech and Language Therapists on our school premises.
- We recommend speech assessment for new enrollees, if considered necessary.
- Our teachers consult with the therapists to allow speech facilitation to be integrated into the child’s school day.
- Read our article Speech and Language in Early Childhood Development for an understanding of early language development, and what to look out for if you’re concerned about your child’s progress.
A New Tribute: Yaseen's Story
We thank Aneesah for sharing the story of her son’s journey with Mindstretch. Yaseen has more than reached his potential, he’s exceeded all expectations. The future is bright for this little boy, read his story here: Tribute for Yaseen.
Would you like to share the story of your child’s experience at Mindstretch? We’d love to share it, contact us at office@mindstretch.co.za.
Innovation. Communication. Expertise.