POLOKWANE – Grade RR teacher, Mamakiri Letsoalo from Share Joy Preschool says she uses the time during the school holiday to prepare for the next term as well as look back on how much work was covered successfully in the previous term.
“Growing up, I always wanted to be a teacher. I remember how I was always the teacher when we played school with my friends and siblings. I started school when I was seven years old and was unfamiliar and uncomfortable with the environment. The teachers decided to put me in a class with my sister who was in Gr 2, which allowed me the opportunity to familiarise myself with the school environment,” she explained.
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As a qualified foundation phase teacher from Seshego FET College, Mamakiri said she enjoys and loves to see children grasp schoolwork given to them, such as writing their names and numbers.
“My age group of learners are between four and five. This means that I play a critical role in their early childhood development, as well as preparing them for Gr R. They learn very fast and are always eager to learn and understand work given to them,” she added.
Mamakiri said because learners learn and understand work at different paces, it is important for a teacher to learn and understand such factors within the learners and ensure that he or she caters specifically towards the needs of each child. “Patience is a virtue,” she added.
She said she always encourages the learners to work in groups, as she has seen that children love and enjoy working in groups, and are always willing to help one another to succeed at whatever they are tasked to do. She added that she and her colleagues share teaching ideas and knowledge to help better their teaching methods and to ensure they achieve the best results from the learners.
