POLOKWANE – Westenburg pastor and Patriotic Alliance ward councillor candidate, Lizell Whitehead, encourages reading in the Westenburg community.
She founded the Oranio’s Reading Centre with the aim to teach the children in her community how to read.
She explained that reading is the most important skill to have and a child’s confidence is boosted as they learn how to read.
“Reading also develops the imagination and allows us to dream and think in ways we would have never been able to before. Reading improves concentration and it provides a sense of belonging,” she explained.
Everyday Whitehead sees an improvement in the children who come to the centre and the change is not only in their ability to read, but in their behaviour as well.
“I love to work with kids. I’m very strict on discipline and respect. I am old school and still believe in teaching positive morals, respect and discipline,” she said.
She added the centre is not solely focused on reading and they also assist the children with their homework.
She reiterated the importance of reading on a daily basis and not only at the centre.
“We realised we need to teach the children phonic awareness, as it improves reading fluency. We make use of sounds when breaking up the word because learning to read through the phonics method is the most efficient way for most children to learn, not just to read but to write too,” she explained.
The centre recently received a generous donation of 10 boxes of various reading material from Mrs Limpopo 2019, Lize Botha and Whitehead expressed her gratitude for the donation. If you want to enroll your child, Whitehead can be reached on 073 903 9803. The monthly fee is R350.
