REPORTS

THE SMART CLUB

Amy Haworth (Trustee) continues as Learning Support Educator employed by the Western Cape Education Department at both schools. All referrals regarding learners who need specific support, are handled through Amy and the Schools Based Support Teams (SBST’s). This provides stability and consistency to the referral system. Amy has also, in her role as Trustee, taken on oversight of Smart Club.

Speech Therapy:
Tracey Nell (Reg: ST 0007625)has adapted her approach to meet the literacy needs that we still see post Covid:

• She runs ‘Let’s Talk’ groups for Gr R and Gr 1 at both schools. At St Mary’s 6 Grade R and Gr 1 children (3 in each group) benefit from these sessions; at Good Hope there are 9 Gr R’s and 4 Gr 1’s in Let’s Talk groups. Vocabulary and basic sentence structures are taught, enabling children coming to school with little or no grasp of spoken English to cope better in the classroom. Educators and children have benefitted greatly from Tracey’s skills.
• One-to-one Speech Therapy sessions: 7 learners at St Mary’s and 8 at Good Hope.
• Teaching English as a Foreign Language (TEFL): Tracey works with 2 senior boys at Good Hope whose difficulties stem from not having English as a home language for many years.
• Six monthly reports inform parents and educators of progress made by the children with whom Tracey works, as well as her targets for future work.

Occupational Therapy:
We were delighted at the beginning of 2025 to have the offer of a registered Occupational Therapist’s skills. Robyn Henderson. (Reg: OT 0109550) rapidly slotted in, assessing and treating 14 learners between the two schools. In June, sadly, Robyn left us to pursue her career in a different direction. However, we were fortunately very soon introduced to Romy Marsh (Reg: OT 0029440) who was able to step right into Robyn’s shoes. She has now assessed and treats 10 children at Good Hope, and 5 at St Mary’s. Romy is putting to use skills and experience she has gained over several years in both the UK and USA, and we are extremely fortunate to have her working with these children. She too has reported to both educators and parents, and we look forward to having the benefit of her skills for, hopefully, years to come.

Brain Gym, Gross and Fine Motor Co-ordination Group Sessions:
Helmien Jonker has extended her work this year to working weekly with the 2 Gr R and Gr 1 classes at GHSJS, as well as Gr R and 1 at St Mary’s. The children love her sessions, and educators enjoy helping during the sessions too, learning routines to repeat with the class during the week. Improved core strength, ability to focus in class, and better handwriting skills have all been noted as a result of her work with these children.

Reading Enrichment:
Maureen Mc Crea, a retired educator, has this year worked with 2 Gr 4 groups at St Mary’s. She continues to liaise with the class educator regarding material to use in her sessions, to reinforce the language and comprehension focus in the classroom. She works pro bono, other than for costs, for which we are very grateful. The learners and educators note increased ability to access learning in these learners.

In-Class Facilitation:
Althea Moret, on a break from running her Montessori pre-school, has enthusiastically taken on the role of in class facilitator, helping 4 individual Foundation phase learners at St Mary’s Primary. She is very much enjoying the experience of enabling these young children to cope better with the pace of class work. We are giving the position a 6 month trial, so next year’s report will show if we are continuing this Smart Club role.

Educational Psychologist’s Assessments:
We will have referred 6 learners for assessment by the end of this year, either to Anel Annandale or to Jo-ann Bergstedt. These assessments and the recommendations of the psychologists are extremely helpful in focusing the support required for the children, in the form of eg scribing or additional time allowances for exams, or even placement in schools better suited to the needs of individual children.

Paediatric Psychiatry Assessments:
We have not this year needed to refer any learners to Dr Zanda Jaquire for assessment.

Provision of Ritalin/Methylphenidate free of charge through District Six Day Clinic:
Sr Busisiwe Tandatu continues to organise the free supply of Methyphenidate for learners who have been prescribed this medication.

Parental Consent, Feedback:
Parents are asked to attend a feedback session where they are explained the results of the assessments. We do not proceed with any assessment or treatment if we do not have the parents’ or guardians’ full written consent.