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It’s strange, scary but also true how many children do not know how to read. I was watching a documentary recently on how children all over the world are being passed over from one grade to the next, without knowing the most basic of essential survival tools in our world today, how to read. This is especially true in South Africa.
So what is going on, why are children not reading, why is the learning process taking a turn for the worse? What can we do about it? For one thing, there are endless other forms of entertainment consistently available at their little finger tips. From TV, Videos, Games and the biggest technological culprit, the internet, games that talk to you so you do not have to read and in extremes it is simply a case of poverty or school classes so big that teachers cannot teach, and due to incentive based outcomes, teachers are passing the children as it is simply easier for them. Either way the least we can do for our children is give them a love for literature from a very young age. With it being proven time and time again, that children who read from a young age are likely to be more successful in life and are more likely to excel in whatever it is they do, reading should be a priority.
When is a good time to start reading to your child? Well from the moment they are born really. Even an infant finds the sound of mum or anyone talking, soothing. Not only does reading to your child increase their vocabulary at a rate you cannot even comprehend until they are much older, but teaches them that reading is important. Taking time out to read to your child can even be relaxing for you. It will instill a sense of curiosity and interest in your child and as they get older even help with your bed time routines.
The very best way to get kids to do anything is to teach them through example. Occasionally, turn off the TV and sit down with a good book. Doing so will help your children to see how important reading is. As your son or daughter grows, the two of you can read together. Take turns reading a story to one another, or read a page and then have your child read the next page and so on. Tell the story with enthusiasm and don’t be afraid to really get into it and make funny faces and voices. I have loved doing this over the years and have even taken it the point where I was doing a different accent and voice for every character in a story, which is a lot more fun than you think. If you enjoy reading time, so will your kids.
Personally I have been reading to my daughter since she was born and every night, as part of the bed time routine, we have read a story. From the time she was 2, she knew that bed time, meant story time and getting her to bed, even if I read the same book every day or the story was short, was never an issue. I am happy to report, that 8 years on, it has all been worth it. Just 2 days ago, she said to me ‘mum I think I am going to read to myself tonight’. I will admit, I love our story time together and was a little upset I wasn’t going to be included in this session. At the same time however, I was over the moon. So I put on her night light and just so that we had a little bedtime fun, handed her a torch and did a quick shadow puppet show for her. She proceeded reading ‘Charlie and the Chocolate Factory’ for 30 minutes independently for the first time. It was a moment I have been anticipating for years and I will never forget it. It made me the proudest mom in the world in that moment, for having successfully inspired a love of literature in my daughter.
Giving your child books for gifts instead of a steady stream of toys, they hardly play with, will signify how important books are to you. Even before he or she can read, you can encourage a love for books in your child. Purchasing classics and collections of books in all genres will definitely keep the interest high. Taking them with you to the book shop to choose their own will give your child a sense of control and allow him or her to explore his/her own likes and dislikes. Then by exhibiting curiosity in what your child is currently reading, and asking a few simple questions about each book can also encourage excitement and a natural inquisitiveness. When you do reach this stage though, remember not to push to hard. Understand that for your child, reading should be fun and something they want to do, not have to do.
Sometimes you will find your child may have trouble reading. By being closely involved, you will more likely be able to pick up where the issues are and stop them, in their tracks while any issue is still in infancy. To ascertain difficulties, asking your child to read out loud to you is the best bet, you will immediately see if they are struggling and with what aspects they are struggling. If you do pick up on an issue that goes beyond your capabilities, don’t be scared to obtain assistance, from teachers and other professionals. Once your child has a better grasp of reading, the desire to read will grow. Be encouraging and try not to show frustration at temporary setbacks that occur from time to time. Find books that are of great interest to your kids, and this will act as a source of motivation for further reading.
Even if your youngster does not require reading help, take him or her to the library to sign up for a library card. Visit the library regularly and encourage your son or daughter to try several different kinds of books. Make it an important, special occasion. You will both begin to look forward to these outings and the opportunity to relax and enjoy a good book in the calm, quiet atmosphere of the library.
If you praise your son or daughter whenever they read rather than watching television or playing video games, your praise will be rewarding to them and they will attempt to continue impressing you reaching new goals, slowly but surely, reading will quickly become a normal part of your children’s routine and one day you too will look back and say, ‘Wow, today I am the world’s proudest parent!’ as your child turns off the TV and heads to bed with their book, lost in a world of imagination and growing a strong and intelligent mind for the future.
You know, our website has always been a source of immense pride for me. Every word, page, article and piece of information has been created with love, thought and of course always keeping in mind that it should be easy for our clients to use.
I was beyond chuffed when Leroux from Artificial Studio sent me a mail that Louise at www.eduwrite.org had sent to him about Sitters4U’s website.
Hi there
I have just been using sitters4u. What a well-designed website! Usually these database-driven sites are slow, confusing and cumbersome. This site is a breeze.
All the best
Louise Sterling
Thank you Louise! You made my day.
It was Friday afternoon and all through the office not a phone was a ringing, when out of the blue, we got a call from Tilly. She needed help, she needed it fast, she was going away for the weekend and her 6 month old baby had no carer in hand, so we sorted her out, very quickly indeed. Tilly had her au pair at 8am the next day for the entire weekend.
In return she made my day by sending me this little note, I just had to share;
Thank you so much for Sthembiso. She was great!!!!!!! Our baby also loves her to bits
Regards,
Tilly Gasela
It was only a pleasure to assist you, its what I live for each day. Thank you for using our services and look forward to assisting again!
As a follow up to one of our recent posts , ” Mom, make up, a freeway and no seatbelt.“, I thought it would be a good idea to load up this video I took yesterday at our First Aid course, which we host for both our candidates and the public on a regular basis. Michelle van der Merwe, popped in to give a 15 minute chat child safety around vehicles.
The facts are scary. 84% of children in South Africa do not wear a seat belt. If you are in an accident driving at 50 km’s per hour it is equivalent to throwing your child off a second storey building ( that’s when you are in an accident with a stationary object) or having 30 adults stand on top of him or her. It is our responsibility to ensure that we reduce 80% of the fatalities in children involved in vehicle accidents in South Africa. Child fatality in accidents is currently the 4th leading cause of death in the country. All it takes is a few seconds, and yet 84 % are currently not strapping their children up! Wake up South Africa, 80% of these deaths are preventable.
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Recently I made a little discovery that you will be very interested to hear about. Firefly’s… What is a firefly? Well, you know that sinking feeling you get about buying your child a cell phone? Worried about the usage and whether it’s going to be a good idea? I certainly have been! I have been considering getting my 8 year old daughter a phone for emergency use but at such a young age I was worried about her abusing the phone and not understanding that calling your friends mom to organize play dates without asking me first is a no, no. The Firefly is set to change all of that for me, and it could for you too!
The Firefly phone - The Peace of mind Cellphone
For only R575.95 you can now stay in contact with your child 24/7! Its a 5 button phone, and you works purely on a speed dial basis. You can load mom and dads number, emergency numbers and anyone elses number that you think is important. It has a password protected phone book with storage for up to 20 numbers and you can even programme it to reject calls from numbers not in the phone book. No fancy cameras, MP3 player or video. They come in a range of fantastic funky colours and the entire phone lights up when a call comes through, talk about cool and safe!
Check out the firefly by clicking here or you could purchase one right now by clicking here and purchasing online, with 24 hour delivery its so convenient.
Today I received the below email from one of our candidates, Lucinda ( Laeeqah), listed with us for a few years now and also running infant training workshops for domestics, we are certainly honoured to have her working with our clientèle.
If you stay in Cape Town and have unused or old toys lying around one of these 3 ladies will come and collect them at your home if you like, to donate to The Saartjie Baartman Centre for Women and Children in Cape Town. They are also now asking for toiletries as well, just basic essentials we do not even think about, but which, these children do not even have regular access. Please donate to this cause. Contact details are at the bottom of this article. Your donation will not go unappreciated or unused and there will be a child whose world lights up due to your kindness.
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Today I have to admit I have been feeling a little under the weather. Both my daughter and I have been at home, sick , and of course hubby isn’t feeling a thing, yet. I think I pulled through the day in fine form though.First there was coaxing my daughter to stay in bed, which was difficult but we survived with a few books, some drawing and more coaxing. Work was another story altogether… and I feel its my duty to tell you why, even though my head was throbbing and my temperature a little above normal, it was a great day!
What made it such a great day? Well normally its happy clients and candidates that make my work rewarding but let me bring your attention for a moment, and my praise, to a company that worked wonders with a smile for one of our clients this morning. About 2 days ago the client contacted me and told me she would be flying to Cape Town and would require a babysitter over the weekend. We sorted out for her booking for her quite quickly and then early this morning, she called. She had just landed at the airport and had to hire a vehicle but then she had a bit of a shock. She realised she did not have a car seat for her 14 month old son.
Frankly, I’m a little surprised to find that vehicle rental companies do not have car seats available for rent, apparently they don’t ( I know shocker right!). She called to ask me to find out if perhaps I knew of a place she could hire one from. Right off the bat I knew who to call…. Babylite , I found them a while ago and they are listed on our “Mom’s Link Directory”. They hire out a massive array of child related products including prams, car seats, baby monitors, toys , walkers, chairs, safety gates and more. Better yet is that they are everywhere from Cape Town, to Johannesburg, to Plett, to George, Durban and a long list of others.
To take some pressure off the client though, I called on her behalf. I got through to Shawn from their northern suburbs branch. Now just so that you can understand the magnitude here, the client is staying in town centre which is quite a distance in Friday traffic from the northern suburbs ( at least an hour and a half, both ways). I asked Shawn to give her a call and assist. Shawn called her right away, took her requirements down and Babylite then delivered the car seat to her at her guest house. A little while later she called me to say thank you. What superb service! Shawn and Babylite, on behalf of our client and myself, a big thank you! You and your company really made my day!
Hi Bianca
Thanks so much for arranging this on short notice. Please find attached pop.
Astrid
and,
Morning Bianca,
I am going to fax you a copy of the contract today. The original I’ll have to post;
So nice to be sorted out with home support so that I can actually get some work done! I have already recommended your company to a friend of mine.
Kind regards,
Alexandra
Hows that for a feel good way to start your day? Certainly put the shine back into mine even though it is overcast and raining.
Over the last week , I am sure everyone noticed, I have been a little quieter than usual. I have one sentence, ” As long as there is modern medicine, never say die.” South African’s reading this may think, ‘That sounds like an odd ever-ready battery advert. For the first time in 3 years I was struck down by a kidney issue and, boy it did put the usual day to day schedule into a tizz, everything I normally juggle easily, the mad morning school rush (mom’s and dad’s out there, you know what I am referring to), making what I do seem effortless to the outsider, while behind the scenes working until crazy late hours to orchestrate a business run and inter-dependent on people, which is usually is a feat in itself, nevermind the people. Operating and remembering what is happening with over 400 people everyday, and which client needs what ,when and still tracking progress, marketing and assisting to make a difference everyday in the lives the people we work with.
Then returning to the late afternoon and switching, as if on autopilot, back to mom mode, getting dinner ready , making sure chores are done, bags are packed for school the next day, and spending time with your family. The bed time story and lights out. But not for you ( Gosh, being a child was always healthier when it came to sleeping patterns). Then its some time out, for you, for your partner, for silence, whichever works. Its at about this point I usually end up working late, really late. Its been a problem since I was young, I have this irratating habit of burning the midnight creativity. I think clearly and the silence, well its golden…Sounds well managed , well run and easy enough right?
Well, last week it all came to a crashing halt as I started to take stock and was reminded ,as one often one is, of how, when in pain things can change, drastically, immediately, and you can go into a bit of a disorientated state.
However I find looking for the good in the bad a rule of thumb, until proven otherwise.
I was reminded of how amazingly supportive family can be at a time when you think the walls are tumbling down around you, I know for many this is not the case though, it wasn’t for me at one time. However I am blessed with the world’s most amazing guy, and a daughter,angels must have been watching from the word go! So that was the first highlight of the entire situation and that was the first found happy thought.
Then there is modern medicine, what a joy. How lucky are we to be alive at such an amazing time in history where new developments and new cures are occurring on a daily basis across the globe? Without the invention of antibiotics or at least painkillers, life could be a truly different experience. We have a headache, we take a panado; our child has a fall, we apply antiseptics; we now even have the option of prebiotic foods, we don’t even have to think about it! Isn’t Modern medicine a wonder. Well after the last week I can truly say how wonderfully grateful I am for not having to endure the stone age.
The funny thing is that its been helping other people, that got me through, seeing the best in everything and ensuring I persevered in the last week. Today that thought was what got me back on top, and has been since I have been back home.Well that thought, and the people to think it of, of course. Everyone, including our clients and staff have been amazingly understanding and that has driven me to explore new found enthusiasm for what Sitters4U does and how we do it! Thank you for the support and let’s make this an amazing month ahead, together!
Last year Sitters4U assisted Vanessa to find an au pair for her grandchild in Johannesburg. They were so extremely happy with our service, we have done it again for her this year with another grandchild in Cape Town. Thank you for the lovely comment Vanessa!
Thanks Bianca yet again for finding us what I am sure will end up being a great au pair!
Very best regards,
VANESSA
