Message From Our Leader!

Dear Shine Partners

For Shine Centre volunteers that come on a Monday, I was hoping to see
you all to give you some feedback on your learning partners. However, I
am unable to get time off from Forres School this week as it is my last
session there. I will see you all next term.

I will be available for feedback in the first week of next term and will
email all those who have learning partners in Grade 3, 4 or 5 a summary
of their learner's progress.. You should get this during the next week
or two.

We have assessed every Grade 2 learner at Observatory Junior this term
and for anyone who has not seen these assessments please ask Ginette or
myself for them. We have about twelve Grade 2 learners who are just
managing to cope with the work and would really benefit from just a 15
minute session of paired reading. If anyone thinks they wouldn't mind
taking on a second learner for just another fifteen minutes please let
me know.

Out of 80 Grade 2's twenty-five are 'at risk' (ie know less then half
of their sounds, cannot read many three lettered words and are unable to
read basic text). Twenty are 'poor' which means that they can only
manage seventy five% of the above, twelve are 'satisfactory' (just
managing to read but still quite shaky) and 22 are managing quite
nicely. Myself and two volunteer teachers need to see all the children
who are" poor" and 'at risk' at least twice a week.

School begins on Monday 16th April. I would like to have a meeting on
the Monday 23rd April at 9.30am. Could we all try and make that meeting
as I really need to start working with the children as soon as possible
next term and if I don't have to have the same meeting every morning of
that week it would really help me a lot. There are some really
important things I want to discuss with you at this meeting and I really
feel it is valuable for us to have this time together.

If you cannot make the meeting could you let me know?

Thank you to everyone for all the hard work this term. Two more rooms
have been decorated and resourced, some really fabulous volunteers have
joined us and we are almost registered as a Non Profit Organisation. I
think we have achieved a lot and I am looking forward to seeing the
fruits of our work. We also have a set of 64 new reading books. I will
talk more about these books at the meeting.

Please can I ask you all to send me a summary of how this term has gone
for you and your learner. It only need be a paragraph. Please feel
free to add in anything you feel you would like for next term. You will
find proper Report Sheets on the black trays in the Shine Centre.
Please fill in your name, your learning partners name and grade and the
date.

Last of all, due to reasons of security, Mrs Naidoo has asked that
everyone signs in at reception on arrival; puts on their name tag; and
then just before you leave the school, hang up your name tag again. The
name tags are hanging off a ribbon alphabetically.

Hope you all enjoy a break over Easter.

Best wishes
Maurita.