Guy Pearson 2013 - 2020
Pre-Prep 2013 - 2020
2013 started briskly for the Pre-Prep. There was a staff function to meet the new Principal of the College, Guy Pearson, benchmark tests were set for the new Grade Rs and the routines of classroom, sport and extra activities was soon in full swing. Staff members went on a two-day workshop on “Teaching Thinking and Reasoning in the Foundation Phase”, presented by a specialist from England. Later in the year, there was a workshop on how to stimulate the gross motor system of the boys. There were the regular outings to various places of interests as well as the sports programme. In August, the Pre-Prep performance was “Aladdin Kids” in which 144 boys were on stage.
There was continuing growth in the presence of music in the school. The Grade 1 and 2 teachers joined in the research project about using iPads in classrooms, and weekly training sessions were held. The Grade 1s had a special Trading Day in which the boys set up stalls and advertising to sell items which they had made at home to other boys. At the end of the year, the Grade 2 parents presented a water fountain and a wooden bench to the school as a leaving present. These were installed next to the Range Field.
2014 continued the pattern of the years. Drama lessons took place, workshops for staff – English language teaching, ADHD, Stumbling Senses – a workshop hosted by the company called Professional Minds, dealing with how difficulties in the functioning of their senses would have an impact on the ability of individuals to perform at their best, and also workshops on Mathematics and teaching strategies.
At the end of the year, Noell Andrews retired after 14 years of service. She had been instrumental in securing improvements in the facilities, and developments in the curriculum and the professional development of the staff. She had managed the learnership/internship programme over the previous 6 years and had paid special attention to boys with learning difficulties.
Two developments took place in 2016. Following from the pressure from other schools and institutions in Cape Town, Council, prompted by Greg Brown and Sharlene Groom, took a decision to open a Grade N class at the start of 2017. Teachers were appointed to manage these classes. The second was preparing for a new Hall and functional space in the Grade R parking area. A comprehensive plan for new buildings was drawn up and executed during 2016 – classrooms for the Grade N classes, a new Hall which was able to double up as the After-care space, a new play area and restructuring of the old large building into an art room and a library.
A new uniform for the Grade Ns was introduced, comprising a blue polo shirt, blue shorts and slip-slops. Tracksuits were allowed in the winter terms. The Grade Rs also adopted this uniform. Grade 1 and 2 wore the more traditional khaki uniform.
When 2017 started, 60 boys were admitted to the three Grade N classes and the curriculum they followed was largely centred on play and group work. A programme called Muscle Mania fitness and physical development was launched for the Grade Rs to assist with pre-writing and fine motor co-ordination. This was run by the OTs. The newly redesigned space for the library and the art room was opened.
The curriculum offered by the Pre-Prep followed the Foundation phase CAPS curriculum, under the control of the twelve class teachers. On top of this, there were specialist teachers for Art, Drama and Music. The following extra-murals were included in what the school fees covered: Tag Rugby, Cricket, Swimming, Cross-Country, Athletics, Art Club, Drama Club and Chess. There were other activities available which were outside of the fees – Judo, Golf, Playball, Young Engineers, Clay, Tennis, and Heart Matters. And also covered by parents separately were the various remedial, OT and Speech Therapists who operated in the school premises.
The Pre-Prep music concert in 2018 featured nearly 100 Grade 1 and 2 boys on stage in the Memorial Theatre at the College.
When COVID struck in March 2020, and with the restrictions of the lockdown in place, the school became a remote school for the second term. Teachers had to be trained quickly, email addresses allocated to the boys, and familiarisation of Microsoft Teams set the scene for on-line teaching in this way.
