By Jenny Taylor | Chairperson
Edu Fun’s mission is to improve English literacy. We teach learners in grades 2 & 3 at Diepsloot Combined School (DCS) in the informal settlement of Diepsloot, South Africa.
We rely on volunteers and local youth to teach reading to approximately 400 children on a weekly basis. We use Diepsloot Combined School as our base which has become a centre of excellence where other non-profit organisations and groups send their volunteers/tutors to be trained in the Phono-Graphix reading method and learn best practices to then replicate our model in their own communities.
These partner projects keep growing and since we last reported in April, the project now collectively reaches 1511 learners from various townships and informal settlements where they are learning to read using Phono-Graphix from Diepsloot to Alexandra, Gomorrah, Mabopane, other areas in Tshwane, Rosettenville and Somerset West in the Western Cape.
Our tutor group continues to do well and some of the tutors attended additional training in Phono-Graphix facilitated by Read for Africa. These tutors had the opportunity to interact with other teachers and therapists outside of Diepsloot and gained valuable experience.
Holiday Buddy Reader, Arts, Sport and Dance Programme - June 2023
During the recent winter holidays, in June, our tutors planned, organised and ran a three-day holiday program for 100 children. The tutors ran the whole programme and also prepared food for each participant daily. The children enjoyed participating in activities such as reading, art, sports and dance. Edu Fun´s regular volunteers and mentors as well as high school children who are beneficiaries of our Food Pantry adn Baby Club, also participated to support the annual event. It was a huge success for everyone involved.
Another 200 learners engage in Phono-Graphix Reading Lessons for the second half of the year
From mid-July the junior tutors started teaching the grade 2 learners to read. Up until this point, the tutors’ focus was on teaching the Grade 3 learners to read twice a week whilst exposing the Grade 2 learners to pre-literacy skills introducing them to spoken English through singing and reading to improve their English vocabulary. They have worked on fine motor control skills to improve their handwriting and paper cutting skills in preparation for the formal reading and spelling lessons.
We are excited by the way in which our impact has multiplied due to the tutor programme. We are looking to expand this model into other schools in Diepsloot to make a significant change to the whole area. We are constantly being asked to replicate our model in other schools or communities and funding is always a challenge as the people who need our services the most can't afford to pay for the service. We are therefore constantly campaigning to raise funds to be able to appoint more youth in a variety of under resourced areas.
It costs approximately R40 000 per year to train 1 tutor and provide them with a monthly stipend to enable them to attend regularly and commit to the one-year programme. This works out to about $2000 a year and guarantees at least 40 more children will learn to read through 1 tutor's efforts and the stipend has a positive impact on a young adult’s life and ultimately their whole family.
Thank you for your continued support and dedication to Edu Fun's mission of providing English education and support to learners in need. Your contributions make a positive impact on their lives.
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