Dear Kingsmead Community,
I reach out a virtual hand during lockdown and hold our community closely during this time. We might not be able to see the light just yet, but it is coming. In a time of uncertainty and confusion and world firsts, it is so important that we look for the light and hold onto hope.
Our lessons continue, these are lessons fostering routine and normality, while breathing life into curriculum expectations. It is important that our students continue to submit work and stay on task; it is even more important that our students feel safe. We understand that each family rests in very diverse circumstances at the moment. We see you. We will have time to catch up the work when the light returns. We are all doing what we can and that is enough right now.
This is possibly a time for a different kind of learning. We will learn more about ourselves and others; we will learn that play and quiet time foster creativity and independence; we will learn that we can do more with less; we will learn that when our time comes to reunite – it will be an opportunity for great joyful celebration.
I am reminded at this time of our calling as a school: Our Motto and our Vision.
Our Motto
Franc ha Leal means free and loyal. It combines two things that should always go together, namely privilege and responsibility. We have the responsibility to follow the South African leadership; stay at home. If we take heed of this calling, we will find our freedom once more. We can all do what we can to help each other and remain loyal to the plan to flatten the curve.
Our Vision
To inspire a truly happy school, through partnering all of our stakeholders (leadership, staff, parents and students), founded on:
• Consideration and care for others (love and happiness)
• A self-controlled and ordered life (discipline and responsibility)
• A sincere and continual search for truth (vision, purpose and possibility)
This vision was meaningful in the past, alive in our present and relevant for our future.
We will rise stronger as individuals and as a community.
My sincere gratitude to our teachers. You are an inspiration. Thank you for all you do to ensure that we connect, communicate and remain compassionate in the teaching of our young students.
Staff News
1. We congratulate Itumeleng Sehaswana on the birth of her son, Lewatle (The Ocean), who was born on the evening of Wednesday, 25 March at 21h05. Mom, dad and baby boy are all healthy and doing well.
2. It is with great sadness that I inform you of the passing of Moira Severin’s father in the early hours of Friday morning, following a long and difficult illness. Moira is in our thoughts and prayers, particularly at this exceptionally challenging time.
Stay home and Stay Safe
Kim Lowman
Head: Kingsmead Junior School
Lockdown Reflections
A quote from Stephen Hawking which I have often pondered over: “We find ourselves in a bewildering world. We want to make sense of what we see around us and to ask: What is the nature of the universe? What is our place in it and where did it and we come from? Why is it the way it is?”
During this time of social distancing, lockdown and distance learning, we have all possibly had similar thoughts and questions asked of us. Many of us may feel bewildered and uncertain. We may feel that we have the answers or strong feelings regarding these questions. I would like to ask that we pose these questions to our children and listen carefully to their responses.
Children have a very different outlook and will possibly be viewing this change to their daily routines and their lives as an adventure, others may be finding it overwhelming and are feeling anxious with the uncertainty.
The constant in your children’s lives is you. You may be a parent, a grandparent, a teacher, or caregiver, it is you who they look to for bringing a sense of stability and comfort into their world. It is up to us, as adults, to ensure that our children are able to experience strength, calm and courage. We often say that children feel safer when there is a routine and schedule, we may, however, need to become a little more present and flexible at this time.
A common mantra heard so often is ‘we don’t have time, there is never enough time, I need another 24 hours in my day’. Many of us have now been given the gift of time. We find ourselves being forced to slow down, to reflect and to reassess. We now have time to give our children the hugs and love that they so desperately yearn for, the time to play games, build puzzles and read stories.
It’s time to find the inner child in you. Look at the world through your daughter’s eyes and experience the magic and the extraordinary. Join her in her quest to discover new things, to wonder and be curious about the world around her. Giggle, laugh, get a little messy, sing, dance, bake and just be. Make the most of this gift of time; cultivate happy, joyful, positive experiences and express gratitude for these precious moments together.
There are many people during this time who are alone and may find social distancing and self-isolation a challenge. We are unable to experience face-to-face interactions; we therefore need to be flexible and think creatively in these circumstances. It is essential that we support one another and show compassion to those who are alone or separated from their families. Encourage your daughters to think creatively and innovatively to find a possible solution to creating positive and supportive interactions from a distance. Showing genuine interest in others, love and compassion may indeed help us to answer part of the question; ‘What is our place in this world’
My love to you all
Irene Ilsley
Deputy Head
ARTS & MUSIC
ONLINE MUSIC LESSONS
Our students and music teachers are having so much fun with their online lessons! WELL DONE to our parents for embracing this new venture, our teachers who have been proactive in finding solutions to all the challenges and our students for being open to new ways of learning.
Elsabé Fourie Mia Loock
Director of Arts & Music Head of Junior School Music
efourie@kingsmead.co.za mloock@kingsmead.co.za
UBUNTU
I met my neighbour for the very first time this past weekend. You see, I moved into my home a year ago but until this weekend, he was just another person in the complex. After the commencement of our lockdown, our residential complex experienced a water shortage due to a major water pipe burst in the neighbourhood.
The WhatsApp was abuzz with angry residents expressing their frustration and fear as the number of hours dragged on. Some had young children, some had elderly folk and the idea of living through a lockdown without water was the last straw. After several hours and an exhausted plumbing team, the water began to flow but not to all units. I was one of the adversely affected ones.
My phone buzzed, thinking it was another angry message on the group, I slowly picked up my phone to read the following message: “Hello Sheillah. How are you? This is Dips from unit 69. We have got some water, just incase you need. Please feel free to come.” I was so moved. Someone during this difficult time of uncertainty, thought of my family and me, and acted on their thoughts. I knew there and then, that we are going to be just fine during this lockdown. We will definitely be stronger together during this tough time.
Sheillah Muchauraya
Junior School Head of Sports & Head of Transformation, Diversity and Inclusion
SPORTS
News from the Sports Desk
The cancellation of many sport events both local, national and global has left the sport enthusiasts grappling with ways to fill up weekend time. School Easter Festivals, the Junior School inaugural tour to KwaZulu Natal; the Two Oceans Marathon in Cape Town are but a few examples of events that we will miss this year. We still await confirmation of the longest road race in the world hosted every year in KwaZulu Natal, the Comrades Marathon. Another enormous event, the Olympics, has been postponed to August 2021 for the 1st time since World War II.
Did you know that women were only allowed to participate after 1900? Did you know on average an athlete will train for four to eight years to make an Olympic team. They will put in, on average, a possible 10 000 hours of training to run a couple of seconds on the day. Training schedules have to be planned in advance so they can meet certain goals and peak at the right time. One can imagine the immense disappointments of the athletes who will need to wait another year and half. I have no doubt we will hear amazing stories of how athletes overcame this uncertain time to reach their Olympic goals. As Louis C K said “If you can survive disappointment, nothing can beat you.”
Sheillah Muchauraya
Junior School Head of Sports & Head of Transformation, Diversity and Inclusion