On the first day of this term (9 July 2019) we welcomed two new boys from the Flamingo Lane informal settlement in Lansdowne. The Educare that was operating in the Flamingo Lane area was forced to close due to lack of funding and resources. There were two openings at the Children of Light Educare which we were able to offer to the community. In discussion with the community leader and parents, admission forms were completed for Uzair and Micheal who have quickly settled into the daily routine at school.
We now have children from 3 different informal settlements, each of these 3 naturally has its own social structures and norms. Adjusting to the social impact on the pecking order has tested some of the children, but there is a lot more self-regulation and a lot less of the overwhelming feelings of anxiety that teachers observed in the children’s behaviour just 6 months ago.
