Patrick Mueller arrived in Cape Town from Germany on 1st September, and hit the ground running. His orientation the following day took place in the Educare bus (often referred to as the mobile office!) visiting all three Children of Light Educare (COLT) communities where he was introduced to parents and community leaders. Patrick heard about COLT from one of our dedicated monthly donors, Ute Buerkle who shared the Educare’s website with him and then set up a zoom meeting in August so that he could speak with Principal Mala.
When he was 17 years old Patrick volunteered at a Forest Kindergarten in Germany. He wanted practical experience before studying for a degree in education. He volunteered at the Forest Kindergarten for a year and in August 2024 he completed his 4 years of study to qualify in kindergarten education. He says that there are not many known forest kindergartens in Germany and his experience there was just amazing. The children learnt how to interact with nature and all their activities were held outdoors. The only time when classes were moved inside was when the weather was stormy with the threat of falling trees! The school house was a wooden structure with a fireplace for warm fires in winter. Inside too, were books and craft materials for the children, but they always chose to be outside playing in the large forest playground. He says that in the forest it was less stressful and less noisy for both children and teachers, compared to other city kindergartens that he had worked in as a student. The forest is large and offers different areas for different activities.
Patrick was searching for an opportunity to intern in another country (outside of Europe) and to experience meeting people of different cultures. COLT children and staff have grown very fond of him and he has enthusiastically embraced the Educare’s daily program, and the weekly staff yoga sessions. Having an extra pair of hands to help at meal times and with activities has allowed COLT staff more time to observe the children and fine tune their needs – be it skills for self-regulation, language skills, or writing skills, it is the children who have benefitted the most! Patrick has laid an obstacle course around the front garden and each day he guides the children one by one through the obstacle course. This is fun for the children and it’s a great confidence booster. At the same time, they are developing critical fine motor skills and gross motor skills.
