Grade R prepares pupils for school

It is estimated that only four out of every 10 South African children go to grade R before they start grade 1, and this lack of pre-primary education could put them at a disadvantage from which they may never fully recover from, according to a 2019 report by Unicef.

The report, A World Ready to Learn: Prioritizing quality early childhood education, suggests that children who get at least one year of pre-primary education are more likely to develop the critical skills they need to succeed in school, and are less likely to repeat grades or drop out of school later in their school career.

Bailey Thomson Blake, chief of schools at independent private school network SPARK Schools, says grade R teaches important social skills, problem-solving and a familiarity with routine and procedures that set the child up.

She says there are four major reasons to send a child to grade R.

• Grade R starts teaching children fundamental skills such as numbers and letter formation, which form the basis for their continuing education.

They learn the difference between alphabetical and phonetic knowledge, reading, writing, spelling, counting, adding and subtracting.

• Grade R ensures a smooth transition between pre-primary and primary school as children become familiar with the school environment and the routine.

• Grade R pupils learn social emotional skills, which help them develop self-awareness, accountability for their actions and empathy for others.

• Grade R pupils are exposed to technology, which plays a major part in modern life. Technology also makes learning fun and engaging for pupils.

Grade R starts teaching children fundamental skills

Gauteng saw 92 000 pupils pass their National Senior Certificate and recorded 49 000 bachelor passes.

Distinctions increased from 37 000 to 41 000.

Schools of specializations make great strides:

Curtis Nkondo School of Specialisation achieved 95.5% pass rate with more than half of the pupils who passed free to go to university.

All pupils who enrolled for sign language passed.

A mobile school from Diepsloot achieved 100% pass rate with 75% bachelors.