Teaching Resources
The Year Programme
43 themed weeks across the four school terms. Today falls in Week 25 — Small Creatures - Insects and Bugs. Every week gives you the ring time, the words, one activity per learning area, a story, a song, an outdoor game, what to watch for, and a message to send parents.
SELECTED WEEK
Welcome to School
12 Jan – 16 Jan 2026
Week 1
Settling, separation security and predictable routines - children learn the classroom is a safe place where they belong.
Well-being
Practise the daily routine as a game - bag on hook, sit on your mat, wash hands before snack. Praise each completed step by name.
Identity & Belonging
Each child decorates a name card with crayons; mark each child's own peg and mat spot so everyone has a 'my place'.
Communication
Pass a soft toy around the ring; the holder says 'My name is...' while the teacher models the full sentence.
Exploring Mathematics
Count the children on the mat aloud each morning, touching one head per number (one-to-one correspondence).
Creativity
Handprint painting on a big 'Our Class Tree' poster - every leaf is one child's hand.
Physical & the World
Follow-the-leader line walk around the whole yard to learn the boundaries - stop and go on a drum beat or clap.
⏰ Morning ring
- Greeting song with every child's name
- Our day at school: what happens first, next, last
- Making our class rules together (kind hands, listening ears, walking feet)
- Who helps us at school - teacher, principal, cook
📖 Story
Original: 'Thandi's First Day' - a girl scared to leave Gogo at the gate finds a friend by snack time. Tell it with a doll as Thandi, pausing to ask 'What should Thandi do now?'
🎵 Song
'The More We Are Together' (traditional) - first line: 'The more we are together, together, together...'
🏃 Outdoor
'Run to the...' - teacher calls a landmark (tree, gate, tap) and everyone runs there together; teaches yard boundaries safely.
💬 Words this week
hello school teacher friend bag toilet play home
sawubona (isiZulu - hello)
avuxeni (Xitsonga - hello)
xikolo (Xitsonga - school)
umngani (isiZulu - friend)
munghana (Xitsonga - friend)
👁 Watch and record
Separation behaviour: who cries, who settles, who withdraws. Record names of children needing a settling plan and tell parents what works.
🎓 Grade R stretch
Children 'write' their own name from a name-card model and count the letters in it.
📱 Message home to parents
This week is our Welcome week. Every morning tell your child: 'I will fetch you after lunch/nap' and always say goodbye at the gate - sneaking away makes settling much harder.
The whole year
14 January - 27 March 2026 (11 weeks, 53 school days; unified national calendar - no separate inland/coastal clusters in 2026)
Myself and My World: settling in, separation security, my body, senses, family and home. Colours red/blue/yellow/green, shapes circle/square/triangle, numbers 1-5.
8 April - 26 June 2026 (12 weeks, 54 school days; public holidays: Freedom Day Mon 27 Apr, Workers' Day Fri 1 May, special holiday Mon 15 Jun, Youth Day Tue 16 Jun)
My Community and the Working World: the people, places, helpers and transport around us, farm life, and winter. Numbers to 10, shape consolidation, positional language.
21 July - 23 September 2026 (10 weeks, 46 school days; National Women's Day observed Mon 10 Aug; Heritage Day 24 Sep falls in the holiday)
The Natural World and Our Heritage: wild animals, small creatures, water, plants, spring, birds, and Heritage Month. Numbers to 10 and beyond, patterns, measurement.
6 October - 9 December 2026 (10 weeks, 47 school days; learners close 9 Dec, educators 11 Dec)
The Wider World, Big Dreams and Celebration: life cycles, storms, sky, sea, money, aspirations, summer safety and the year-end concert. School readiness consolidation for Grade R.
