Parents of young children across Kathu, Debeng, Sesheng, Mapoteng, Olifantshoek and Siyathemba, in the Northern Cape, are signing up to learn how to effectively improve their children’s Early Childhood Development (ECD), through unique parental training programmes.
REISA launched the second phase of its Early Childhood Development (ECD) Flagship Project – Parental Involvement Programme incorporating two key initiatives, namely Bringing Parents to the Education Table and Mentor Moms.
Targeting 200 parents in the region, a series of “Bringing Parents to the Education Table” workshops are being conducted to help parents focus on their roles and responsibilities in their children’s education, as well as empowering parents with knowledge and skills to support their children’s education and development at home.
The supplementary support ‘Mentor Moms’ programme trains and equips twenty carefully selected individuals to build structured and trusting relationships with parents, so that they can provide ongoing support to parents who are enrolled in the Bringing Parents to the Education Table programme.
The “Mentor Moms” programme is a first for the Northern Cape and is piloted in the Gamagara Municipality, through REISA’s funding. “There is a limit of twenty ‘Mentor Moms’ that will be recruited onto the programme through an interview process across the six participating communities,” says Veronique Isaacs, Regional Community Operations Manager for REISA.
The two components of the programme are envisaged to increase parental involvement at the ECD Centres through an increased number of fee paying parents, volunteering, attendance at meetings and improved communication with the practitioners and principals.
The first “Bringing Parents to the Education Table” workshop was held in Olifantshoek during February 2018. The workshops will run till June this year, with a formal certificate ceremony for participating parents taking place towards the end of June.
“We hope to see parents confident with the knowledge and skills to support their children at home, knowing that they will be able to support academic success,” concluded Isaacs.
CRITERIA TO BE A MENTOR MOM:
2nd Floor, Fernwood House, The Oval, 1 Oakdale Road,
Newlands, Cape Town, 7700
Claremont, 7735
REISA Local Community Office:
Dynlog Management Development Building,
Block B, Ground Floor,
Office 1, Kameeldoring Business Zone,
Kathu, Northern Cape, 8446