While you were Teaching...

This blog is intended for Teachers across South Africa and the rest of the African content, to remain inspired to stay in Teaching.

You work hard, under difficult circumstances, and not always gain the appreciation you deserve.
It comes with huge responsibility, is non-stop and often chaotic.

Take a moment to remember why you became a teacher in the first place.
It wasn't just for targets and test results was it?
It was for something far more important. You wanted to change lives - to make a difference.
To inspire young learners. To guide them on the road to adulthood. To see them grow, experience and discover the many wonders of life!

And that is why we this blog is here. To give you the tools to help you make the magic happen. Read, share and above all, appreciate what you do on a daily basis!

Perfecting Patterns

posted on 2020-02-03 written by Karen Leigh Benkenstein

It is said that Mathematics is the science of patterns and that nature exploits just about every pattern that there is. What better place then, to learn about patterns, than outdoors in the natural world around us? In this blog piece, remedial teacher, Karen Leigh Benkenstein, advises you to take teaching patterns outdoors and gives you some tips about how to teach children the crucial skills of identifying and creating patterns.

A basket of trash? Nah! It's my CREATION STATION!

posted on 2020-01-28 written by Rachel Carey

Do you want to work on developing functional fine motor skills, motor planning and organisation, and creativity in your classroom? Occupational Therapist, Rachel Carey, gives you an idea that is simple, easy to implement and cost-effective.

2020 Vision: Setting goals for this year of teaching

posted on 2020-01-07 written by Rachel Carey

Time and again we hear from life coaches, leaders and managers that the only way to move forward and to achieve your goals is to sit down, visualize what you want and set in motion a plan of making these dreams come true. But what does this look like in the teaching landscape? What is it that you should be focusing on this year? What is your 2020 vision as a teacher?

Create your own Life Balance Wheel

posted on 2019-12-10 written by Rachel Carey

Take care of yourself and the rest will take care of itself. How often have we been told this? And yet, very often, we are the last thing to take care of on our list of things to do. With paperwork and deadlines, challenging children and sometimes autocratic bosses, there just never seems enough energy and time to take care of YOU. In this Educanda blog piece on creating a Life Balance Wheel, you can find out just how to go about doing that.

A Breath of Fresh Air - Taking the Classroom Outdoors

posted on 2019-11-25 written by Karen Leigh Benkenstein

Fun, creative learning does not need to be confined to the classroom. As a teacher, you play a key role in developing a stimulating learning environment. Think out of the box and pinpoint learning experiences that involve some fresh air and sunshine. This new blog post, by remedial teacher Karen Leigh Benkenstein, highlights the importance of taking the classroom outdoors and gives you a custom made maths lesson plan.

Loading Pages...please wait

Showing page 1 of 15 pages

Blogger Profiles

Heleen Johnson

Heleen Johnson is an Occupational Therapist with over 35 years of experience in the field of Education. Read more here.
Karen Leigh Benkenstein

Karen Leigh Benkenstein is a fully qualified Foundation Phase Teacher, specializing in Special Needs children. She has taught children with a variety of educational and emotional barriers. Read more here.
Rachel Carey

Rachel Carey has been working as a children's Occupational Therapist for the past 10 years. she has worked in both special needs and mainstream settings with children with a range of challenges and difficulties. Read more here.
Carla Kuhlmey

Carla Kuhlmey taught in the Foundation Phase for 12 years before discovering a passion for helping learners with specific difficulties. She is currently working at a well known KZN Prep school as the Academic Support Teacher. She has been supporting parents and children at the school for the past 5 years.
Charmaine Kendal

With over 40 years of teaching and management experience, Charmaine Kendal has a wealth of wisdom to offer teachers. The valuable lessons she has learned in the classroom and as deputy principal have equipped her with the skills to mentor and guide newly qualified teachers as well as to support more experienced staff. She is a published author, publishing youth literature and contributing to a number of textbooks. Charmaine has lectured education at tertiary level and has designed learning modules for education students.
Lee Louw

Lee Louw is a qualified pre-primary teacher with more than 20 years of experience. She has taught children from age 3 up to 8 as well as lecturing adults. She combines her work with Educanda with teaching ECD at a college. She has written 4 textbooks and 2 lecturers’ guides in the Educare field.