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PRODUCTS
For more information on each Grade follow links to relevant pages
********************************************************* A set of 30 books for Grades 1, 2 and 3 10 books per grade, 72 pages each Price for all 30 books - R550 per set Set of 10 books per grade - R200 per set
* Please note: These phonetic readers are included in the curriculum when Grade 1, 2 or 3 is purchased.
View example pages of these readers on www.clonardreaders.com
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ABOUT HOME EDUCATION . . . Until recently parents had no option but to send their children to school to be educated. This situation has changed in recent years; in 1996 home education was made a legal alternative in South Africa. Home schooling is not a modern idea. In the days of the Great Trek, parents were obliged to do it because schools were few and far between. Even today, there are families living on isolated farms, in game parks, on yachts or in foreign countries, who need to home school their children or send them to boarding school. Quite apart from that there are large numbers of urban families who choose to home school their children. When asked why, they give a variety of reasons for their decision - an inability to pay the high fees, deteriorating standards of discipline and morality, the availability of drugs in schools, bullying by other children and victimization by teachers. Some families choose home schooling for religious reasons; they want the freedom to pass on their own faith and religious convictions to their children. The reasons parents consider home education are many and varied, but the decision to do home schooling is one that should not be taken lightly. It is a serious commitment on the part of the parents, and very demanding on their time and energy. They cannot simply decide that they are bored with it, and stop. It is not the easy option. It is far easier, in many ways, to send children to school in the conventional way. Many children love school and there are many wonderful schools in this country. We are not here to denigrate the school system. Children benefit from the interaction with other children, the input from a wide range of teachers, the challenges on the sports field, the fun derived from being part of a group, the class outings and the youthful chatter in the playground. It is true to say that a parent cannot give the child everything that a school can give. Every school has a few of those dedicated teachers who know how to inspire children to give of their best and to reach for greater and greater levels of achievement. We do not want to persuade parents one way or the other concerning home schooling. It is a decision parents must make for themselves. Too many parents turn to home schooling as a last resort, when they see their children failing at school. This is often unsuccessful - the children have built up negative attitudes to school work. They are frequently difficult to discipline and to teach because they have gaps in their knowledge and are weak on basic skills. Many of these children have learning problems. Sometimes this is just too much for a mother to handle and she becomes desperate. We, at Clonard, believe that we provide a high standard of education, but we do have some very weak students. Parents must not assume that home schooling will automatically succeed where schools have failed. The most successful home school parents are those who start their children in grade one. We provide a very comprehensive package with all the required books and work sheets, together with parents guides and teachers manuals. The children are keen and the progress is very rewarding. Most parents are delighted to see how quickly their children learn to read, to write and to do number work. At this level parents can provide everything that a young child needs academically but they must ensure the child has suitable playmates and social outlets. The one-on- one teaching allows the child to move at his or her own pace - this is the best and most effective way of mastering basic skills. Young children love to be at home with their mothers and they thrive on the individual attention.In Grade 4 children become quite sociable and might well develop a desire to be at school with their friends because they want to see what it is like. Perhaps this is the age when children should be sent to school, if they are going to be sent at all. By Grade 4 they have their basic skills (reading, writing, number work) in place and will benefit from a school environment. They will be able to play sport, learn team work and develop a wider circle of friends. We work on the premise that many of these children have come out of school and some will go back to school. For this reason we employ qualified South African teachers who have had many years experience in the schools. Each teacher monitors her subject and provides a weekly schedule of work along with support material and answer books. We use regular school textbooks and the teachers set and mark the exams which are written twice a year. There is also a helpline direct to each of the teachers. We are extremely particular about the quality of our teachers and search for the very best possible teachers in the field. Our teachers give freely of their expertise for the benefit of the children and their parents. We are proud of our teachers and believe that they maintain a high standard. The children using our curriculum are drawn from a wide range of social and cultural backgrounds. Religion is an integral part of a child’s daily education, but we believe that it is a private family matter and that the parents are the true spiritual leaders in the family. For this reason we do not presume to advise parents on the religious education of their children. All parents want to impart their own beliefs to their children in whatever way they see fit. We, as teachers, are here to assist parents with the academics, not to advise them on religious matters. Our policy is to work together with the parents to give the children an all-round education. |
