Schools reopened to children of all grades in Ghana on the 18th January 2022 and for some children it was their very first time at school. Kindergarten teachers from the Presbyterian College of Education Basic school (PCE), in Akropong of Akwapim North Municipal were prepared and ready.

Gloria Amesewo, KG1 teacher, shared that “We are very excited to have the children with us.”

Whilst the start of a new year is a busy and exciting time, for new children it is of mix of feelings as they get used to this new environment. Madam Endurance Gyemfi, a teacher in KG1, shared with us how the first two weeks of the reopening have been.

Madam Endurance with her colleagues at a planning session

“Being new in school especially for KG1 learners is a bit of a challenge. Some of them started crying when they saw their parents leaving them and some were distracted … but gradually they have become happy. As teachers, our responsibility is taking care of them and making sure they are happy. They are really settling in nicely and even though we have not started serious classroom activities, the start of the term has been promising and I expect an exciting academic term for us as teachers and the children as well.”

Teachers at Presbyterian College of Education Basic school started the academic term with classroom preparations, setting up their learning centres (activity spaces mimicking real life situations such as the Market Centre, Construction Centre, and Home Centre, where children can role play and be creative) and how they are going to go about their daily routines, ensuring they have all the resources in place for the term’s activities. Teacher Mercy Tachie-Menson explained how they have been planning for the term,

Mercy Techie-Menson arranging her learning centres

“While I was home, I had been thinking about what activities I will use to interact with my children and how such activities will be both fun and enjoyable for the children. In fact, I had some thoughts in mind, and when school reopened, my colleagues and I shared similar sentiments and had planning meetings. We have started with the rules (classroom expectations) and established daily routines. We have early morning activities in place for the children when they arrive. We have started teaching them how to take care of the learning resources in the classroom and how to care for each other. We have arranged our classrooms to allow for space and encourage the children to walk freely while teaching them about signals. I believe it is going to be an interactive, entertaining and enjoyable term for us teachers and the children as well as their parents.”

The teachers at Presbyterian College of Education Basic school have all completed our transformational teacher training programme and are keen to implement the strategies they learnt. Gloria Amesewo said

Gloria Amesewo

“Thanks to Sabre, we have enough skills on varying activities that will impact positively on the children. With this in place, I anticipate a lively lesson delivery throughout the academic term. I now know when an activity is not appealing to the children and how I can bring in variety and keep them in the classroom. If you were here with us, you would notice that, apart from the first few days, the children are so happy and eager to be in the classroom with us, and even when school closes, they are unwilling to go home immediately. You can see how happy they are at the learning centres”

Here’s to a great first term for all the children and teachers!