Manor Pre-Primary School

Heritage Day was a bright and colourful event and the children all participated in turning the braai before tucking in to their pap and wors! No cold could dampen their spirits, thank you to everyone involved in making the day so special!

Despite a cool breeze, our children enjoyed a lovely Spring Picnic in the garden, sharing the fun with their teddies and friends, and kindly sharing their snacks with each other! Thank you to our parents for their support, and to our awesome teachers who work so hard to make every educational activity a lot of fun!

Animal shows are always enjoyed by the children, and the Reptile and Animal Show was no different this week! The children bravely discovered what a bearded dragon and a snake feel like and also got to meet a Tarantula and a soft bunny rabbit.
In-person experiences of the natural world are of inestimable value for preschool children. Why not visit a pet shop, the Johannesburg Zoo or the Lory Park Zoo in Midrand, a zoo small enough for little people to enjoy without walking long distances.

A big thank you to Manorswood Veterinary Clinic for so kindly hosting our Visit to the Vet. The children learned a lot, seeing the animals, the surgery, the kennels and the shop. Thank you for the valuable hands-on experience!

Well done to all our hard working children who participated enthusiastically in Mandela Day service tasks. They cleaned the Wendy house, watered the garden and washed the toys! Thank you for doing your part!

There is nothing quite like going to school in your pyjamas on a cold winter's day, and even better, to watch an entertaining Magician Show! Darin the Magician brought loads of fun into learning about Good Manners in his Magic Manners Show.

It was great to see so many families supporting Reach for a Dream Foundation on Slipper Day!

Bike Day as always was an exciting, energetic and fun outdoors activity! What a lovely array of bikes and scooters, ride-ons and trikes went zipping around the parking lot! Gross motor activities like riding bikes are essential for laying down the neural pathways needed later on for Mathematics and Spelling. So get out those helmets, put on those takkies and take to the driveway, the park or the street! Riding is good for the body AND the brain!

Vegetable Planting Day was a lovely warm Autumn day, perfect for planting out some winter vegetables in the school garden. Cabbage, celery, broccoli, Brussel sprouts, spinach and onions were carefully planted in neat rows. We look forward to harvesting our veg in a few months time!

Fruit Salad Day was a brightly coloured experience where each child contributed a fruit and cut it to add to the salad. God's creation is so wonderful, each fruit a marvel of perfection! The children then enjoyed eating their delicious fruit salad. Children love helping in the kitchen, and cutting fruit with a table knife is a good way for them to get involved.

Easter is coming up soon and our children enjoyed showing off their home-made Easter hats, thank you parents for your support. Easter egg baskets were enthusiastically filled during the Easter egg hunt, and of course, eaten as soon as possible.
May all our families have a blessed Easter knowing the resurrection power of Jesus Christ and the new life that He offers to those who put their trust in him.

At the recent Play-with-a-Purpose annual awards dinner, Manor Pre Primary School was again awarded the "Preschool of Excellence" award. This prestigious award is given in recognition of excellence across all learning and management areas. Congratulations to the teachers, teaching assistants, support staff, and board members and thank you to our wonderful families for making this possible yet again!

Pre-schoolers just love to dress up, and the “People who help us” day was no exception! Chefs, policemen, doctors, firemen and nurses – it was a day to remember! Dress up helps children to internalise and understand people in society, and they learn different concepts and activities through mimicking others. Dress up is a great way to stimulate learning at home. Make a play restaurant, take orders off the menu and serve up tea and cakes! Draw roads on the driveway with chalk and let them pretend to drive their car around town. Make a campsite out of blankets, a fort under the table, a castle in the lounge. All these experiences contribute towards thinking and memorisation skills, general knowledge and vocabulary.

Water Fun Day was a great success, especially with the very hot weather spell being experienced in Gauteng. The day dawned sunny and clear, and the children engaged enthusiastically with the many different activities that the teachers had prepared for them. Armed with hats and sunscreen, they played happily with Gloop, Shaving Cream, Slime, Water Bubbles, Frozen Sea Creatures and of course the Slip ‘n Slide. The day was rounded off with delicious ice creams and I think its safe to assume, a lovely long afternoon nap!

Colour week was a vibrant experience as the children enjoyed dressing in the right colour for each day, thanks again to our parents for their support! Colours are learned through daily experience in different settings – groceries in the shop, flowers in the garden, pictures in a book, toys that we play with. On-going repetition is what cements basic concepts such a colour, into a child’s frame of reference.

Family Day was a FANTASTICALLY FUN morning! What a good turnout of parents, aunties, uncles and grandparents we had! The children presented their lovely songs, and then enjoyed planting herbs and decorating their little pots along with their family members. Thanks again to our AWESOME parents for their enthusiastic support!

Valentine’s Day was a bright and cheerful day, thank you to everyone for dressing up so beautifully! The children made delicious Valentine’s Day treats prepared by our awesome teachers! We hope you enjoyed sharing a loving day together!

A huge thank you to the parents who joined us for the Parent Information, Activity and Love Language Evening. Successful education is strengthened when there is a good working relationship between the school and the parents, so thank you to those who made the effort. It certainly was a fun evening where parents got to be pre-schoolers for a short while, enjoying perceptual games with the class teachers. We highly recommend that you further investigate the 5 Love Languages book by Gary Chapman and Ross Campbell, one of the all-time best parenting books one can read!

You can check out the 5 Love Languages web page at https://5lovelanguages.com/

The church Youth camped at the church for a few days in December, and invited the preschool children to have a look at their campsite. Camping is a superb way to holiday with children where they can explore new places and learn new skills – and have lots of fun! We trust that all our families enjoyed their well-deserved break this holiday.

There was great excitement as Father Christmas made his entrance to Gallo Manor with the children following along at the fence! Everyone had a great time opening their presents! We trust that everyone has a wonderful and Blessed Christmas celebration of Jesus birth, a good rest, and a Happy New Year.

Manor Pre Primary families really shone on DAY ONE of school 2024! The children were so excited to see their teachers after a long holiday, and they enjoyed getting started on all the new activities for the day. Play-with-a-Purpose is a government approved Preschool programme, thoroughly preparing children with the stepping stones towards excellent educational achievement. We look forward to a fabulous year together!

MPPS offers a few select extra murals one of which is ballet with Myrt Davis. Well done girls and thank you to Myrt for bringing ballet to our school. Have a super holiday!

Its always sad to say goodbye to our Toucan class at the end of the year. Big children now, they are ready to fly off to their Grade R classes, eager to learn more and prepare for big school. Thank you Teacher Helen and parents for consistently investing in the lives of this wonderful class!

Saturday was a big day in the life of our school as the children presented their concert after many months of rehearsal and hard work. With each child beautifully dressed in their themed costume, the stage was set for a day At The Beach! Moms and dads, grannies and grampas, friends and relatives were all astounded at how well the children had learned the words and actions of all their songs – WELL DONE to everyone! Again we thank our very patient and loving teachers for the many rehearsals, and the families for their enthusiastic support!

Another year has come and gone, and our Soccer Starz have again excelled in their soccer skills! Thank you parents for your support and a big thank you to Soccer Starz coaches for their hard work teaching the children.