Introducing Matjie Olivia Rasehlo

 ⁠⁠I obtained my B Ed Honours (Natural Science) degree at UNISA, whereafter I started working at Happyday Combined School in 2006. I have been responsible for the foundation phase at Toronto Primary in Polokwane,  Limpopo, since 2009.

I discovered early on that the love of reading has faded away amongst our learners and that it was caused by the lack of a good reading foundation as well as a lack of phonic awareness. It really affected me as a foundation phase Educator seeing them underperfoming, unable to pronounce words or even to answer simple questions.

I become demoralised as most of them sleep and seem bored during language lessons, using only readers and our chalkboards. These tools as support materials did not seem enough to achieve my classroom goals. This is when I discovered that visual and listening skills are vital building blocks for learning and decided to build my project around the use of technologies like ipads, laptops, interactive whiteboards and smartphones. In teaching reading and phonics, visuals plày an important role in stimulating my learner's attention which enables them to exploit language and reading opportunities. This devices also help my learners to confidently explore the world of sounds and video that platforms like You tube offers.

I used a Parents Whatsapp group to urge them to allow their children the use of smartphones in order to gain more teach skills like a familiarity with a digital keyboard.

By obtaining Certificate in Computer skills through Avuxeni college and lots of support from my mentors, Sadike and Kedibone, revious winners and finalists of the Ispa Superteachers competition, I was able to complete my project with confidence. My school's IT committee also supported me tremendously during computerlab sessions.

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