Unified wins City’s school reading contest again

27 October 2016

 

Unified Primary School, the former Model C school in Florida, Roodepoort, was crowned the champion of the 2016 Story Skirmish, a City of Johannesburg primary school reading competition, at the Protea Glen Recreation Centre in Soweto this week.

 

The two-time winners of the popular reading contest took the honours after two intense and gruelling rounds that tested the oral abilities of 32 participants – eight from each of the four schools.

This year’s competition kicked off with 215 schools from all the City’s regions. The finals and prize-giving ceremony were graced by Member of the Mayoral Committee for Community Development Cllr Nonhlanhla Sifumba and Section 79 Committee Chairperson Nomsa Hlomendlini, teachers and librarians from across the city.

They were all highly impressed by the amazing reading skills and eloquence of the Grade 5s from Unified (Region C), Tumang (Region D), Robertsham (Region F) and Mid-Annerdale (Region B).

Unified won the competition in 2012 and 2014. It scored 176 points in two rounds. Robertsham came second with 99 points. Tumang from Meadowlands in Soweto was placed third. Each participant received a certificate and book hamper. Each pupil received Pick n Pay gift vouchers – R400 for Unified learners, R350 for runners-up Tumang, R300 for Robertsham pupils and R250 for Mid-Ennerdale participants.

For Terrance Miller, Keabetswe Motsamai and Atlegang Mashangoane the cherry on top was when they took turns to read MMC Sifumba’s speech. Save for a few difficult or unfamiliar words, they nailed it, coming across confident and proud.

“This is a perfect example of why this programme is so important. These kids are actually very good readers. This is impressive and I’d like to encourage them to continue,” Cllr Sifumba said.

Cllr Hlomendlini commended the City’s Library and Information Services for a job well done and urged the children to continue acquiring more knowledge through reading.

“Education will take you places. You’ll fly like an eagle and see the world. We’re here to motivate you to keep reading,” she said, adding that the relationship between the City’s libraries and schools should be strengthened.

Unified’s dominance is spearheaded by teacher Betty Madiba and librarian Masego Oliphant. In August, Madiba was rewarded with a 10-day trip to Japan courtesy of the Department of Education. She had been a teacher for 16 years and launched the Story Skirmish programme at the school in 2008.

“I’m motivated by these children. I want them to succeed and they work really hard. With their hard work and determination, we’ve managed to put our school on the map,” she said.

Nobuntu Mpendulo, the City of Joburg’s Director of Library and Information Services, thanked her team and the schools for their hard work. “This is a reading contest for pupils taking English as a second language and the fact that out of 215 schools you’re the last ones standing proves that you’re all winners.”