Teaching: Andy's Report

Andy Kemp is Travellers' Project Co-ordinator for Projects on the Garden Route in South Africa. He is an ex Volunteer who did his Teaching Project in Knysna and joined the Travellers UK team afterwards.	TEACHING: ANDY'S REPORT Return to the South Africa Home Page and the list of all our projects in South Africa
Two years ago I was lucky enough to do the teaching placement myself during my industrial placement year at university in the beautiful town of Knysna and now have the great job of sending out volunteers to do gain similar experiences as I did during my placement.
Travellers work with three towns along the garden route which is situated between Cape Town and Port Elizabeth, and I worked in Knysna.
During my time in Knysna I taught at three schools and one of the subjects I taught was conversational English.

English the main Languages in SA (South Africa) and African which is very widely spoken and Xhosa which is spoken by people depending on their tribe and region that they are from. Other tribal languages spoken in South Africa are: Zulu, Swati, Venda… in total South Africa has 11 official languages.		Andy and Leon (the Headmaster) at Sunridge Primary School
I also taught Design Technology during my placement, because the schools are very poor, short-staffed and short on other facilities, so they're very keen to utilise any skills you do have. Other past volunteers have helped with subjects such as maths, science, art, dancing, sport and many more. You will often find that the schools are extremely for the children to try new things that they don’t usually have the opportunity to learn, like musical instruments, for example.
During your free time you'll find lots to do, whether you fancy abseiling off the Knysna Heads, sailing along the Knysna lagoon, body surfing on the beautiful beaches of Plettenberg Bay, cycling, doing the worlds highest bungee jump (216m) at Bloukrans ... and yes, it is scary! But at least you can get a video and T-shirt after the jump. One of really nice things was to just relax and read a book on the beach.
	Plus you’ll find that the towns have plenty of Bars and Restaurants to relax in and enjoy a sundowner at the end of a hard day on the project.
	I had great project and now I'm arranging for other volunteers to do the same thing - it's great! And I very much hope you gain the same unforgettable experiences as I did. With any luck, I may even get to see you out there while I'm on a trip to visit SA!
	If you would like to talk more about doing a project in South Africa, please don’t hesitate to contact me.
	Andy Kemp Travellers Project Co-ordinator for South Africa