Education South Africa Project #21813

Education Programmes for Kids &Teachers, Cape Town

by Children's Helpers Worldwide

Project Report | Feb 13, 2017
You Helped Introduce Kids in Cape Town to Science and Robotics!

By Catherine Franks | Founder of Children's Helpers Worldwide

Chantel, Grade 3, at the workshop

Thank you for supporting science and robotics workshops, run by ORT SA CAPE, for disadvantaged children in Cape Town. Your support is making a real difference.

A three-day workshop was held for children from Seawind Educare and the Thope Foundation. Seawind Educare is one of CHW's partner organisations in Cape Town and we are glad to have been able to link them with ORT SA CAPE. The Principal of the Educare, Rita, does work in the wider community too, and organised a group of children to come from Lavender Hill for two of the days. The children from the Thope Foundation came from the township, Khayelitsha. All the children come from deprived areas.

Janet at ORT SA CAPE gave the following updates from the workshop. The children were aged seven to fourteen. The seven- to ten-year-olds focussed on the actual building blocks of robotics, including gears and axles, and they then applied this information as they built robots. The facilitators guided them in building robotic spinners and dancing birds.

The group of eleven- to fourteen-year-olds worked with the more complex robotics system, Mindstorms. They did various programming exercises, to understand basic programming functionality. They were also shown how the robots react with the various sensors that are in the kit, including the light and sound sensors.

One girl, Chantel, was part of the group from Lavender Hill. She is in Grade 3. She very much enjoyed building a lego robot and learning how to programme it with a laptop. She said “I loved building robots. I wish I can do this every day. Thank you so much!”

Food is also provided by ORT SA CAPE and Chantel enjoyed her snack.

Rita, the Principal of Seawind Educare wrote to thank everyone who made the workshop possible, saying:

"Gang wars have been going on for sometime now in the Lavender Hill and surrounding areas and I am glad I could take [the children] out for the two days, out of the guns and drugs war. They have learn so much and enjoy building the Robots.

...This workshop had a great impact on their lives. Some said 'I want to invent these types of Robots.'

They have never seen this kind of workshop before. It opens up their minds to what they wants to become when they finish their schooling. It has been an exciting two days for these kids from Lavender Hill. We are so grateful for these workshops, they would never have been able to afford coming on their own. A big thank you to all the people involved for making this possible. We have more than a grateful heart."

A massive thank you to you for supporting this project for the children!

A facilitator working with Chantel

Chantel building a robot

Chantel and a friend, enjoying their snack

Concentrating on building a robot

Some of the older children working on their robots

Thank You!

Permalink

Nov 23, 2016
Thank you for enabling disadvantaged children in Cape Town to learn about science

By Catherine Franks | Founder of Children's Helpers Worldwide

Denzil with the Lego robot he built and programmed

Thank you very much for sponsoring places for disadvantaged children in Cape Town to attend ORT SA CAPE's science and robotics workshops. We are grateful for your amazing support.

We are very happy to have been able to link one of our other partner organisations in Cape Town, Seawind Educare, with ORT SA CAPE. Rita, the Principal of Seawind Educare, works with the wider community too. She brought together. and accompanied a group of children, to participate in one of ORT SA CAPE's three-day workshops. These children were part of a group from the Cape Flats Development Association (CAFDA), which looks after communities in very impoverished areas where there is massive unemployment and high levels of crime.

Janet at ORT SA CAPE gave us the following updates from the workshop. The workshop took place at the Cape Town Science Centre. The children were between the ages of six and twelve years old. The children used kits to build robots using technological design principles, which help to develop critical thinking, reading and listening skills and hand-eye coordination.

One boy, Denzil, who is in Grade 3, very much enjoyed building and programming a lego robot. He became absorbed by this task and was very proud with the end result! Another boy, Wadeley, who is in Grade 4 also really enjoyed programming a lego robot and concentrated hard when building his robot.

Janet wrote that through donations like yours, ORT SA CAPE is able to reach more children and give them multiple opportunities to learn.

Rita wrote to say thank you after the workshop, saying:

"...The knowledge that [the children] gained was the highlight of the workshop. If these kids that come from poor areas can have such workshops in the future, it will make choosing their careers so much easier. Seeing their handiwork move [the robots], was amazing.

To every sponsor who had a hand in sponsoring our kids from CAFDA we, as the CAFDA group, extend our gratitude, because nobody really thinks about kids who cannot afford the science centre, but all of you as sponsors made it possible for us to attend the workshop..."

A huge thank you to each of you who contributed to this project and made it all possible for these children!

If you would like to continue supporting these children, GlobalGiving UK will be launching its Christmas campaign on 29 November (which is #GivingTuesday - a global day of celebrating giving and doing good). Donations of up to £600 will be matched by 50%, whilst matching funds last. The campaign begins at 00.01 GMT on 29 November. If you want to make a contribution, it is best to make a donation as soon as possible on 29 November, as matching funds usually run out very quickly! Please be sure to use the link to our UK project page: www.globalgiving.co.uk/21813. The three organisations which raise the most funds between 29 November and 31 December will receive bonus funds from GlobalGiving UK. If you share our project page or make a donation, during this period, your help will be going extra far for disadvantaged children in Cape Town!

Thank you again to each of you who is making a difference for these children!

Denzil building his Lego robot

Denzil programming his Lego robot

Wadeley working hard to build a robot

Wadeley programming his Lego robot

Wadeley working on his Lego robot

Rita with the children during lunchtime

Permalink

Aug 31, 2016
Thank You for Helping Disadvantaged Children in Cape Town do Robotics!

By Catherine Franks | Founder of Children's Helpers Worldwide

Matshaya and friend at a Robotics competition

We are very grateful for your support for the children at ORT SA CAPE's programmes in South Africa. This is allowing children from poor communities in Cape Town to learn about science and technology.

With your help, CHW was able to fund three robotics kits. These are LEGO Mindstorms EV3 kits and they will be used during ORT SA CAPE's science and robotics workshops which are held during the school holidays, and at the Science Club (an After School Programme) at Hector Peterson Secondary School. Debbie at ORT SA CAPE sent us the following details.

Hector Peterson Secondary School is located in Wallacedene, a very poor township in Kraaifontein about 35km from Cape Town. The Science Club meets regularly and ORT SA CAPE provides the computers and robotics kits. The Club also holds sessions at the Cape Town Science Centre, where ORT SA CAPE is located, and there, the children can meet with pupils from other Clubs and practice for robotics competitions.

Eric is the facilitator for the Science Club at Hector Peterson Secondary School. He attended this school himself and was part of the Science Club, and went on to run it, whilst he was still a pupil there. This had such an impact on him that he is now part of the team at ORT SA CAPE.

Matshaya is one of the pupils at the school. He is currently in Grade 12 and he has been doing robotics with ORT SA CAPE since 2012. He now helps younger pupils as they learn robotics. Thandi has recently joined the Club and is the first female pupil from this school to join.

Thank you so much for your wonderful support for these children. Your support for ORT SA CAPE's programmes, through CHW, is allowing these children to gain exposure to science and technology and they would not usually have such an opportunity. Thank you for making a difference in their lives.

(We do not have permission to show the faces of some of the children at the school science club.)

Eric (in the white shirt) in 2009 whilst at school

Eric, now a facilitator, with Debbie and Lydia

Matshaya programming a robot

Matshaya training Thandi and another pupil

One of the LEGO Mindstorms EV3 Kits

Permalink

‹ 1 ... 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 ›

About Project Reports

Project reports on GlobalGiving are posted directly to globalgiving.org by Project Leaders as they are completed, generally every 3-4 months. To protect the integrity of these documents, GlobalGiving does not alter them; therefore you may find some language or formatting issues.

If you donate to this project or have donated to this project, you can receive an email when this project posts a report. You can also subscribe for reports without donating.