Madodonga Primary participates in environmental games

Madodonga Primary School turned into a playground of activities when a team of nine students from the USA visited the school to participate in environmental education games with the pupils. The event took place last Monday.

The Wildlife and Environment Society of South Africa’s Eco-Schools Programme organised for nine students and a professor from the Canisius College, USA, to visit Madodonga Primary School.

According to Ms Judy van Schalkwyk of the Wessa Eco-Schools Programme, this is the largest environmental programme in the world and 58 countries are taking part in it. During last Monday's event, at least 40 pupils from Grades 6 and 7 patricipated in environmental education games, covering topics like waste management and recycling, soil erosion, permaculture gardening, sanitation, water pollution and overgrazing.

“We appreciate the manner in which the Canisius students were warmly welcome by the principal and staff in the school,” said Van Schalkwyk. “They enjoyed playing environmental education games with the pupils, who were so accommodating.” The visitors were served traditional food such as tshidzimba, mashinzha and thophi.

The Eco-Schools Programme aims to educate schools to manage all their resources wisely, such as water and electricity. “Teachers also use these projects to teach their various subjects,” she said. “As the environment is part of the curriculum, the programme supports educators to improve their teaching skills.”

The Canisius students study Animal Behaviour in Buffalo, New York. They come out to South Africa annually to conduct field research on samango monkeys and baboons at Lajuma Research Centre in the Soutpansberg mountains. Their programme in South Africa runs for three weeks, where they also visit an eco-school for a day. A Canisius student, Ms Catherine Wenrich, said she had enjoyed the pupils' company. “They are lovely, and the traditional food is good,” she said.

The school's principal, Mr David Tshirangwana, thanked Wessa Eco-Schools Programme for bringing students from Canisius College to their school.

Date:20 June 2014

By: Tshifhiwa Mukwevho

Tshifhiwa Given Mukwevho was born in 1984 in Madombidzha village, not far from Louis Trichardt in the Limpopo Province. After submitting articles for roughly a year for Limpopo Mirror's youth supplement, Makoya, he started writing for the main newspaper. He is a prolific writer who published his first book, titled A Traumatic Revenge in 2011. It focusses on life on the street and how to survive amidst poverty. His second book titled The Violent Gestures of Life was published in 2014.

Read: 1488