Primrose Primary celebrate Growsmart success

When the team from Primrose Primary School nervously stepped into the hall at Parow High School to pit their wits against their peers from 200 schools across the Western Cape, the idea of winning the fifth annual Growsmart competition was just a distant dream.

By Saturday September 6, the teams had been whittled down to just eight, and after two gruelling rounds, Primrose Primary were celebrating their victory, as well as the legacy of the R250 000 upgrade that their victory will be leaving to their school.

“We are so proud of these children,” said their mentor Karen Joshua. “I have always told them that it doesn’t matter where you come from, you can still excel. They have proved that today. Living in Mannenburg is not easy, but your circumstances are never an excuse and do not need to hold you back.”

Speaking at the final which was held at the Waterfront, Western Cape Minister of Education Debbie Schäfer said “I have always wanted to start a spelling competition. It gives learners great confidence, but I am glad to see Growthpoint properties beat me to it.” Schäfer called for Afrikaans and Xhosa to be included in future competitions.

The competition takes the form of an expanded spelling bee, where each child is required to spell words, define them and use them in sentences. The words, as well as the numeracy questions, come out of the Growsmart newspapers which are distributed three times a year to every child in Grades 4, 5 and 6 in the 200 competing schools. The brightly coloured papers are pedagogically sound and endorsed by the Department of Education.

“The competition, and the final in particular, is a celebration of the children,” said Jewel Harris of Growthpoint Properties. “As the year progresses we see their confidence grow as they realise that they can be successful in whatever they put their minds to and can overcome any circumstances that they face.”

The competition also offers each of the top eight teams the chance to earn a life-changing high school bursary.

The winning team will also each receive R20 000 towards their education and their teacher mentor can look forward to a R10 000 shopping spree in one of Growthpoint’s shopping centres: Constantia Village, Golden Acre, Longbeach Mall, Middestad Mall, Montclare Place and Picbel Parkade.

The second and third placed teams can look forward to R50 000 and R25 000 worth of school improvements respectively, as well as substantial prizes for the winning children and their mentors.

The Growsmart competition is a CSI project of Growthpoint and is run in conjunction with the Western Cape Department of Education.

Author: Gayle Pretorius from HIPPO Communications.
Images: For high res version/s of One image/s please contact: HIPPO Communications.

Growsmart 2014 winners. Primrose Primary. Mentor – Mrs Karen Joshua, Noni Adams, Zaheerah Solomons, Faatimah Isaacs

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