After much anticipation we have moved to the new Silvermine Music Academy building. How exciting! Lessons started on 29 January, but music students can still be enrolled. Kirstyn Botha will be teaching Music Appreciation. I would like to encourage all our music students to enrol for this course. It will provide them with essential background information about different genres of music and[Read More…]
Last week, the Grade Sevens of 2016 hosted the annual Market Day. After seven incredible years at Sun Valley, the Market Day is a little way to say thank you to the staff, the students and to the school as a whole for an amazing journey. In 2015, the kids raised more money than ever before and we were certain[Read More…]
Here I am writing in English to tell you that the best way to learn a second language, according to Benny Lewis, a polyglot, is to speak the language. A polyglot is someone who can speak several languages. Benny is an author, polyglot, language teacher, and “technomad language hacker“. Born in Ireland, he graduated in electronic engineering and then spent six months[Read More…]
With less than 6 weeks to go before the Grade 12 History students write their Preliminary examinations… the end is definitely in sight. The term has started with a BANG as we write our last tests, cover our final section of work… and finally hand a task that has taken many hours of hard work – the One Research Task. Our[Read More…]
History is defined as ‘the study of past events, particularly in human affairs‘. We can study the History of people and places from hundreds or thousands of years ago. We can also look at events that only happened fifty, ten or five years ago. Why do we study History? There is a saying: “Those who do not learn from the[Read More…]
We have welcomed new Grade 10’s to History – Brion, Siyabonga, Greg, Sim, Linus, Wandile and Rebecca. I am already impressed with their keen minds. These Grade 10’s don’t accept a source or fact at face value! Our ‘old faithfuls’ (and a few new faces), in Grade 11 and 12, have returned renewed and excited to tackle a new year[Read More…]
Our Grade 12’s are well into their final examinations at Silvermine Academy. The History students have already written Paper 2 (discursive essays and extended writing). They will face Paper 1 (Source-based work) on the 17th of November. Good luck! For the Grade 8 – 11’s, exams begin this week. The Grade 10 and 11 History students have spent the past[Read More…]
I have had the privilege to teach eight amazing History students this year. Ethan, Justin, Tristan, Kim, Mercedes, Kaylin, Jessica, Aymie – thank you! Discussions about the syllabus were deep and great insight was shown. Deadlines were met with relative ease and not too much nagging – phew! In between all of the hard work as we waded through a[Read More…]
The Grade 10 – 12 History students have been hard at work these past few weeks. The Grade 10’s have started learning about a new skill – extended writing. They are currently examining the impact that primary and secondary sources have had on the way in which Shaka Zulu is portrayed. The Grade 11’s have been learning about nationalism in[Read More…]
The Grade 12s are in the final stages of their History Research Tasks. They have each thought up a creative question, completed a literature review, processed their findings and learned how to correctly reference and cite all of their sources. Each student has written a draft – which has been critically evaluated. Over the holidays they will improve upon their[Read More…]
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