Back in the swing of things

Justicia Shipena WINDHOEKPhase two of face-to-face learning is officially in full swing, with pre-primary to grade three learners donning face masks and practicing social distancing during their first day of school in months yesterday.Schools have been closed since March due to the coronavirus pandemic.According to Romanus //Garoeb, the principal of Martti Ahtisaari Primary School, the staff were very excited to see the learners return.“Equally, as I have visited classrooms, the learners were also excited to be back at school and resume with face-to-face learning and teaching. It is the right of every child to be educated and we are glad to uphold this right,” he said. Precautions//Garoeb said prior to the learners' return, the school held a consultation meeting with parents about new timeslots and how they will work.“With the help of the parents, we have disinfected the classrooms. We have thermoguns with which we are scanning the learners and we sanitising their hands before the learners enter the school premises,” he said.//Garoeb added that as soon as the learners are on the school premises, teachers escort them to their respective classrooms and make sure social distancing is practiced. The principal said parents leave their children at the gate, and should a learner present a temperature above 38 degrees, the school will contact the parent immediately.He said while classrooms have a capacity of 40 learners, the school has scaled this down to 19 or 20 learners per class. “Our lessons will now officially end around 14:00, because we have two groups.” Two slotsMoses van der Byl Primary School has also implemented the two-slot system, with lessons in the first slot starting at 07:45 and ending at 10:05, while the second slot commences at 11:00 and ends at 13:30.“The learners do not go for breaktime, hence in the time they had break, this the time they knock-off from school, Desire Goagoses, a teacher at the school said.According to her, they have covered the desks with plastic to make it is easier to sanitise them when the learners move in and out of classrooms. Goagoses added that the school has implemented a 'box system' inside classrooms. Learners are not allowed to leave their box and interact with others. No contact“With this system, a corridor is created, so when learners exit the classroom, they do not come into contact with each other. The learners are also not allowed to turn around and interact with their peers,” she said, adding that learners will not be allowed to share stationery either. She mentioned she has made a poster with Covid-19 regulations as well. “The first minutes of the lesson, I will be teaching them the regulations every day and their importance.”

Back in the swing of things

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Namibian Sun 2026-03-31

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Back in the swing of things

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Namibian Sun 2026-03-31

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