Literacy training offered in Oyster Bay

Dedicated to uplifting her community, Jesmine Lodewyk volunteers her time to offer literacy training to young children at Sandwater Primary School in Oyster Bay, where she helps them read with understanding, count, and most importantly she offers them a safe space where they are loved unconditionally.

Lodewyk said that she has always loved working with children, so in August last year, when she learned about a literacy training programme at Sandwater Primary made possible by a partnership between the Kouga Windfarm and Masinyusane, she quickly jumped at the opportunity to help learners from Grades R to 2 to read and count.

“I always loved working with kids and because this was a way to interact with them, to give them the necessary love and to boost their literacy, I decided to grab the opportunity with both hands,” said Lodewyk.

She said that since many children in her community find reading to be challenging, the thought of picking up a book often feels like too much work for them.

“The children struggle with reading, especially reading with understanding; however, since the literacy programme began we have seen a great improvement in their reading,” said Lodewyk.

“The best part of this job is that the literacy programme is making a difference in the children’s lives and the community. We are creating a better future, one child at a time.”

Further elaborating on the literacy programme, she said that at the literacy centre they do not only focus on teaching children to read and count, instead they place a high importance on creating a safe space for the learners where they are unconditionally loved.

Lodewyk said they also teach the learners that there are no right or wrong answers, and that whenever they feel that they have made a mistake they should own up and correct it.

“Every day I get to help these amazing kids read and write. It is hard work, but it is worth it. I know that I am going to make a change in their lives,” said Lodewyk.

She said that growing up in the Oyster Bay community she has realised that children do not only need education, but they need love as well.

For this reason Lodewyk said that at the learning centre they use the opportunity to teach the learners about love through reading books and writing.

To ensure that they have a holistic experience while at the centre she said that they also offer sport, arts, and modelling sessions to the learners each week.

As previously reported by Kouga Express, Lodewyk has also recently established Oyster Bay Modelling Academy, where she offers young people from her community a platform to be heard and a place to improve their confidence.

Her commitment to her community further expands to help young women in need through her sanitary products project.

“I distribute sanitary products to women who are less fortunate, or to those who are unable to buy their own sanitary products,” said Lodewyk.

She is therefore hoping the community will support her sanitary products project to help more women in need.

For more information, or to contribute to the sanitary products project, contact Jesmine Lodewyk on 071 317 4587.