Good day to the school management team of Northdale Primary School, SGB and representatives from the departments, parents, grandparents and learners.

Today’s awards ceremony is a part of the school’s annual calendar of events and every year a number of learners are honoured and awarded trophies, badges, certificates or other gifts for performing exceptionally in academic sports and other extra-curriculum activities.

Why is it so important for our leaners to be honoured? Simply put, it’s about inspiring them as we can see they are already motivated to aim high.

So, where does great education teaching and learning start.

In the home off course, the mother is the high priestess and the first teacher or guru for her child, then our teachers.

A home that is a heaven for a child, who is a gift from God, is and should be the basic social institution and world of the child, a place the child will always call “HOME, sweet home”

Parents, both mother and father need to get the basics right, i.e. focus on the child’s growth milestones; keep a chart on the wall for each of your children, on weaning, i.e.:

-Foods and nutrition

-Movements, crawling, steps, walking and running

-Murmurs, single words, talking and crying i.e. language nutrition

– Number of words learnt is most important; good, kind, positive words; between 500 to 1000 up to 8 years of age.

-Talk to your babies and children, parents, grand-parents

-Learners- show gratitude to your parents, elders and teachers.

-Believe in God, pray together as a family, as a school

-to our fathers, a home is a place for right conduct. Honour woman and your home will be one of love, respect and harmony.

In this 16 Days of Activism Against of violence against women; it is vital to review our attitude towards women and children’ if we all want a prosperous society.

Remember that your children are a gift from God and in the first 5 years they learn social behaviour from you; therefore a child’s body, health and mind depends on parent’s lifestyle.

Educators, ensure that you know and understand each learners’ background, so that, your classroom becomes a cultural environment to take care of gaps you observe.

In the final analysis, for children to be high achievers in standardised tests, it is vital to understand the power of language nutrition. No words = No brain primary and growth.

Even deaf learners, learn by sign language, so even actions teach.

Vocabulary means reading to children is essential because in the first few years up to grade 3; children LEARN to READ but after that children READ to LEARN.

Therefore, I end by a favourite theory that is a proven theory: the KAB theory.

Educators you are ultimately responsible for transferring knowledge to our learners but parents and grand- parents, you have to teach the children right attitudes to shape good behaviour. This means the right amount of control and discipline starts in our homes.

YES, if our homes improves then schools perform and the whole district, country and world becomes a better place.

Thank you all for giving me this opportunity.

Congratulations to all awardees.

Have a great Christmas and New Year, until we meet again.

Thank you.

Hon S Thakur-Rajbansi

MPL- KZN Legislature

Leader of the Minority Front