Grade 1 fun at Gold Reef City

All learning and no play make for a very dull life. The questions leading up to the day were incessant; " Is the bus taking us to Godiff?", " When are we going to city gold?"

Finally, Friday 22 April which the Grade 1 learners had been patiently waiting for had arrived. The little excitedly boarded the bus. The bus left school at 8am promptly on Friday, many could not contain their excitement as it was their first time on a bus with all their friends. We finally arrived at one of South Africa's biggest and best theme parks with 13 rides dedicated to kids.

Theme parks like Gold Reef City are a great way to escape from normal, everyday life and the perfect option for a fun and adventurous break away from school. Our first encounter was with the Tall Gold men. Learners waved excitedly at the two Gold Men as we made our way through the gates. We surely made our presence felt by all in attendance on that day. The learners burst into the familiar chant: “Follow follow...the leader" while moving in two straight lines for boys and girls with Mrs Soine in the lead. Senior citizens smiled and waved at the train of more than 100 Grade 1s, while the middle-aged tour guides and other visitors marched along or in the opposite direction while mimicking our cute little ones.

Our learners were divided into groups of 24 and the thrilling fun began as we went on the Shongololo train, elephant ride, cups and saucers, balloon wheel, carousel, city bus, dragon ride, Flint Stones, Golden Wave, and they also enjoyed driving bumper cars. These different rides gave them the opportunity to conquer any fears they may have had and foster bonding with their friends in an exciting way.

A special thank you to Uncle Lloyd for taking care of the 5th group of our Grade 1 learners throughout the day, we could not have done it without you. Grade 1s had the wonderful opportunity to explore unknown places, strengthen the bonds between teachers and experience a fun way to valuable lessons outside of the traditional classroom setting.