TUMELO
Tumelo is a 4-year-old boy in my class. He is a good boy, but recently began crying when he dropped off at school. During our lessons he also suddenly started crying for no apparent reason. I tried to find out what was going on at home, and learnt that he had recently lost his dad in a hijacking incident. Because he is so young, he was told that his dad had passed-on but the family didn’t really talk to Tumelo about his dad’s death at the time that it happened. Tumelo kept hearing children at school talking about their dads. One day he went home and asked directly where his dad was. He was then told that his dad is in heaven. His mother decided to open up and shared the story with me, as Tumelo had changed because of what had happened at home.
“Tumelo is a much happier child, who now smiles often and
interacts with the other children.”
Due to the interventions taken to communicate with Tumelo about his dad, he is showing signs of improvement in the classroom. He is able to answer questions and play with his friends again. The last three weeks have been great for him because of the BOUNCE outings. All the children in the class are old enough to know which day it is and look forward to BOUNCE, as the week progresses. The trip on the bus and the activities that take place once they are there make the children really happy. Tumelo in general is also a happier child, who now smiles often and interacts with the other children as before.
Patience and love always win with our children and we are so thankful when we can understand why they are struggling.