You may be aware that the month of October is also ‘Black History Month’.

In recognition of this, our Year 6 pupils have begun reading ‘Journey to Jo’berg’, a modern classic written by Beverley Naidoo which tells the story of two young siblings who walk the long journey to Johannesburg in order to find their mother. It isn’t until they finally reach Jo’burg that they see up close what life is like for black citizens across South Africa—and begin to really question the unfair and dangerous laws of apartheid.

With apartheid having ended in 1994, we wanted the children to understand more about what life was like in South Africa before this date. Thankfully Miss Wibberley grew up in South Africa and was able to spend a valuable thirty minutes  explaining the laws of apartheid and answering the many questions the children raised.

They will now have a much greater awareness as they respond to their guided reading questions.