4 - 2022 | Book Village

In a country like South Africa, freedom was not afforded to everyone. Blood, sweat, and tears are what lead to the first democratic elections that took place on this very day, 28 years ago. Race was no longer considered a factor in the voting process and South Africans could rejoice over Apartheid’s demise. 19,7 million people casted their vote for their government of choice, resulting in Nelson Mandela from the African National Congress, being inaugurated as the first black president of South Africa.

Freedom Day is an important day to acknowledge because it was the start of a reformed society that began to embrace difference and welcomed notions of freedom of expression and choice. People of colour were finally able to express themselves freely through their writing and certain books were unbanned. Works such as ‘And a Threefold Cord’ by Alex La Guma, ‘I Write What I Like’ by Steve Biko, and ‘Amandla’ by Miriam Tlali were a few of these books that were unbanned.

One book that every South African child should read on this day is Nelson Mandela’s ‘A Long Walk to Freedom’ abridged by Chris Van Wyk. This book details Mandela’s journey in a beautifully illustrated work that makes the concept of Apartheid and the significance of freedom easily understandable. Another way you could teach your kids about this day is by taking them to one of the many museums that have wonderfully curated exhibitions. Learning through live interactions and experiences is one of the best ways to ensure that your children remember what they are learning. Robben Island and The Apartheid Museum are good options to visit, and if you’re lucky, you might even receive free entrance if you go on the day!

The 27 April is a day that we should remind our children to shoot for their dreams as anything is possible if you put your mind to it. The freedom fighters that resisted Apartheid are a prime example of this.

Kahlil Gibran’s famous quote: “Life without liberty is like a body without spirit” is a moving description that sums up the importance of freedom.

April 22^nd is UN Mother Earth Day. A day that raises global awareness of the challenges to the well-being of the planet and all the life it supports. Mother Earth Day also recognises a collective responsibility (as called for in the 1992 Rio Declaration), to promote harmony with nature and the Earth, to achieve a just balance among the economic, social and environmental needs of the present and future generations of humanity. (https://www.un.org/en/observances/earth-day).

At the United Nations General Assembly in September 2015, 193 countries adopted the 2030 Development Agenda and 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). International cooperation on climate change is closely linked with the other principal concern of humanity – how to achieve sustainable development for global prosperity. Climate change, biodiversity loss and ecosystem degradation threaten the achievement of all of the SDGs, including Goal 4, Quality Education, that Book Village is most closely aligned with. (https://www.unep.org/resources/making-peace-nature)

We’ve been looking for the best ways to get talking about climate change and the environment with the children at Cosmo City Primary. Ultimately, we enjoyed spending time on ‘Climate Box’, an interactive platform from the UN (https://climate-box.com). The toolkit provides to be highly enriching with the inclusion of a textbook, quiz, maps and posters – all aimed at primary and secondary school children.

Many books on the subject are quite alarming and wouldn’t make for good bedtime reading. We recently read ‘My Friend Whale’, by Simon James to the Grade 1s. We were enjoying the book until it just ended, as unexpectedly as the ‘Diary of Anne Frank’, with the friendly whale simply disappearing.

But there are some beautiful, hopeful books too, and these are the ones we chose to read to the children for Mother Earth Day.

‘The Brilliant Deep’, by Kate Messner tells the story of the environmental scientist Ken Nedimyer, founder of the Coral Restoration Foundation and how he is saving and regrowing the world’s coral reefs.

Another lovely picture book ‘What on Earth is That?’ by Sarah Savory is a story about a pangolin, the most trafficked mammal on earth.

‘I am Farmer: Growing an Environmental Movement in Cameroon’ by Miranda Paul and Baptiste Paul is the true story of how environmentalist Farmer Tantoh is transforming the landscape of Cameroon. It is a beautiful, inspirational story and the quote at the end of the book is poignant – “It doesn’t matter where you come from – you are never too small or insignificant to contribute to the long-term sustainability of our planet. By doing simple things to the best of your ability, you are improving the world.”

Freedom Day

Mother Earth Day

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