Meet Mrs Maraise, and Miss Maraise!

During July 2015 Mrs Maraise and her daughter Miss Maraise both visited us from Adelaide, South Africa.  Mrs Maraise teaches in our partner primary school in Adelaide, whilst Miss Maraise teaches in the next door high school.  Some of our children interviewed them both about their week-long visit to the UK:

Declan: What has been your favourite part of your visit to the UK?

Miss Maraise: Meeting you guys! Seeing the way that you handle things differently.

Mrs Maraise: I've learnt a lot from how your teachers do things - the way they move around the classroom more than we do.  I love the school, the atmosphere... you are very lucky!

Frayer: Is the learning we do similar to the learning in South Africa?

Miss Maraise: A lot corresponds, but our approach is very different.

Mrs Maraise: We tend to concentrate on South African history, where as you concentrate on Europe.  We do lots of health education, and learning about trees and plants.  There are 11 different languages and cultures in our school!

Miss Maraise: We have people from different cultures - but they are mostly African cultures.

Saika: What do you like best about our school?

Miss Maraise: The space!

The atmosphere in Wood Farm School is very welcoming.  You are very independent in your learning.

Mrs Maraise: Your atmosphere: it is very relaxed and welcoming.  You are very independent - our children find it hard to work on their own.

Shikiba: Do you prefer Oxford or Adelaide?

Mrs Maraise: Oxford is very beautiful, but Adelaide is very small: only about four times as big as your school.  Adelaide is where I grew up, it's familiar - I know everybody.

Miss Maraise: I'd get lost in Oxford!

Mrs Maraise: Adelaide is like one big family.  Everyone knows everyone and will help everyone.  Plus there are no trains, or public transport back home, which makes it feel different to Oxford.

Declan: Which year group in our school had the best questions for you?

Miss Maraise: I would say year 3 and 4 were very inquisitive!

Mrs Maraise: Don't forget Year 1: they were very curious and wanted to know more.

Frayer: Which teacher here has impressed you the most?

Mrs Maraise: I am a Year 1/2 teacher, so I was very interested in Miss Webb's teaching: her voice was very calm!

Miss Maraise: Miss Keir is very energetic and inspiring.

Mrs Maraise: All of your teachers are good, but of course we didn't get to see them all.

Saika: What has been your main impression of our school buildings?

Mrs Maraise: We have one storey only in Adelaide.  We have more grounds outside but yours is newer and has a better layout.  You have bigger classrooms, nice reading corners and office spaces.

Miss Maraise: I'm impressed by your teachers' creativity: all of the artwork - it is very welcoming.

Mrs Maraise: I'm going to ask Mr Human if we can make more display space back in Adelaide!

Shakiba: How many teachers work in your school?

Mrs Maraise: 9.  In our school there are 40 to 42 children in each class, with one teacher.

Declan: Has it been worth making this big journey to the UK?

Mrs Maraise: Yes! It has been our first time out of Africa.

Miss Maraise: It has been a very big adventure.  It's nice to take back lots of pictures and expose our children to life outside South Africa.

Mrs Maraise: We filmed some of the Wood Farm Festival to share.  We don't have a festival - we have a Games Day.

Frayer: How did you feel about leaving Adelaide?

Mrs Maraise: Excited! I wasn't sad, except perhaps to say goodbye to my husband.

Miss Maraise: I was excited - now after a week perhaps I'm beginning to miss some people.

Saika: To Miss Maraise: Which school do you teach in?

Miss Maraise: In the school next door to Adelaide primary - the high school.  It;s nice because I get to know the children before they move up.

Frayer: Are you going to miss the UK?

Miss Maraise: It will be exciting to go back.  We have taken lots of photos to remember!

Mrs Maraise: Yes, but South Africa is our own country - and we love it!

Everyone: Thank you, and goodbye!