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The Heartbeat of Lesedi
Co-founders of Lesedi Educational Matierals, we, Lerato Hlungwane and Heather Drew,
have a passion for quality education, for parent involvement in their children's lives,
and for creating a love for learning.
Together we have enjoyed creating many resources to help other parents, caregivers, and teachers engage in their child and student's learning in a fun and meaningful way. We have taken from Heather's experience as a public school teacher and also as a homeschooling mom to ensure activities are up to learning standards and strategies used are helpful.
We value quality and accessibility and are constantly working to increase both in our resources. We try activities out with our children, search the internet for helpful strategies in teaching, and listen to feedback from our customers - all to make things as helpful as possible. We are constantly seeking to include more of the South African languages to reach even more homes and schools in our beautifully diverse country.
We hope our resources will serve many families and schools in a practical way....
that it will spark a joy for learning in many children and create lasting memories!
Hi! My name is Lerato.
I am married to Akani and we have 3 children, ages 1 week, 6 and 3 years old.
We live in Pretoria, South Africa. I grew up in the villages here in South Africa and there were so many challenges that I experienced. I struggled with reading and that significantly affected my confidence in learning. I had to teach herself to read when I was older.
I received a Degree in Operations Management from the University of Johannesburg, and am currently pursuing a Degree in Education.
Teaching children and seeing them succeed and achieve their goals is my passion. I am currently homeschooling my children because I believe in parents being involved in their child's learning, and also recognize that every child learns differently. I have learned from my past experiences. I would love for my children to be able to read and write at an early age. Learning is fun!
I love God and love being a wife and mom. I enjoy watching movies and researching activities to do with my kids. I love to read and listen to music and dance. I also enjoy organizing my home and playing with my children.
Lesedi Educational Materials is very close to my heart because it gives hope, courage, the necessary resources, and the opportunity for parents, aunties, and caregivers, to be involved in their child's development and learning. Lesedi is also a good support tool for teachers in schools.
My dream would be to get my qualification in Education and then open a quality, high standard, school in the villages with a Library and Laboratory.
Hi! My name is Heather.
I am married to Donovan and we have four children, ages 11, 10, 6, and 5.
We live in Pretoria, South Africa. I grew up in Spain. I speak English and Spanish and a little French. I am working on learning Sepedi at the moment.
I received my bachelor's degree in Elementary Education from Biola University (USA) with an emphasis in Intercultural Studies, as well as a teaching certificate and some post-graduate work in Education and English as a Second Language. I was a substitute teacher for a year and a half until I found a job as a Grade R teacher. I taught a Dual-immersion Grade R class for 3 years before moving to South Africa with my family. I currently homeschool my 4 children: grade 4, grade R, and preschool.
I love God and love being a wife and mom. I enjoy teaching, learning languages, reading, being outdoors in nature, doing arts and crafts, designing resources to help my kids (and others) learn, singing and listening to music, and watching movies.
Lesedi Educational Materials provides me with the opportunity to be a full-time wife and mom at home, while also teaching my own children, and using my creativity to help others teach their children. It also gives me the opportunity to coach and help other moms and teachers.
My dream would be to one day open a school that is affordable, employs and supports excellent teachers, and provides high quality education in a lower-income part of South Africa.