We aim to create a safe and enriched environment in which children feel respected and are encouraged to learn. Welcome to Gateways Pre-Primary School. Our little school has a long history in the Walmer area and continues to offer a high standard of education to the children in our community. We aim to create a safe and enriched environment in which children feel respected and are encouraged to learn in creative and meaningful ways. We create opportunities for our children to gain independence and express themselves.

Our children are offered a wide variety of creative and educational learning opportunities through play and exploration, which builds their basic concepts in mathematics, language and life skills. The learning programmes are based on the CAPS Curriculum and Assessment Policy Statements as prescribed by the Department of Education.

We aim to nurture, encourage and inspire our children to explore and learn from the world around them. Our dedicated, caring and qualified teachers lead by example as life-long-learners and continue to develop their teaching skills and strategies through training to best serve our children.

Benefits of Sensory Play
Learning occurs when children play and explore. There are many benefits to using the five senses at our sensopathic table. The use of sensory materials allows children the opportunity for hands-on and self-directed play to encourage the development of the following:

cognitive development:
Sensory playChildren develop their cognitive skills through sensory play by observing, experimenting, and formulating solutions to problems that arise while manipulating the sensory materials. They learn to count, group, sequence, construct, measure, etc. Through exploration, children develop an understanding of the world around them, using their five senses. This occurs from birth and once the child is able to communicate, develops their ability to describe similarities and differences in what they see, hear, taste, touch, and smell. In this way, children begin to develop their concepts of the properties of objects and elements around them.

social skills:
While busy at the sensopathic table, children develop skills such as sharing, role playing and learning from peers. The exercising of these skills aids them in all aspects of interactions with others both in the school and in life. They also learn effective ways to resolve conflicts with others.