Towards Quality Education: Jozi Book Fair and Santa's Shoeboxes, Johannesburg
Joining forces with the Randpark Ridge Cub pack, the Cubs of Bush Hill pack contributed towards the SDG Goal 4: Quality Education in two projects. The first project involved the collection of books to take to the Jozi Book Fair. The Jozi Book Fair (JBF) is a project which is intended to improve a culture of reading and writing in all of the diverse languages of South Africa. The objective of the JBF is "to promote mother tongue and to use all art forms to encourage people of all ages to read the word and the world and to exercise their social agency" (source: https://jozibookfair.org.za/about-jbf/, n.d; n.p.). The JBF took took place on 31 August 2019 and included reading and educational activities for children. The pack Scouters presented educational bases on basic first aid and the Cubs assisted them. The value of reading and writing was highlighted in this excursion and the Cubs learnt about the educational importance of books.
The second project involved working with preschoolers from an early learning centre in Cosmo City. Cubs prepared and presented Santa Shoeboxes which included toys, stationery, modelling clay, books, lunch tins and other educational materials and requirements that had been specified (as needed) by the staff of the early learning centre. Each preschooler received a Santa Shoebox at a special party which was held at the Randpark Ridge Scout Hall on 23 November 2019. The Cubs from both packs hosted the children and ran two different educational bases. The one was a "mini campfire" (no fire) at the campfire site of the Hall. Cubs taught and sang nursery rhymes with the preschoolers. The second base was a baking workshop where children made a treat with biscuits, caramel and pretzels. There was also an area where the Cubs ran a bubble machine and the preschoolers enjoyed themselves immensely catching the bubbles.