As Term 1 of 2026 wraps up, we can happily say it’s been full of splashes, songs, and a rainbow of colour! Courage and team spirit have been the heartbeat of the term—whether in the swimming pool, on the sports field, or right there in the classroom.

Our talent shows reminded us that stars shine in all sorts of ways: singing, dancing, or pulling off magic tricks that even had the teachers scratching their heads.

A huge thank you to everyone who helped bring the fun to life this term. From beach days and markets to camps, outings, galas, and shows—the children’s smiles said it all.

This year’s rainbow theme has already brightened our days, with fiery reds and oranges filling the school with warmth, energy, and cheer. It’s been like living inside a giant sunset!

Now, as we head into the Easter break, we wish all families a safe, happy, and restful holiday. May your chocolate eggs be plenty, your hot cross buns perfectly toasted, and your naps long and uninterrupted. We can’t wait to see you all in May, ready to jump back in and keep our colourful rainbow adventure going!

The Grade 7 Leadership Camp took place at Innikloof in March. Another unforgettable experience highlighted by weather so hot, swims were enjoyed in the natural pools, a down pour of rain to remind us about waterproof tents, and thunderstorms just to make the second night with 54 pupils that much more exciting.

The Grade 7's learnt about effective communication, patience, and that encouragement is often the best way to interact with your team. The second day they were the leaders of their mixed-grade teams as they navigated through a series of activities. A huge amount of fun was had by all!

And that's a wrap for another wonderful term of Paddling! The biggest group we have had thus far and even with many windy days; their determination was not going to keep them from the water! Well done to all the kids! A big thank you to Mr Peter Bruce for getting on the water with us!

Stulting Gala - 3 March 2026

Competing schools included JBay Primary, Stulting, VCS and St Francis College. After not taking the win last year for the first time in who-knows-how-long, we brought the trophy home again. St Francis College won by a landslide which is largely due to the fact that every single child that got a gala slip said yes. It goes to show how well we can do when everyone gets involved and gives it their best! 

VCS Cricket - 11 March 2026

Took place at VCS with both teams fielding a mixed age group of boys and girls. It was the first time some of our players were involved in a real match with an actual hardball, but a great opportunity for the team to get some experience on the pitch. St Francis batted first and made a total of 54 runs. VCS then chased this down to win the game with a few wickets to spare. It was a game of good sportsmanship, enjoyed by both teams and spectators. 

Netball and Soccer vs Rainbow Academy - 17 March 2026 

St Francis College hosted Rainbow Academy for U11 and U13 netball and soccer matches at St Francis College. We were fortunate enough to have good weather and minimal wind. The U13 soccer match was played on the top field before the U11 match on Campbell field. Rainbow Academy won both soccer matches. Our netball girls made up for this however, winning both of the netball matches. Well done to all the players on our preseason friendlies! 

Interhouse Handball - 2 April 2026

Our newest addition to the interhouse sports program created much excitement amongst the kids. It was played on the morning of the last day of term with Yellowtail beating Musslecracker in the first game. Red Roman then beat Yellowtail, as well as Musslecracker with a last second goal. Overall results were Red Roman in first, Yellowtail in second and Musslecracker third. Good sportsmanship from the players and great support from the younger grades cheering on their houses!

The Grade 1 and 2 Splash in Gala was an event full of excitement and joy, with every child bravely stepping into the water and giving it their all. It was wonderful to see their growing confidence and progress shining through. A heartfelt thank you to Liquid Lines and our supportive parents for making it so special and memorable!

As we come to the end of the first term of 2026 we look back and realise how far the children have come- academically, physically, emotionally and socially. We contributed towards Thoughtful Thursday, participated in the assemblies and swam in the fun gala. We learnt a lot more in the extra murals. The batting and bowling showed improvement in cricket as did the throwing and catching in netball. We are definitely showing better ball skills in our soccer as well.

The Grade 3 class has had a joyful and enriching term filled with hands-on learning and meaningful experiences. Learners explored their creativity by using tangram tiles to design imaginative images, and brought maths to life by learning about measurement and fractions while baking delicious cupcakes. A highlight of the term was dressing in bright orange to celebrate creativity and self-expression.

In Life Skills, the class reflected on the values of love, service, and humility through John 13:1–17. This powerful lesson inspired thoughtful discussions, and some learners even chose to demonstrate servitude by washing each other’s feet—an act that truly captured the spirit of compassion and care. Our Art lessons have incorporated the creative use of warm and cool colours, and texture through the use of patterns. The children have produced some lovely, vibrant art works. We are proud of the growth and enthusiasm shown by all our Grade 3 learners this term!

The Grade 1 class have shown wonderful growth during the second half of the term, and we are so proud of their progress. They have especially enjoyed learning about the sun, summer, and life in and around the sea, creating some beautiful artwork inspired by these themes. In Mathematics, we have been focusing on counting accurately, addition, subtraction, and measurement. The children explored different weights and practised measuring liquids, then recorded their findings using bar graphs to compare various container sizes. To make learning even more meaningful and fun, we combined our measurement work with phonics by making jelly together. This hands-on activity was a big hit and, of course, was eagerly devoured!!

The Grade R class has been diving into an exciting sea life The Grade 0 class has been diving into an exciting sea life theme! We explored non-fiction books and learned how we can use them to find information. The children asked such thoughtful questions and were full of excitement as they discovered more about fascinating marine animals. They even created their own little books, sharing all the interesting creatures they learned about, such a special way to see their learning come to life.

In Maths, we’ve had so much fun exploring patterns and shapes! We’ve been spotting patterns all around us, sorting different shapes, and getting creative by making our own patterns using a variety of materials—fruit, blocks, and even recyclables. It’s been wonderful to see their enthusiasm and creativity shine through in these activities.

End of Term 1 Highlights – What a Wonderful Term! 🌼

What a joyful and exciting end to Term 1! Our little learners have been busy exploring, creating, and discovering so many wonderful things. Here’s a peek into all the fun we’ve had:

🦋 Butterflies Class
Our Butterflies have been learning all about shapes and life on the farm! From spotting circles and squares to chatting about animals and their homes, the children have loved every moment. We even had some very creative little farmers in class! 🚜🐄

🐝 Bumblebees Class
The Bumblebees have been buzzing with excitement while learning about their love for our country and exploring the fascinating world of dinosaurs! From roaring like T-Rexes to celebrating what makes our country special, their enthusiasm has been contagious! 🦖🇿🇦

🐞 Ladybirds Class
Our Ladybirds have been enjoying the beauty of autumn and learning all about friendships. From colourful leaves to kind hearts, they’ve been practising how to be caring and thoughtful friends. 🍂💛

🐛 Caterpillars Class
The Caterpillars have been exploring their five senses and celebrating Easter! From tasting, touching, smelling, seeing, and hearing, they’ve had a sensory-filled time of discovery. 👀👂👃✋👅

🐰 Easter Fun!
To end off the term, we had a very special visit from the Easter Bunny! The children were delighted as they took part in a fun-filled Easter egg hunt, searching high and low for their treats. What a magical and joyful way to wrap up Term 1! 🍫🥚✨

😂 A Couple of Giggles:
* Why did the Easter egg hide? Because it was a little chicken! 🐣
* What do you call a dinosaur with a great vocabulary? A thesaurus! 🦖📚

💐 A Big Thank You
We would like to say a heartfelt thank you to all our wonderful parents for your continued support, and to our amazing teachers for their love, patience, and dedication. You make all the magic happen every single day! 🌟

Wishing everyone a happy and restful break—we can’t wait to see all our little stars back next term! 💕

With love,
The ECD Team 💛

What a wonderfully busy and creative 1st term it has been in Music and Drama!

Our learners have been exploring music in so many exciting ways.  One of the highlights was our choir outing to the Feather market in Port Elizabeth where the choir children learned about South Africa’s largest freestanding organ.  They were treated to various performances, from Wicked to a cat chorus as well as listening to the fascinating story about the organ and all its components.

We also added a fun twist to choir this term.  We learned to play the kazoo and performed a wonderful concerto during assembly.

We had a fantastic Talent show where our brave performers took to the stage to showcase their skills. From telling jokes, magic, singing, instruments and everything in between, it was a joyful celebration of creativity and courage.  We are so proud of every learner who participated.  22 Eatery also provided a lovely venue for us to use with the most delicious food!  Thank you to all the teachers, parents, judges and everyone who was involved.

During class time, students were introduced to a variety of famous composers - Beethoven, Mozart and Vivaldi, learning about their lives and music.  And in drama time we learned more about our imagination, did team building exercises, created mixed up fairytales and played with puppets.

We look forward to an even more exciting musical and dramatic adventure in Term 2.

St Francis College entered two teams for the Kids LitQuiz 2026 held at Collegiate in Port Elizabeth again this year.

We were very privileged to be able to fit in a visit to the Port Elizabeth Main Library before the Quiz. We were enthralled with the old books displayed in original wooden shelves. Mrs Ball, entertained us with information and stories about how the library was started, while Carol, the Historian/Librarian, told us how the library was run for so many years.

We then set off for Collegiate, where our teams pulled together to answer some tricky questions. There were 17 teams altogether. St Francis team 1 came 11th and St Francis team 2 came 15th. Congratulations to both teams for participating enthusiastically and whole-heartedly.

Our new Library Innovation this year is to start a Book Club, where preparations for next year's Kid's LitQuiz and generally informal fun and discussions on different books will take place.

What a busy term – if you’ve haven’t yet popped into the School Garden – I really want to encourage you to go and take a little peek. Year on year – I’m in awe with what the kids come up with theme wise for their Grade Gardens and how they turn an empty patch of land into a beautifully landscaped Themed veggie garden. Its art with plants and I thrive on the energy they bring to these sessions!

From the very beginning, they’ve discovered that great gardens don’t just happen — they take grit, teamwork and a lot of planning! With pencils in hand, they sketched their ideas, debated plant choices, and carefully planned for growing times and plant heights. With determination they’ve moved kg’s of soil and wood chips. They’ve weeded and used forks/spades to loosen very hard soil.

Then came the fun part… bringing their visions to life! Walls were painted, pathways were created, and each garden was filled with personality, flair, and of course — carefully chosen plants now growing happily in their new homes.

This term we’ve also dived a bit deeper into soil — what makes it healthy, and why it matters so much.

All Grades were introduced to AgriGain Biochar – kindly donated by Harry Bateman and Louise de Lange. They learnt how microbes unlock nutrients in the soil and how BioChar creates the perfect home for them while keeping nutrients and moisture where plants need them most. It’s especially useful in raised beds and busy garden spaces.

The kids eagerly got hands-on, applying it in trenches and spreading it across beds, quickly understanding this simple but powerful soil solution.

Andrew, from St Francis Bay organics, introduced the Grade 4’s to the wonderful world of worm farms. He educated the kids on what the red wrigglers do and how they turn food scraps into rich, plant-loving goodness. Please encourage the kids to bring in food scraps that you’re not using from home to feed to their Grade’s worm bin.

A big THANK YOU to everyone who has supported our garden this term — your time and encouragement is much appreciated.