Teaching children about Covid-19

Students from the University of Cape Town share knowledge about the coronavirus.

A month after their first visit, a group of fourth-year students from the University of Cape Town (UCT) returned to Langa to conduct a one-hour workshop on the coronavirus for the children at Nkwekwezi Educare Centre .

Four weeks ago the students held a two-hour workshop on gender-based violence with youth from the area.

UCT site facilitator, Patricia Ncamile, said the country continued to face the threat of Covid19 and beating the pandemic required everyone to play their part in adhering to the necessary precautions and raising awareness about it.

The students’ strategy, she said, was to first ascertain how much the children already knew about the virus and then empower them with additional knowledge.

Ms Ncamile explained that the students created awareness games to help the children understand the information being shared with them, and hopefully take it home to their parents as well.

“We want to leave a lasting legacy. We want to shape this community one way or another. We are doing the best we can to plough back by empowering this community with knowledge and skills.

Through such interventions and workshops, I hope that the community is grateful for these programmes,” she said.

Ms Ncamile urged the community to play their part in beating Covid-19 by adhering to lockdown regulations, washing their hands, wearing a mask and maintaining physical distance when in public.

Educare centre owner, Nosipho Tshabane, said she was grateful that the students visited her centre to share knowledge and information about the virus, with the children.

Ms Tshabane said it was good to see the university students regularly visiting their community and running uplifting programmes which contributed to their growth.

Student, Pleasure Maphanga, said it was important that they play their part in making a difference in their own community.

Ms Maphanga said Covid-19 is a pressing issue and that it was essential to pass on information to children about how to stop its spread because children would also take the information to their parents and others in their households.