The children in our Nursery classes are a mixture of those who attended the Centre prior to January 2011, those who transferred from our old Nursery in Bakoteh and new entrants.

In September 2011 we had a new intake of students from our waiting list as our older children moved on to Lower Basic Schools in Bakoteh. We hope that in September 2012 our older children will move on to the Lower Basic School we started to build in January 2012.

The Nursery classes are taught a curriculum prepared in the UK based upon the Gambian ECD curriculum.  UK volunteers have been at the Centre to support and train the teachers to deliver the new curriculum.

The classrooms are hives of activity.  Children are learning to play games such as Snap and Dominoes in addition to the more formal learning.  Jolly Phonics is in constant use in the classrooms as the children are taught to speak and read English.

GETS supporters have been taking out new equipment to use in the classrooms and this is being put to good use.  Thanks to all who provided the plastic coloured bottle tops which are used for counting, sorting and colour recognition.  We now have a plentiful supply of bottle tops and also enough coloured pencil crayons for the students thanks to the generosity of the many visitors to the Centre.

However, more equipment is still needed.  Please contact us if you are going to Gambia in the near future and would like to take a gift for Sunrise.   We would be delighted if you could find room in your luggage for HB beginners' pencils, thick wax crayons and any craft papers. We have started to introduce the children to simple beginner's jigsaws and more of these would be very useful.

Sunrise Centre - Releasing Potential

Enthusiastic learners!