For some, the first day of school is a magical new experience, filled with fun and excitement. For others, it’s a more frightening event, venturing into the big world without mom and dad. Whatever the case, it’s a day that parents and children will never forget. To mark this momentous occasion and make it a little less scary and a lot friendlier, DStv is partnering with 94.7’s Breakfast Club to prepare your little one’s for their First Day of Big School in January 2020.
From 25 to 29 November, an innovative competition will be run each morning, in which the Breakfast Club’s Anele Mdoda will ask kids to phone in and share what they are looking forward to the most about their first day at school, and also how their parents are going to deal with the occasion.
Each day, 94.7 will choose an answer which they will be play on air, and on 3 December, the best answer of all will win not just a R10 000 cash prize, however, your ‘bundle of joy’ could also be the coolest kid at school by bringing DStv and 947 to school on their first day as part of the DStv School of Laughter and 94.7 #1stDayTakeOver on the 15 January 2020. Shannon from FreshOn947 will record a cute little snippet for that afternoon’s “Shannon on the streets” feature.
In addition, DStv will also present the winning pupil’s school with a Friendship Bench, and the school’s principal will be able to choose from a number of different assets, including a learning and reading corner with seating, a bookshelf built out of the School of Learning train and a Learn to Count poster.
The DStv School of Laughter was launched to promote the fact that exposing children to humour at an early age is extremely beneficial. It plays an important role in developing self-esteem, learning to problem-solve and honing social skills. It also helps to children make sense of their world and develop empathy with others. Laughter is also said to balance the two sides of the brain, which boosts creativity and builds intelligence.
The School of Laughter is a long-term initiative that takes some of the different aspects so important to a child’s development and links different programming to these, with shows that balance education and entertainment.
The areas of focus are:
Self-Esteem – a well-developed sense of humour adds greatly to a child’s self-esteem, giving them more power to handle adversity.
Learning – when learning is fun, it becomes so much easier. Research has also shown children tend to retain more information when learning in a fun-filled environment.
Problem Solving – laughter has been shown to improve cognitive understanding of a situation, enabling kids to solve problems more effectively.
Bonding – humour can help to build relationships between parents and children, as well as between siblings. A shared joke or funny situation can build a certain type of energy that connects a family.
Friendship – there is nothing more important to a child’s emotional and social development than building strong friendships with their peers – and laughter is a brilliant way to do this. A funny situation or shared humorous situation can help to break the ice, and allow kids to discover what they have in common.
Brain Food – a good laugh can actually help to improve memory and mental performance. It gets the blood flowing and reduces stress, which can also help with concentration.
This partnership 94.7 will not only make the first day of school easier, it will also drive the initiative forward, helping parents to understand the benefits of supervised television viewing. The key is to enjoy humour together as a family and use TV time to build a child’s connection with their parents by interacting with them and encouraging them to ask questions.
