
Last Monday, the first maths lesson of the new year took place at Tantyi Primary School. On January 21st, the new grade 7s at Tantyi Public School were introduced to us and the OLICO maths programme for the first time. In the first quarter of the lesson, the learners played a little warm-up game in which they were divided into two groups competing against each other in answering the maths questions asked by the tutors as fast as possible. The score at the end was very close so it was an exciting game for the learners.
After that, the learners were shown the basics of working with the OLICO programme and each learner got their login details. Quick calculations and basic arithmetic operations are the topics for the first few weeks of the new term until we move on to multiples and factors. The learners, who have had little exposure to ICT in their schooling career so far, had a lot of fun using the tablets on which they do maths exercises in the Olico program. They therefore will not only acquire better maths skills but also improve their computer literacy.
They had a lot of fun working with the tablets and in these first 7 lessons and the majority of the learners made noticeable progress in at least one area. What also stood out was that this class is much more willing to ask for help than the learners we taught in the same school last year. Many learners raise their hand and ask for help as soon as they do not understand a task or have a question. This is essential when it comes to improving in the long run from our point of view. Communication is crucial for problem-solving, hence we encourage the learners to actively reach out to tutors if they have questions.

Within the next weeks and months we will focus on guiding the learners through the OLICO programme and to make sure that we cover all of the relevant topics for the grade 7s. However, since maths can be tough for learners at times, Awarenet always strives to design the lessons so they become exciting and fun. We can achieve through the implementation of little games, competitions or other challenges where the learners can be creative with numbers. That way, the learners will also find it easier to memorise the learned content and won’t find the lessons too monotonous. Our tutors are aware that each learner makes progress in their own pace which is why we make sure that no one is left behind.
We are happy with how the learners have embraced the Olico maths program so far and hope their enthusiasm will continue throughout 2025.