About BFF

Is your child falling behind in pre-primary or primary school?

Unlike regular tutoring, BFF doesn’t just treat the symptoms – but rather the CAUSE of WHY they’re struggling. The earlier you intervene, the easier it is to fix the problem. Falling behind now will have a domino effect on their future academics. Help your child to thrive, instead of just always scraping through.

BFF provides support to pre-primary and primary school learners who wish to strengthen their academic foundation.

Unfortunately most schooling systems WORLD-WIDE are built on the basis that children are grouped together in classes based on their ages, not their ability. We know that kids develop at different rates. Some kids grasp certain subjects faster than others. That’s normal. But that doesn’t mean that they will never master it. As Sal Khan mentioned, it makes sense to learn a skill like martial arts by first focusing on the basics (white belt), and only once you’ve mastered the basics you’d move on to the next stage (yellow belt, etc.) The same applies to academics. BFF has this mindset. We go back to the basics.

Without a strong foundation, learners are likely to struggle for the remaining of their academic years. Think about it: How can you do addition if you have not yet mastered the meaning of the addition symbol? Research has shown that hands-on, fun teaching is the best way to learn. All learners are different and some need more individualised attention.

Teachers have outside pressures such as time, the curriculum or higher administrative rulings to adhere to, which could stand in the way of your child receiving the hands-on, personalised education that they require. BFF’s goal is to mend this burden by providing an individualised program as additional support by our qualified teachers.

After a long day at school, the last thing your child wants is a boring, tedious lecture. For this reason, we have a strict “no textbook” policy, in order to ensure that all sessions are fun and active. We plan all sessions keeping your child’s viewpoint in mind. Your child will therefore be fully engaged and be able to take in more information. We strive to make each session as enjoyable and exciting as possible.

About the owner

Michelle Eeken is a qualified teacher with an honours degree in Learning Support. After working in both underprivileged and wealthy, well-resourced schools, locally and internationally, she realised that there was a trend.

Learners who encountered some difficulty in their previous academic year,  experienced barriers in grasping new concepts. This was due to the fact that most concepts aren’t fresh and new, but rather build onto existing concepts taught in the previous academic year.

As an educator and a strong supporter of Mastery she found this very frustrating, as she felt she never had enough time to help these learners “catch up” and rebuild their foundations. This is when she decided to start Basic Foundation First (BFF). Since then, other qualified and experienced educators have joined the BFF team.

Services

Learning Support

BFF is able to work on your child’s individual needs in the comfort of their own home. Siblings or friends with similar needs, according to their baseline assessments, could be accommodated in small group sessions. A fuel surcharge applies for sessions outside of the Cape Town City Bowl or Southern Suburbs. For busy parents, a pick-up service from school can be arranged for your little one. Learning Support sessions can take place online or in-person. If you prefer having the sessions at their school, we can contact the school to find out if they are willing to assist in this. Contact us for more information or if you would like to book a session.

School Visits

Would you like BFF to help your school’s students? BFF is able to work during or after school hours at your institution in accommodating students who seek extra support. Schools are more than welcome to contact BFF to arrange a collaboration.

Tutoring

BFF has a separate tutoring department for parents looking for qualified teachers to assist in grasping concepts currently taught in their classroom. Tutoring sessions can take place online or in-person.

Online English/Afrikaans
(As Foreign Language)

BFF offers online Afrikaans and English (as foreign language) support to both adults and children. Sessions are personalised and tailored to your specific needs.