Music:
Our music department is a busy, lively and happy part of the Simon van der Stel School community. Learners can choose to take up piano or recorder lessons during school hours or they can opt for guitar lessons after school hours. Not only do they develop their musical talent but they also build a lot of self-confidence. Many of our music pupils enter for UNISA music exams and over the years we had quite a few names on the UNISA Roll of Honour for achievement above 90%.
Singing:
Simon van der Stel is very much a singing school. Each class from grade 1 – 7 visits the Singing Class once a week where children sing their hearts out and acquire a basic knowledge about music.
The school boasts a junior (grades 1 – 3) and senior (grades 4 – 7) choir and almost a third of the total number of learners sing in one of the choirs. They perform at choir festivals, special events, school productions and churches.
Eisteddfod:
We participate in the Kaapse Afrikaanse Eisteddfod and the Jan van Riebeeck Arts Festival. Learners are entered in categories such as poetry, unprepared reading, solo singing, choir singing, piano, recorder, and art. We produce several medal winners annually which means that those learners/groups have achieved the highest marks in their category.
Public Speaking:
Apart from our school’s internal public speaking competition, learners also have the opportunity to enter external competitions such as ATKV-Redenaars, Radikale Redenaars and Oppie Tong Af. Valuable skills, such as speaking confidently and comfortably in front of people, are developed in this way.