A Day with a South African Girl

I’m Chloe.

Hi! I’m Chloe. I’ve lived in South Africa all my life. I love it here! There are so many beautiful outdoor places to visit. Nature is all around us!

My ancestors come from The Netherlands, Switzerland, Germany and France, so I’m a mixture of all of these nationalities. At home my family speaks Afrikaans, which is similar to Dutch, but we also know how to speak English. Here’s a typical day in my life.

 

I like to read while eating breakfast.

7:00  As soon as I wake up I start thinking about my school day. I get excited when it’s a day a special project is due, when we’re going on a field trip, or when we’re going to have a school disco! We do lots of fun things at school.

I quickly get dressed, and my mom does my hair so it looks neat and tidy for school. I always read a book while eating breakfast. I love reading!

 

Dad, Liam and I wave good-bye to Mom as we head off to school.

 

 

 

7:45  My dad drives my brother, Liam, and me to school. Liam and I always fight over who gets to sit in front. Little brothers can be very difficult sometimes.

Maths is my favorite subject at school.

 

 

 

8:00 School begins. Maths is my favorite subject. I love working with numbers, especially adding and subtracting. I guess I like it because I like having a challenge.

 

 

I show my friend Takunda some of the art work in the Art Room.

I like it when we have art class because it gives me a chance to express myself. I also love making things. Last week we made robots out of paper. Next week we’ll stick them in a picture of a natural world. It’s a really fun project.

 

 

 

I am the keeper of all of the little baboon chicks.

 

 

10:30 By the middle of the morning we’re all ready for a break. I take my snack outside and wait for my friends from other classes to come out. After a quick bite to eat, we head out to the field to play Baboon Chicks. It’s lots of fun and we all laugh a lot. I like it when I get to be the keeper of the animals.

 

 

 

This is our school’s swimming pool.

 

 

Some days we have swimming class at school. Sometimes I like it and sometimes I don’t. My favorite is when the air feels cold and the water feels warm.

 

Playing field hockey is good exercise.

 

14:00  School ends in the afternoon. Some days, I have pottery class or ballet after school. Sometimes I play field hockey. I love all of these activities!

Mom picks Liam and me up. I do my homework, which usually takes about thirty minutes. Then I watch TV or  play with my little toys.

 

I like to make up games with my miniature toys.

 

I love playing with my miniature toys and Lala Loopsy dolls. I build cool houses and put furniture inside. Jewel and her friend Bella like to go on adventures together up in the mountains. Jewel is a princess and Bella can predict the future. Yesterday they had to save their magical realm from disaster! It was quite an exciting day for them both.

 

 

 

Liam and me hiking in the mountains close to our house.

 

 

My mom and dad work hard to give us a good life. My dad is a very busy man, so I love it when he says he’ll play a game with Liam and me, or take us hiking. 

 

 

Mom is cooking spaghetti tonight. Yum!

My parents expect us to work hard at school. I like hearing my mom say she’s proud of me, so I try to do things that will make her proud. Some people tell her I have a wisdom and understanding beyond my years, which also makes her happy. I’m not sure what this means, and I don’t know why they say it, but it does make me feel special inside.

 

 

I find reading relaxing.

 

Every evening, Liam and I read. Our dogs, Leo and Tano, like to join us. I read every chance I get! Sometimes I get scared when I’m reading a scary story, especially at bedtime.

 

 

I like to imagine I’m right inside the story with the characters.

My favorite stories are ones about magical worlds. They make me forget reality. I just zoom right into the story. It’s like I’m right in that fantasy world with the characters in the book. You know what I mean? Ms. Christie-Blick, our visiting teacher, tells me I’m very creative and very imaginative, so I would like the book Inkheart. I think I’ll give it a try.

 

Good night!

8:30  Every night I read in bed before going to sleep. When I turn off the light, I think about spending the whole day in a forest with beautiful bushes, and colorful flowers covering the ground as far as the eye can see. I play with my little fairy friend, who’s no bigger than my finger, in a magical place that only the two of us know. I hope I dream about it tonight.

 

 

 

52 thoughts on “A Day with a South African Girl

  1. Hi Chloe! South Africa looks like a very interesting place ! How long have you lived there? The dunes and weather seem very relaxing !

  2. Hi Chloe! I get excited for school projects too.(Sometimes) It must be great to go hiking cose to you house. I hope you enjoy the Inkheart book. I like them alot.

  3. Hi, Chloe! I'm a fifth grader, and Ms. Christie-Blick was my fourth grade teacher. Isn't she great? I enjoy reading quite a lot. My favorite genre is fantasy fiction, just like you! I would recommend the 'Percy Jackson' series, the 'Kane Chronicles', 'The Hunger Games', and the book, 'Sav vy'. I'm sure that you will enjoy it as much as I did. You are really lucky to have two dogs. My mom won't even let me get one!

  4. WOW! Your life is really different from ours. We do not have warm winters and most definitely not a swimming pool outside. Do you know two languages because I saw that all of the books that you had next to you in the picture were in english and you said that you speak Afrikaans. I only speak one language whereas you already speak two! Amazing!!You go to school for the same amount of time as we do but we just have it switched over an hour. I love to read as well and love books about futuristic places.

  5. WOW! Your life is really different from ours. We do not have warm winters and most definitely not a swimming pool outside. Do you know two languages because I saw that all of the books that you had next to you in the picture were in english and you said that you speak Afrikaans. I only speak one language whereas you already speak two! Amazing!!You go to school for the same amount of time as we do but we just have it switched over an hour. I love to read as well and love books about futuristic places.

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