Sandile is in Grade 3. He has been with Thanda since his first year of school. Before attending Thanda, his afternoons were spent fetching water from the river for bathing.

At Thanda he is learning. He says he feels “excited because I know I am going to learn something and play games”.

The hearty meal that Sandile receives each day from Thanda helps him to get full and ready to learn. “Sometimes if they did not cook at home, I [still] go to sleep on a full stomach” because of the meal from Thanda.

When asked how he feels when he is at Thanda, he answered “I feel happy because I always do what I come to Thanda for which is learning”.

This year Sandile’s literacy skills improved 250% over baseline – an improvement of 71 percentage points. He improved in numeracy by 200%. Compared to learners that just started with Thanda this year, Sandile showed 20% higher self-esteem at baseline. He is only one of 6 students in his grade at school to get 100% correct in science for the baseline exam.

He is certainly right when he says he comes to Thanda to learn.