Journey to Jo'burg: A South African Story

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It might be hard, at first, for them to keep the characters straight, since I even struggled with that as an adult. Banned by the apartheid government in South Africa, this is the story of two children’s courage and determination to find their mother and bring her home. I have loved reading this book and it has opened my eyes to how a powerful text can underpin half a term’s worth of cross curricular lessons.

In the process, Naledi learns about Apartheid from first hand experiences and stories from her friends. During the journey, they become aware of the harsh realities of apartheid; facing danger and prejudice. The wealth was all in the hands of the 'Whites', while the labour was done by the 'Blacks' who worked long hours for little pay and lived under apalling conditions. It is a simple story line that has potential to open many discussions and topics for children to further explore in the classroom.So the pair bravely decide to walk to their mother who works as a housekeeper and nanny in the big city, Johannesburg.

The opulence of the white "Madam's" house contrasts starkly with the reality that Naledi and Tiro face - that their baby sister is suffering from starvation, not an incurable disease.Although most children have not lived long, if ever, in the country if their family's origin, they may feel a connection to it. When their baby sister falls seriously ill, two young South African siblings set out from home to make the 200+ mile journey to Johannesburg to find their mother, who works as a housekeeper for a rich, white family. I think it is a great read for a KS2 class and there are many activities in which it can be used throughout literacy lessons such as looking at characters in depth, retelling a story from a character's point of view, play scripts and report writing. As a student, she began to question the apartheid regime and was later arrested for her actions as part of the resistance movement in South Africa. Racism: South Africa, at this time, had a system set up through legislation to keep its society racially segregated.