The idea of writing exams rarely brings about emotions of excitement and happy anticipation!  In fact, feelings of anxiety, panic and outright fear are what most parents and learners experience when exam time comes knocking at their door! Cindy Glass, Director and Co-founder of Step Up Education Centres says “Generation after generation, people have passed on the baton of fear, anxiety and dread when it comes to exams. The stories are familiar to us all:

• You can fail!
• You may ‘go blank’!
• There is just too much work to remember.
• You are writing exams for the first time-good luck with THAT!

The list is frightening and seemingly endless and yet, it does not need to be this at all. Cindy gives these simple tips to consider that will help ensure that the upcoming exams are a healthy and more positive experience for your children.

1. As parents, YOU are your child’s first teacher. You set the tone in your home. Be mindful of not allowing your past fears of exams to influence how you encourage your child now. Embrace exams as an opportunity to learn and grow. Create an atmosphere of excited anticipation, especially if your child will be writing exams for the first time.
   
   
2. Get organised! Have a designated area for your child to study. The study area is a no-go zone for cellphones or any other distractions. Before a study session, decide what needs to be covered and how much time is needed.  Make sure that all stationery, learning materials and an exam pad are available before the study session begins.
   
   
3. Break the exam requirements into bite-size manageable pieces. Tick off completed sections as you go. Celebrate all positive progress.
5. Encourage children to put pencil-to-paper when studying. Learners are seven times more likely to remember new information when they write while studying.
   
   
6. Set realistic, achievable goals. Write down goals and put them up on the wall at study area.
   
   
7. Cover all the ‘easy-mark’ concepts and skills first. Tackle the more challenging one’s later.
   
   
8. Teach your child to do their best. Put in the effort and reap the rewards.8. Manage any fears and anxiety with positive affirmations. Teach your child to believe in his/her ability to overcome challenges and achieve their goals.

Cindy sums up by saying “As parents, it is your responsibility to set a positive, motivating environment in your home. Steer clear of your own fears and anxieties when it comes to exams. Show a sincere interest in your child’s progress and set an example of positive determination, remembering always that your children are more likely to do what you do, rather than what you say!”

About Step Up

Established in 2016, Step Up Education Centres is a dynamic after-school remediation and tutoring franchise with a difference. Step Up offers children an opportunity to succeed in a schooling system that is, at times, very unsympathetic.  From the moment, a child walks through a Step Up Education Centre door they feel different.  They no longer feel silly or stupid. They no longer feel misunderstood. They no longer feel judged. After just one lesson they feel hope. They see possibility. After a few sessions, they walk taller, feel smarter, do better. Why? Because Step Up believes that every child has potential… and our passionate educators will not give up until they reach it!                                                                                                                                               

Press release disseminated on Behalf of:
Cindy Glass
Director and Co-Founder of Step Up Education Centres

Disseminated by:
Carmen White
Account Manager
Sam Watt Marketing Communications
081 260 4011

What can you do if your child’s personality and behavior has suddenly changed – and what is behind the shift?

Around the world, parents are experiencing situations where their children go from angels to demons - seemingly overnight.

Often there seems to be no triggering factor for this change, and the contrast in behavior can be extreme, in many cases leaving parents at their wit’s end.

It’s not your fault

Before we even go into what is happening with your child, we need to deal with what you’re experiencing as a parent.

As a society, we place an enormous amount of importance on our roles as parents, which comes with multiple layers of internal and external stress and pressure. So when your child starts really acting out and you can’t gain control of the situation, you tend to beat yourself up enormously. That’s probably where you are right now in fact.

So stop, take a deep breath into the pit of your stomach and then breathe it out hard. Let your body relax and collapse down as you hear me:

Let go of the guilt!

As we’re about to unpack, even if you were the best parent in the world, you wouldn’t be able to help your child with this – in fact, probably only a handful of people around the world can. So stop beating yourself up about what you have NOT done, and take responsibility for what you can do - which is arm yourself and your child with the resources and tools you both need to make it through this trying time.

A rapidly-changing world & the 2012 Mayan Shift

You don’t need to look far nowadays to find proof of the fact that we are experiencing a spiritual renaissance around the world.

Regardless of religion, many are experiencing a renewed sense of connection to everything, to a power greater than them, and many are living their lives according to these new principles – often making dramatic and sudden changes to their lives.

At the most overarching level, this is what is impacting your child and causing their behavior to change.

The 2012 Mayan Shift was not about the end of the world, but the end of an age in the world, and the renewed cosmic connection is a sign of what the new age on earth will herald and bring for us.

In line with this, souls, like those of Christ, Mohammed and Buddha, have been sent to the Earth in order to assist with this energetic change. It’s the part of the reincarnation process and aligned with what we term our soul purpose… the soul purpose of these children is to help prepare the earth for that new change and energy that will be the age of enlightenment.

All will be called, but only a few will answer. Of those that answer even fewer stay the course.

But they all go through the beginning stages of overwhelm when they first do get called - and that’s what’s currently impacting your life.

How does it work?

It’s a two-fold process, where both parts of the process accelerate the other.

Firstly, there’s the morphic or holographic field. Scientists who formulated the process of kinesiology back in the 60s first discovered the morphic field. Read more at http://lifecoachestoolbox.com/index.php/the-human-consciousness-scale

Basically the morphic field is like the Internet of all knowledge and your body is a device that can upload and download information to and from that field. This is how kinesiology returns the same answers and results across various subjects – the answers lie in the field.

So, the more present an energy or idea is in the field, the more easily lots of people will cotton onto it. We call this critical mass.

As the critical mass for certain ideas and energies accelerate within the field, it triggers certain responses in people, waking up parts of their soul.

After this, the people who have been triggered will go through a growth curve – usually fairly steep – and then they will be inputting a higher-level vibration into the field. This then changes the field, which causes another round of growth to be triggered in the souls who have agreed to be here and participate in this accelerated time of change.

What does a period of growth look like? Usually like bad luck, turmoil, trauma and chaos unfortunately. The point is that you overcome these obstacles and grow stronger, developing and practicing the skills you will need later on.

The additional point is learning that you don’t matter and your needs don’t matter, which is crucial for the ego journey later on. They bring this lesson as lots of disappointment, rejection and abandonment sadly.

Can you hide this from your child?

No you can’t – not if you want your child to reach peace and happiness.

It’s not easy to accept ideas that might be outside your accepted frame of reference, but until you’ve been there, you can’t even begin to imagine what the overwhelm of information coming through feels like with these aspects awakening.

For example, you may be trying to convince your child that they have deep worth when their whole system is screaming to them that they don’t matter. The answer is to go all the way into the pain of ‘I don’t matter’, because the peace lies in ACCEPTING the fact.

As an additional example, knowing that they may be visited by sometimes scary-looking entities, or may begin hearing voices and thoughts can prevent your child from experiencing mental breakdowns and potentially being diagnosed with mental illness down the line.

Knowing what is happening will give your child peace of mind and allow him or her to accept what they’re experiencing.

My journey began at the age of FOUR, when I looked into a mirror and had the clear-as-day thought: “If I had lived before this, I would not remember it now.”

No one and nothing triggered that thought: it was simply part of my soul journey. But that thought triggered me and I began searching for knowledge, my brain suddenly switched on, I became deeply aware of my emotions and I started waiting outside for the aliens to fetch me.

Over the years that followed I had many experiences and periods like that, but because no one knew what was happening to me, or how to help me, I went through hell.

There was non-stop illness, anxiety, depression, suicide attempts, emotional outbursts, and periods where I really didn’t even know why I was doing the things I was – I just felt COMPELLED. I couldn’t reach peace until I had executed the experience.

Read more about suicide, depression and mental illness in spiritual types at http://lifecoachestoolbox.com/index.php/why-are-spiritual-people-often-depressed-and-suicidal-the-link-between-your-spiritual-journey-and-mental-illness

In my particular case, situations like awakening soul aspects often meant that overnight I just could not process or accept reality – like being surrounded by buildings all the time literally caused me unbelievable physical and emotional pain.

Or I would go through periods of months where I was plagued by nightmares so horrible that I could not sleep for weeks on end. Or I would feel compelled to cut my hair and then be plunged into a horrible depression afterwards.

Or I would rebel against and fight about and contradict EVERYTHING – even when I didn’t know why I was doing it. Sometimes even when I didn’t WANT to do it.

And don’t get me started on beings appearing and starting to hear messages and thoughts: I thought I was haunted, and I lived in absolute fear and dread most of my childhood.

Read more tips for raising star children at http://lifecoachestoolbox.com/index.php/5-tips-for-raising-star-children

What causes the child’s personality and behavior shifts?

When your child’s personality and behavior rapidly starts changing because of spiritual growth, it’s because of a number of factors.

During special time periods there will be advanced souls comprised of a number of different soul aspects, basically putting more into the mix to create a stronger soul than normal; one that can carry a heavier burden and load. Awakening soul aspects are parts of these souls that ‘wake up’ because of certain triggers in the morphic field.

Some of these soul aspects will come from other dimensions, and may never have been exposed to the heaviness of earth before. So the soul aspect can arrive and immediately reject everything it’s experiencing because it feels so foreign to it.

In cases like these, you’ll notice the child seems to have ‘forgotten’ certain things, or seems to have taken a step backwards in development, or seems to need to relearn stuff. They may also strongly reject something they were previously okay with, e.g. cutting hair or eating meat. They may also suddenly develop an adverse reaction to foods – even if it’s a behavioral reaction.

Literally what’s happening is that the newly awakened soul aspect becomes dominant at first, and it takes a few weeks for the balance of energy and the knowledge of the soul that already existed to become integrated with it.

It usually subsides and settles once integration has taken place, but integration can be permanently delayed by not allowing a modality (behavior, action, resource) that the soul needs in order for integration to take place, e.g. exposure to the energy of a person or friend that the parents have banned the child from interacting with.

Likewise you can have duality aspects awaken in certain souls – and this can trigger a period of wild, rebellious and out-of-control behavior.

This is almost like the demon aspects of the self and soul awakening – the very deep ego layers. There are a number of reasons you have to go through these periods:

• Accelerated growth caused by an intense string of trauma and emotional pain
• Learning how to manage being out of control (self discipline, self limitation and the miracle principle – miracles only happen in chaos where there are no limits and everything is possible, but it takes practice to navigate that space)
• Rebellion – because you always have to rebel and swim upstream on the journey, you get chance to practice rebelling so that you can use it as a tool
• Making your own rules so that you have practice with the stressful responsibility of making the rules and accepting the consequences of them
• Learning to deal with adversity effectively and find opportunity in it
• You need hands on experience of your own that you can draw on, and this is obtained by making lots of mistakes: the memories become the points of reference your mind uses, and you get the holistic understanding of what it ‘feels’ like (emotionally, mentally and physically) to have this experience

Additional themes that rear their heads pretty often in layers include:

• Download periods where your child is full of new ideas and concepts and voraciously consumes any information they can find
• Lazy periods where the child does not seem to want to do anything and can’t get motivated
• Hibernation periods where the child does not want to participate in anything or mix with people – this is more isolation than laziness, but the two often go hand in hand, are common and normal, and should be allowed
• Lonely and alone periods where the child either retreats completely or goes on a mad binge of new friends and social experiences. So you’ll experience a relationship start in one of these periods and often end in the next period about 6 to 12 weeks later
• Creativity periods where the child wants to create in various art forms, from cooking to painting to gardening and more; often these are once-off and never completed or touched again, so don’t buy anything expensive at first

Finally, empaths help clear the field for everyone, by absorbing energies they can release through their own systems. A large percentage of what your child is processing is its empath load.

Read more about empaths at http://lifecoachestoolbox.com/index.php/understanding-the-lightworker-mission-roles

You’ll recognise empath loads by very sudden changes in behavior and mood, changes around a specific person or changes that occur after a specific event or interaction.

In certain cases, you may be able to spot how the load on the person the energy is being lifted from lightens: they will walk in sad and walk out happy, and your child will take the sadness/anger/fear away with them and release it for the good of all.

Sadly this is a built in mechanism that just happens, and it’s almost impossible to turn it off.

Learn about how empaths sabotage their relationships at http://lifecoachestoolbox.com/index.php/6-ways-that-empaths-sabotage-their-relationships

What can be done to help your child?

• Soul Retrieval work to integrate new and lost soul aspects - http://thesoulhealer.co.za/index.php/personal/soul-retrieval
• Distance healing on the child without the need to interact with the child (very good for younger babies and kids) - http://lifecoachestoolbox.com/m/bm/online.html
• Distance healing for system support, such as BodyTalk - http://balancedbodyenergy.co.za/index.php/for-you/bodytalk
• Tools, tips and support for the parents - http://lifecoachestoolbox.com/index.php/life-coaching-energy-healing-tools-strategies
• Counseling and coaching for parents, child and family group - http://lifecoachestoolbox.com/index.php/pay-for-your-coaching-session-with-chemory-gunko
• Daily management tools - http://lifecoachestoolbox.com/index.php/energy-healing-shifting-basics-free-resources
• Monitoring global energies and astrological periods when these energies are likely to peak (forewarned is forearmed!) - http://bit.ly/lightworkersunite

No medication or therapy required

All spiritual healing works at the level of the soul, mind and emotion – there is no need for physical interventions or medication of any sort.

If anything, you’ll probably find that lifestyle, health and diet improve, often organically and of their own accord, because they new soul aspects often bring healthier desires. So you’ll likely see your child craving water and fruit over time.

It takes a village to raise a child

In my case, the fact that my parents did not know what to do to help me did a lot of damage to me, kept me very unhappy and delayed my growth and progress enormously.

I was shuttled backwards and forwards to psychologists and doctors, given medication of all sorts, and even diagnosed with everything from bipolar to depression to epilepsy. My first suicide attempt was in my early teens.

I was the consummate rebel and also unbelievably smart and organised and responsible – almost like I had multiple distinct personalities.

This chaos carried on well into my adult years until I discovered healing work and started mapping and figuring out what was happening to all of us.

Now, I haven’t touched medication in years, not even for colds and flu, I never get sick and I can easily traverse even the most difficult of emotional traumas with ease. I have the physical flexibility and mental agility of a dancer, no chronic health issues and I’m lucid and balanced. And I’ve managed to hone my mind into a razor sharp tool.

Like me, your child has an important role to play in the coming period, and like I was prepared, your child will be too.

If you help them with the right tools along the way, you’d be amazed at how easily you can navigate this period in your lives.

Watch my daughter and I in action together to see our relationship at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pigYBb8PImU&list=PL_nGXJMLD98Sb4ZjdMeBOXCHL-9Pf9Sma&index=3&t=3s and https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wcNKBj3luxI&list=PL_nGXJMLD98TVy0TZ3xRD3UJiqNJInI3t&index=6 and https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yk6r940oZYE&list=PL_nGXJMLD98TVy0TZ3xRD3UJiqNJInI3t&index=9

A brave new world for parents & children

This is a brave new world of parenting – and that’s one of the changes that this new era brings.

Your child is going to need specialised support to make it through this time, and they will be looking to you for answers that you do not necessarily have access to. They will be trying to understand concepts that make your head hurt at times.

It takes a village to raise a child… and the tools, resources and healers you need are out there to help your child soar through this without damage or the need for medication.

Let go of the rules and what society is trying to enforce – trust your instincts and be the parent your child really needs this lifetime.

With the help of a simple FREE app, South Africans can now choose healthier meals when eating out, AND be rewarded for it.  Leading nutritional solutions company, CHOW offers a restaurant programme available in over 300 restaurant outlets nationwide, that makes choosing healthier meals easy for consumers, this festive season.      

The serious side

South Africa is a nation in transition with people increasingly looking for convenience meals, fast foods and out-of-home dining, one of the consequences of rapid urbanisation.  In the most recent national population health survey, almost half of adult South Africans reported that they eat outside of the home with almost a third doing so on a weekly basis.1 This trend is not confined to adults, with 1 in 3 South African adolescents eating out 2 – 3 times per week.2    Increasing intakes of fat, sugar and salt, accompanied by a decline in fruit, vegetables and fibre-rich foods have played a part in the rising obesity, diabetes and hypertension rates in South Africa.  A multi-strategy approach is required to curb the rising prevalence of these non-communicable diseases in South Africa.  The National Department of Health’s (NDoH) Strategy for the prevention and control of obesity in South Africa acknowledges that no stand-alone approach is likely to succeed and recommends action through policy and environmental change.3 The obesity strategy recognises CHOW as a cog in the wheel to create an enabling environment where healthy food choices are accessible and available when dining out.  

Introducing the CHOW solution

CHOW owner and registered dietitian, Mr Stefan van der Merwe, recognised the need to provide the public with an exciting and innovative solution to eating out, without compromising on health.  “We have to be realistic – in today’s fast-paced world, people want convenience and eating out, is here to stay.  Through the CHOW programme we aim to take the guesswork out of choosing a healthy meal and aim to make eating out a possibility that can fit within everyday healthy habits. We further aim to play our part in driving restaurants and fast food establishments to provide healthier meal options”, explains Mr van der Merwe. The CHOW programme accredits healthy meals in restaurants, based on a range of guidelines and criteria developed and administered by a team of registered dietitians.  Once a meal has been accredited, it is allowed to showcase the CHOW mark, an official endorsement approved by the NDoH.  Meals showcasing the CHOW mark has to include beneficial food groups such as vegetables, wholegrain carbohydrates, healthy fats, lean or plant protein or dairy.  In addition, limits are set for certain nutrients including total kilojoules, saturated fat and sugar. The CHOW programme is further integrated with a mobile application, free for download, which essentially acts as a national healthy eating directory.  Making use of GPS tracking, when opening the app, nearby CHOW accredited restaurants, meals and full nutritional information is just a tap or a click away.   

Get rewarded for making healthy choices

An important step in changing consumer behaviour towards the healthy, is being rewarded for it.  At CHOW, incentivising healthy choices is a key strategy to keep individuals engaged in the process in order to entrench healthy eating as a daily habit. When consumers order a CHOW accredited meal they will earn CHOW bucks which can be used in exchange for vouchers from participating healthy partners as well as earn loyalty points from leading loyalty programmes. 

Driving change and transparency in the food industry 

CHOW is on a mission to change the way consumers choose meals when eating out, hoping to increase consumer demand for healthier options and inevitably driving change within the food industry.  Spur Marketing Manager, Mr Etienne Ralphs, is proud to be a part of this changing dynamic: “We were one of the first restaurants to offer and showcase healthier menu options to our customers.  We are a family restaurant and one of the biggest national franchises in South Africa, so we feel a strong commitment to play our part in offering healthy choices – CHOW has made this process easy, accessible and appealing”.  CHOW strives towards a collaborative approach with participating retailers, with CHOW dietitians appointed to each and every restaurant to support with meal analyses and accreditation, menu development and auditing as well as general nutrition and health support.   Now more than ever, it is vitally important to find innovative ways to meet consumers where they are, providing solutions rather than restrictions, utilising technology to drive healthy behaviours and to take action to support the health of South Africans.

For more information and to download the CHOW mobile app visit www.chowsolutions.com

Shisana O, Labadarios D, Rehle T, Simbayi L, Zuma K, Dhansay A, Reddy P, Parker W, Hoosain E, Naidoo P, Hongoro C, Mchiza Z, Steyn NP, Dwane N, Makoae M, Maluleke T, Ramlagan S, Zungu N, Evans MG, Jacobs L, Faber M, & the SANHANES-1 Team (2014) South African National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (SANHANES-1): 2014 Edition. Cape Town: HSRC Press Feeley A, Musenge E, Pettifor JM, Norris SA. Investigation into longitudinal dietary behaviours and household socio-economic indicators and their association with BMI Z-score and fat mass in South African adolescents: The Birth to Twenty (Bt20) cohort. Public Health Nutrition: 2012; 16(4): 693–703.  National Department of Health. Strategy for the prevention and control of obesity in South Africa. 2015. https://www.health-e.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/National-Strategy-for-prevention-and-Control-of-Obesity-4-August-latest.pdf        

For more information or to arrange interviews contact: Chow Nutritional Solutions Stefan van der Merwe This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. 031 564 1001 078 271 3747                       

About CHOW (Choose Healthy Options Wisely)
CHOW Nutritional Solutions Pty (Ltd) is a specialist nutrition solutions and nutrition technology company. CHOW is run & managed by experts in the field of nutrition and dietetics. The focus at CHOW is to provide South Africans with practical approaches to make healthy choices easier and to modify dietary behaviour in the process. CHOW offers accreditation and nutritional solutions services to restaurants and restaurant groups, corporate canteens, retailers, school and work canteens and government organisations.

Ah, December! The year is coming to an end, and the New Year is around the corner along with new opportunities. Hopefully you’ll be taking a well-deserved break from work.   Whether you are travelling or staying at home, always keep your trusted GLAD products handy to make your life simpler.  

Taking a road trip?

• GLAD Zip Seal bags are great for storing boredom-busters like snacks, toys or pens and pencils. The large Zip Seal Freezer Bags can hold A4 paper and colouring-in books. Keeps kids happy, and the car neat.
• If you’re planning on hosting play dates, use GLAD Zip Seal Snack Bags for kids' treats and party bags to make the day go smoother.
• GLAD Press‘n Seal makes for a wonderful placemat when the kids are fiddling with arts and crafts, to keep surfaces clean.
• Keep the cardboard tubes from empty GLAD Wrap, GLAD Bake & Cooking Paper or GLAD Press‘n Seal rolls for the kids to transform into great hand-made puppets with a little glue and imagination!
• Store all your old clothes and handbags in a GLAD Refuse Bag with Forceflex Bags, then bring them out for kids' 'Dress Up' days. Use GLAD Zip Seal Snack Bags to hide and protect special treats for a back-yard treasure hunt – keeps the ants out and the treats clean.

Get the kids outdoors by planning a picnic in the garden.

• Use the GLAD Zip Seal Range to store all food items – remember to keep wet and dry food groups separate.
• Take GLAD Forceflex Refuse Bags with to pack away any dirty cups or dishes so the picnic basket stays clean.

Please visit www.glad.co.za for more information and follow ‘GLAD SOUTH AFRICA’ on Facebook; Available in the GLAD aisle of most supermarkets. 

Danone and Disney partner to combine fun with nutrition. 

A winning partnership …

Danone, the global leader in the yoghurt industry and Disney are launching a new range of yoghurts. This exclusive range features the popular Disney Frozen and Spider-Man characters and aims to promote healthy dietary habits to children by combining fun and good nutrition in one tasty product. 

The power of YOGHURT

As a parent, we always look for something that is convenient to serve, tasty for kids with the added bonus of being packed with healthy benefits, then yoghurt is the perfect solution! 

Yoghurt is a unique food, because it’s made with a combination of milk and live cultures. It has been proven that these live cultures assist in creating a healthy gut and a better digestive environment. In addition to calcium and protein, naturally coming from milk, we have boosted the Danone Disney range with a source of Vitamins B12 and D, essential nutrients needed by growing children every day. The  South African Food Based Dietary Guidelines recognises dairy products as being an essential part of a balanced diet and recommends  that milk, maas or yoghurt should be eaten every day. 

“Yoghurt is an ideal snack option.  Every kilojoule is packed with nutrients that are needed by your body every day. In addition to that, Danone Disney yoghurt contains no artificial sweeteners or colourants that makes this product even more appealing!” says Marlinie Kotiah, Science and Health Manager at Danone.  

The perfect solution to feed your kids: combine FUN & HEALTH!

Danone and Disney have the same objective of focusing and influencing kids’ healthy dietary habits. “We all know that sometimes kids can be fussy eaters, but we believe that when good and tasty food becomes fun, the issue is solved” says Julieah Muthama, Marketing Director of Danone. The Danone Disney range is the perfect business case proving how companies can come up with innovative ways to reinvent their product offering and contribute to the health of their consumers. 

Danone, committed to health!

With its mission “to bring health through food to as many people as possible”, Danone, the yoghurt leader worldwide, brings over 100 years of expertise to each of its products. Danone Disney range is making use of this experience to delight the whole family. Danone Disney yoghurt is the ideal smart snack to include in your kid’s daily balanced diet. 

What makes the Danone Disney range special?

• NO artificial sweeteners
• NO artificial colours
• Source of Vitamins D and B12
• 2 flavours loved by children: Strawberry and Mixed Fruit
• Encourages dairy intake every day

From October 2016, Danone Disney yoghurt is offering:

• 4 pack strawberry smooth (Disney Frozen & Spider-Man) @ R15.99
• 4 pack mixed fruit smooth (Disney Frozen & Spider-Man) @ R15.99
• 8 pack strawberry & mixed fruit ( Disney Frozen & Spider-Man)@ R29.99
• 6 pack Granadilla, Strawberry & Apricot (Disney Frozen & Spider-Man)@ R19.99
• 6 pack Pineapple, Strawberry & Cream Soda (Disney Frozen & Spider-Man)@ R19.99 

MORE ABOUT…

More About DANONE Group

With its mission to bring health through food to as many people as possible, Danone is a world leading company in Fresh Dairy Products. Present in over 140 markets, with more than half in emerging countries, Danone aims to create shared value for all its stakeholders: its 100,000 employees, consumers, customers, suppliers and shareholders. 

More About DANONE Yoghurt history

Danone was founded by Isaac Carasso in Barcelona in 1919. To treat the many local children suffering from intestinal disorders, he introduced yogurt —a product widely recognized for its health benefits in the Balkans, yet unknown in Spain at the time. Doctors in Barcelona prescribed yoghurt for their patients because they were aware of research into lactic ferments by Nobel laureate and Pasteur Institute director Elie Metchnikoff. Clearly Danone was committed to healthy eating from the very start! Isaac named the new brand after his son Daniel, whose nickname in Catalan was “Danon”. Ten years later, Daniel himself rolled out the brand in France. To win over consumers, he emphasized health benefits but also worked hard to ensure that Danone yoghurt tasted better than rival brands. 

More about DANONE Southern Africa’s evolution:

Danone entered the South African market in 1998 through a joint-venture created with Clover SA in the yoghurt category. In 2010, Danone acquired 100% of Danone-Clover yoghurt joint-venture and Danone Southern Africa was born. During the 17 years that Danone has been in operation in Southern Africa, consumer preference for our products has propelled Danone to the number one position in the market. Danone Southern Africa’s brand portfolio features brands like NutriDay, Ultra Mel, Yogi Sip, Inkomazi, DanUp and Activia. 

More about Live Cultures

The words "live and active cultures" refer to the living organisms, Lactobacillus bulgaricus and Streptococcus thermophilus, which convert pasteurized milk to yogurt during fermentation. Note that the milk is pasteurized before culturing to remove any harmful bacteria. 

More about Yoghurt and Lactose intolerance:

All yogurts are made from milk fermented by two lactic cultures: Streptococcus thermophilus and Lactobacillus bulgaricus. Interesting fact: these strains secrete an enzyme called beta-galactosidase that allows them to pre-digest part of the lactose (the sugar in milk). This is why, generally, people with lactose intolerance can easily digest yogurt. 

More about Yoghurt benefit:bwww.danone.co.za 

FOR SOCIAL MEDIA POSTS PLEASE USE THE FOLLOWING TAGS AND HASHTAGS:

• Facebook: #Danone #Disney #Threesixoh - @ThreesixohSA
• Twitter:  #Danone #Disney #Threesixoh - @ldoundi
• Instagram: #Danone #Disney #Threesixoh - ThreesixohPR

The competition website www.mymostbeautiful.com is inviting you to enter their second annual myMOSTbeautiful.com KID photo contest. Now through 22 August, you can create a profile for free on www.myMOSTbeautiful.com, upload the favourite pictures of your KID (3 - 6 years) and campaign for votes to stand a chance to win the grand prize of R 100 000, R15 000 for the runner up, and cash prizes for the top 10 finalists.

Registration and SMS voting to SA residents is open for just over 7 weeks after which the top 50 KIDS will be determined on the 29th of August. Voting will then open again for the top 50 who will compete against each other for the title of SA’s myMOSTbeautiful KID 2016 and the R100 000 1st prize. The Top 10 finalists will each get a share of R151 000 in cash prizes and there are 10 x R1000 cash prizes up for grabs to randomly selected SMS voters! The winner will be announced on the 6 September 2016.

Joining in the search for this year’s myMOSTbeautiful KID are celebrity judges, Power mom & Reality TV star Razia Samson; Mrs South Africa 2010, business woman and model Laurette Batsone; Mrs Africa Continental 2016 Finalist, mom and entrepreneur Noni Mbete and our supporting charity representative Lauren Zuidema.  “I’m worried that the delight and joy I get seeing these cute, beautiful children -that I have to now judge- will leave me wanting a hundred more children! (make sure my hubby doesn’t read this!)” says Laurette

myMOSTbeautiful.com is dedicated to giving back as a portion of profits will be donated to the Eniwe Children’s Fund who works with local communities to facilitate both short and long term sustainable projects and business ventures to ensure future benefits for the children of the community through education, skills, as well as improvements in basic health, safety and security initiatives.  “It is vital that both the emotional and physical needs of these vulnerable children are accounted for in ways that will provide them with hope for a better future – because we know that hope is imperative for change to occur. ~ says Director at Eniwe Children’s Fund, Lauren Zuidema

If your KID is a born star, go now and create a profile on www.mymostbeautiful.com, upload your KID’s pictures and get your friends and family voting via sms!

Warriors, are you ready?

South Africa’s largest, toughest and muddiest obstacle course race is coming to KwaZulu-Natal.

Jeep Warrior #4 of the Jeep Warrior Series is taking place at the Sugar Rush Adventure Park in Ballito from 16 - 17 July 2016.

Everyone is invited to take part in this epic obstacle course event – all you need is a pair of old running shoes and a great sense of adventure because you are going to get MUDDY!

There are four courses on offer that vary in intensity, catering to all fitness levels. 

For kids, there’s the 8 obstacles over 1km Warrior Bratz Race. Parents can accompany their children, but can’t compete in this event. 

For beginners, there’s the Warrior Rookie Race (6 - 8km with 15 obstacles). Rookie is all about fun and comradery. It is the shortest distance with semi-challenging obstacles for newbies. 

Up a level is Warrior Commando, which is fairly challenging, with a 10km course with 20 fairly tough obstacles. This event is labelled as the ultimate team-building experience.

Jeep Warrior Black Ops is the toughest of the challenges, presenting an 18 to 20km course with 30 tough obstacles. This event meets World-OCR racing standards and attracts South Africa’s top OCR athletes. 

So get your family and friends together, create a team, and challenge them to #BeBrave at Jeep Warrior #4 Sugar Rush. 

To enter go to www.warrior.co.za/events/2016-jeep-warrior4

Event: Jeep #Warrior4 Sugar Rush

Dates: 16 and 17 July 2016

Venue: Sugar Rush Adventure Park, Ballito, KwaZulu-Natal

Entries: Go to www.warrior.co.za/events/2016-jeep-warrior4

GPS: S 29 29′ 29.29   E 31 10′ 49.30

ATM Facilities: No. Please bring cash along with you.

Parking: 3000 cars

Facilities: Food & beer tents, parking, secure lockers and a shower zone

Johannesburg - The Spur Soccer Masidlale Programme concluded after 17 weeks instilling essential life skills into young lives and reaching more than 30 000 children within historically disadvantaged areas since its inception in 2005.

Bellavista Creche, an NPO located in Bellavista East was the charity who won the R10 000 prize yesterday at the finals played in Soweto.

What started out as 12 one-day soccer clinics involving 10-12 year olds, has grown into a fully-fledged annual soccer league in the main metropolitan areas of Johannesburg, Cape Town, Durban and Port Elizabeth.

One of Spur’s corporate social investment aims is to use sport to uplift communities. The central venues are selected in historically disadvantaged areas where school sport participation is low. The Masidlale Programme fills this gap.

Each one of the cities had 200 players (100 girls and 100 boys) taking part who come from 10 local schools. The teams are given Spur-branded soccer kits which they can keep. Primary schools that have participated per region were as follows:

Kwa-Zulu Natal

• Zandile
• Emthetweni
• Inkonkoni
• Zwelesithembiso
• Thamela
• Isipingo
• Lindelani
• Mzwilili
• Fundakakhle
• Phila

Winning schools were Zandile (boys) and Inkonkoni (girls).

Port Elizabeth

• Enkwenkwezini
• Elundini
• Dumani
• Elufefeni
• Fumisikoma
• Melisizwe
• Zanoxolo
• Ikhwezelihle
• Mpumalanga
• Siyaphambili

Winning schools were Enkwenkweni (boys) and Elufefeni (girls).

Cape Town

• Lwazi
• Luzuko
• Lehlohonolo
• Ilitha
• Mseki
• Vukukhanya
• Sokhanyo
• Sonwabo
• Vuyane
• Xolani

Winning schools were Sonwabo (boys) and Lwazi (girls).

Johannesburg

• JB Marks
• Julius Sebolayi
• Bonamelo
• Braamfischer
• Nkoni Maruping
• Obed Mosiane
• Moses Kotane
• Mayibuye 
• Khulanolwazi
• Kid Maponya

Winning schools were Julius Sebolai (boys) and Obed Mosiane (girls).

According to Khakhi Diala, Brand Activation Manager of the Spur Group, sport teaches us more than just physical skills; sport is a metaphor for life. That is why Spur has included a life skills programme to run alongside the soccer league.

“Spur Steak Ranches is again proud to have completed a very successful Spur Soccer Masidlale program for the 11th Year now, 800 boys and girls from four provinces duly benefited from the skills development and life skills elements that they went through” We are also proud to have donated R10 000 to a needy charity”, added Khakhi.

Fifty mentors per league met with their groups every two weeks to explore essential skills needed to excel in life. The mentors teach self-esteem, positive behaviour changes and wise decision making. They equip the children beyond the sports field into home and school life. 20 girls and 20 boys are then chosen for further mentoring.

The main prize for the winning team is that they become mascots at PSL games.

To ensure the lessons go further into the schools, Spur has a Masidlale Coaching Programme for the school coaches. These are run by accredited coaching facilitators who train 30 coaches from four provinces.

Interactive Sport is involved with the mentoring programme which extends to the coaches and one teacher per school.

Masidlale means “let’s play” in Xhosa. So the programme’s aim is to change lives through play.

For more information about Spur, feel free to visit their website http://www.spur.co.za/

Aussie: The Australian Circus Spectaculars’ has accompanied its debut in Gauteng with the announcement of a schools’ fundraising effort for children affected by cancer. Classes within individual schools that raise the most money for CANSA’s children’s arm, CANSA TLC (Tough Living with Cancer) will win tickets to see performances of Aussie Circus. The Australian Circus, which kicked off its world tour in Cape Town last month, has donated close to 1000 tickets (valued at over R200 000) for the CANSA TLC fundraising initiative, which begins in Gauteng, but will be rolled out nationally over the coming months, while the circus is on tour.

“We are delighted to have Aussie Circus and Gauteng schools as partners in this auspicious fundraising initiative,” said Vera van Dalen, National Project Manager for Childhood cancer support. “The funding will go towards a number of projects, which include providing accommodation for families of children undergoing hospital treatment, to actually providing medical assistance to children in need,” she said.

Commenting on the circus’ involvement in the fundraising effort, Aussie’s executive producer Sebastian Cassie said: “CANSA TLC is a cause close to our hearts, and we welcome the opportunity to give back to the South African community.” Cassie said that the support Aussie has received from the South African public has been heartening, especially given that this is the first time that the circus has performed here.

“We have been overwhelmed by requests by towns and cities throughout the country, for us to come and perform,” he said. The CANSA TLC fundraiser will initially be rolled out to 24 schools throughout Gauteng. Each class within a school will receive donation tins, and the class that raises the highest number of donations, will receive complimentary tickets to the circus. As part of raising awareness of the fundraising campaign and stimulate enthusiasm, performers at Aussie circus will be staging presentations at individual schools throughout the campaign.

Aussie Circus will be touring Gauteng throughout May and will be moving to Bloemfontein later next month.

Schools interested in participating can contact Jan Karsten on 083 555 5509.

About CANSA TLC

CANSA’s TLC Programme focuses on raising awareness of childhood cancers and early detection, as well as providing tangible love, care and support to youth and families affected by cancer.

Children and teens diagnosed with cancer or affected by cancer (a family member has cancer) are supported, as we believe no child or family should have to face cancer on their own. Because it’s Tough Living with Cancer.

About AUSSIE: The Australian Circus Spectacular

AUSSIE is a modern, circus spectacular that represents the daring, inventive, and cheeky nature of the Australian spirit. The show blends traditional acrobatic cirque performances in the air and on the ground, hilarious slapstick comedy, and modern, extreme stunts to ensure that there is something for all of the family to smile, clap, laugh, and gasp at.

The circus is currently touring South Africa, touching down in Cape Town, George, Port Elizabeth, East London, Durban, Bloemfontein, Pretoria, Sandton and Carnival City (Johannesburg) between February and December 2016!

Maya Keel, Director of COACH is the Acting Chairperson for the Gauteng Welfare and Social Services Development Forum and the Deputy Chairperson for the National Welfare and Social Services Development Forum. In September, the National Social Development Portfolio Committee invited the Forum to present input into how the non-profit sector can support the work of the Committees and the challenges that the NPO sector faces.

Based on the input from various provincial forums, COACH presented this to members of parliament. The presentation was very well received and many questions were posed about the funding crisis experienced by the NPO sector and how best it can be resolved.

Many recommendations were given, the main one being the legislation being put into place that determines the partnership between the Department of Social Development and non-profit organisations. This can determine the funding model to be used, with special emphasis on; parity of social worker and social auxiliary worker’s salaries, and to ensure that the state meets it’s statute obligations with regards to the Children’s and Older Persons Act.

This in turn will lead to the sustainability of Child and Youth Care Centres and Old Age Homes respectively.  It can also lead to improved infrastructure to deal with children in crisis by becoming proactive and preventative as opposed to only being reactive. Some serious concerns about the survival of the NPO Sector were noted by members.

To this end, Maya Keel received and open invitation to Parliamentary Social Development Portfolio Committee meetings in the future. This is a great honour for COACH as it has always strived for the advocacy of better opportunities and safer environment for children and has been an active partner in the transformation of services and developmental approach to child and youth care.