TESTIMONIALS
Hear From Our Families
Wow! Michelle is the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow. She is the most unique, passionate, and patient teacher you will ever have. My girls were both taught by Michelle. She helped them understand the meaning of everything that she taught, even with extra lessons after school. Today they still speak about her with so much love in their eyes.
Thank you so much!
Antoinette
My older daughter, who is now twenty, was taught by teacher Michelle.
Teacher Michelle laid such a solid foundation that when I had my youngest fourteen years later, I knew that teacher Michelle should teach her too.
Teacher Michelle has years and years of experience teaching the ECD phase, to the point that she's developed techniques that only a teacher with that much experience and a keen interest in the children's ability for lifelong learning can master.
She is organized and approaches teaching with a structured, diverse, balanced, and strategic format. As a result, she not only knows what needs to be covered and achieved but how.
My older daughter was a prefect and a house captain at primary school and was an RCL - heading Discipline at high school. There is no doubt that the culture of approaching work in a disciplined and structured format, which positioned her in good stead, was nurtured by teacher Michelle. So my little one stands to do well too.
I'm happy to learn that teacher Michelle will continue imparting her skills to the upcoming generations. Few teachers have the kind of skill and passion for the craft, and teacher Michelle is one of those. Teaching is a calling to her.
Lorna
When I heard the news that teacher Michelle was opening a learning centre, I was excited for her and extremely grateful for the many years of quality teaching and knowledge she has shared with my family. Both my children attended classes with her in grade R, and prior to that, she was their school principal, a position she attended proudly. So, all in all, my family has been schooled by
her for 8yrs.
A lot can be said about her vast knowledge and precise teaching but what stands out for me is her
ability to project herself in such a way that you can’t help but listen to her.
She was always well prepared for lessons and followed her term plan carefully, ensuring nothing was forgotten, and nobody was left behind.
Our experience has been with foundation phase schooling, and what a solid foundation she has given my boys! Both my boys are excelling at Mathematics due to her concrete learning methods, and my youngest is going to grade 1 next year, being able to read grade 1 books already. Her standard of teaching is extremely high, yet she knows how to assist with a slower learner as well.
Michelle is firm but fun. She is kind, caring, and creative. She has always come down to my children’s level and made herself available to them as a caregiver and listening ear as well.
We will miss teacher Michelle and still see her as the best teacher we have ever had. Wishing you all the blessings you deserve with this new venture.
Sharon
I had the pleasure of employing Michelle Naegeli as the principal and my right-hand lady when I purchased Humpty Dumpty Nursery in Glenvista in 1991.
Having no knowledge of any teaching practices, I leaned heavily on Michelle to keep the wheels turning smoothly for our 100 plus children, ranging in age from 18 months to 6 years of age.
Because of Michelle, we had a well-known school with a very long waiting list of children.
Michelle's duties included inter alia: The teaching of our Grade R class.
Some years, with classes in excess of 30 children.
Due to her diligence and passion, our children handled the transition to "Big School" with ease;
* The guidance of 6 teachers in all aspects of child development to give the very best to each child i.e. emotional, social, intellectual and physical;
* The planning of our Annual concerts;
* The planning of our Annual Graduation Ceremonies;
* Playing the guitar and planning all the music for the above events as well as our weekly school singing/music rings;
* Planning and co-ordinating our Annual Sports Days;
* Ensuring that our teachers completed each terms school reports with accuracy and fairness;
* Co-ordinating and overseeing Parent/Teacher Meetings;
* Assessing children who were not up to the standard of where they should be and liaising with occupational therapists/parents etc to bring out the very best in our child Michelle was pedantic about everything she tackled, striving to do her very best and going over and beyond what was expected of her.
I sold the nursery school in 2004 and to date Michelle has never let her passion wane, still tackling everything she does with zeal. Her reliability and loyalty to her cause is unrivalled.
I have absolutely no doubt that whatever journey Michelle takes in the future will be extremely successful.
Marta
It is with immense pleasure that I write a character reference for my friend and mentor Michelle Naegeli.
My journey with Michelle started in 1984 at Mondeor High School. I was in standard 7 and Michelle (then known as Miss Stanley) was the accountancy teacher. I had the privilege of being taught accountancy by this young, strict but dynamic teacher. My marks went from 60’s in standard 6 to 80s under Michelle’s teaching.
It was many years later that I collected my nieces from nursery school and Michelle and I were reacquainted. Michelle was now the principal of the popular Humpty Dumpty nursery school in Glenvista, south of Johannesburg.
I saw an opening for a “child-minder” in the afternoons at Humpty Dumpty Nursery School I started in 1993.
Michelle became my mentor and I was in awe of her knowledge and talents.
In 1996 my first son Cole was born and Michelle was always around to give me, a new, young mom wise and helping words.
In 1999, Cole joined Humpty Dumpty and the staff’s biggest problem was keeping this 2 and a half-year-old toddler out of “teacher Naegeli’s” class.
He wanted to be in the upstairs class where the principal and grade R children were.
Michelle allowed Cole, on a Wednesday morning, to join the older class for praise and worship. Cole couldn’t wait for a Wednesday morning.
All the way home from school he would sing the Christian songs that Michelle played on her guitar.
In 2002 Cole was finally in Michelle’s class. The long-awaited grade R class!
As he is a November child, Michelle took him under her care and nurtured and taught him how to be school ready for the following year when he had to venture from the school he had known since he was born, to BIG school.
In the middle of Cole’s Grade R year, Michelle had concerns that Cole had an eye problem. She suggested I take Cole to an eye specialist that specialised in children with eye problems of the nature that she was seeing in Cole.
When Cole was assessed, the doctor said to me that he could not believe that Michelle had picked up this problem in Cole at such an early age.
He said that usually children are brought to him in grade one or grade two when their reading becomes a problem.
After six weeks of intense eye therapy at home and under Michelle’s guidance Cole’s eye problem was rectified and a thing of the past.
I am forever indebted to her as Cole later became a profound speaker and excellent reader from a young age.
My younger son Trent attended Humpty Dumpty from the age of 2 and a half and suffered from ear infections. Michelle advised me to address the problem as soon as possible because she would not like Trent to have a speech impediment at a later stage.
Trent too is a confident young man that thrived under Michelle’s care.
Michelle is a perfectionist and one of the hardest-working people I know. We had to work together in early mornings and afternoons at a stage whilst the owner of the school was on sick leave.
Michelle and I ran the administration part of the school and as a team, we maintained the same ethos and standards that the staff and parents were accustomed to at Humpty Dumpty.
As a mother of two sons, I have leaned on Michelle for advice throughout their school careers, from Grade 1 to Grade 12. She always had the answers for me and would often assist me if I needed help with the boys for subjects at school.
There isn’t a subject or problem that Michelle can’t solve when it comes to working with children. I always suggest to students studying teaching to spend a few days with Michelle as her teaching skills and remedial knowledge surpasses anyone I have ever known. This includes a private school that my boys attended for roughly 15.
I have witnessed Michelle overcome many hurdles and obstacles and "incredible" is the word that comes to mind when speaking of Michelle Naegeli.
I wish Michelle all the best in her new chapter.
Thanking you.