Ambleside Staff
At Ambleside, teachers and students relate to one another in an atmosphere of mutual respect and kindness. The teacher's role in the classroom and on the playground is to model the highest standards of behaviour, to make the most of every teachable moment, and to inspire our students to give of their best at all times.
ASHB staff began the new year with several days of training & preparation - January 2010
In 2010 we have been privileged to welcome several new members of staff to Ambleside, both in the classroom and on the administrative front. The school year began early for staff, as they got together for training in the Ambleside Method, and prepared their classrooms for the first day of lessons.
Gavin Smith | Principal
HDE, Music IIE
Gavin has been teaching at Ambleside since 2001. He was appointed to the post of Principal in December 2007, and the school has gone from strength to strength under his dynamic leadership. A talented artist and musician, Gavin continues to teach Music at the school, and also offers extra-mural art lessons from time to time.
The family atmosphere at Ambleside is very important to Gavin, and he particularly looks forward to the annual school camps and concerts. In his spare time he enjoys hiking in the great outdoors, and producing works of art.
Gavin's favourite food is pizza, and his favourite colours are green and black. A highlight of his time at Ambleside was his trip to the Ambleside School of Fredericksburg. If he were not working at Ambleside, he would love to be living on a farm and pursuing his artistic talents full-time.
Jacqui Brown | Finance & Administration
Secretarial Diploma (1985), PR Diploma (1990), BA Education & Psychology, Hons in Psychology (2007)
Jacqui joined Ambleside in 2006, after working as a personal assistant and corporate trainer. She particularly relishes the growth of the school from its early days to the more professional level achieved to date. With a work ethic second to none, she puts all her energy into helping the school achieve its full potential, and her dedication exemplifies Charlotte Mason's motto: I am, I can, I ought, I will.
Jacqui's favourite colour is orange, and she would love to visit Venice with her husband. She has seen her own children blossom at Ambleside, and loves that Ambleside educates the whole child, building their sense of self-worth and inspiring them to be world-changers. She can't imagine working anywhere else!
Nicolette Lotter | Academic Head, Art
Diploma Montessori Teaching (London, 1994)
Nicolette has taught at Ambleside since 2003. As Academic Head, Nicolette is responsible for developing local content for the Ambleside curriculum, and from January 2010 she has been released from full-time class teaching in order to focus on teacher training.
Nicolette loves the Ambleside curriculum and teaching methodology, and is a dedicated mentor to her fellow teachers. Her dream is for Ambleside School of Hout Bay to become a training centre for teachers, and to revolutionise African education.
Gail Hunter | Lifelong Sports
With three children enrolled in the school, Gail and her husband, Lance, have been involved with Ambleside since 2004. Sports and fitness enthusiasts, the Hunters have been instrumental in supporting the development of the school's sports program. Since 2007 they have taken teams of Ambleside athletes to represent Western Province at the SACSSA national athletics meeting in Durban. In 2009 they also took a team to the national swimming gala in Pretoria.
Gail heads up our Lifelong Sports fitness program, and loves to see the children achieving their individual fitness goals. She introduced tennis as a school sport in 2008, and although our tennis coaching is now provided by coaches from Sporting Chance, Gail continues to be actively involved in Athletics training at the school.
Belinda Prinsloo | Afrikaans
ECD (2002), BA Child Psychology (RAU, 2005), Hons (UNISA 2006), PGCE (2007)
Belinda joined Ambleside in July 2008, after moving to Cape Town from Johannesburg in order to be closer to her family. Having taught at other schools, Belinda is delighted to be adopting the Ambleside approach to teaching, and particularly enjoyed the training brought by Bill and Maryellen St. Cyr of Ambleside Schools International. She is currently studying for her Masters in Child Psychology, and from January 2010 is teaching Afrikaans to Grades 4-9 instead of being a full-time class teacher.
Belinda is enthusiastic about being at Ambleside - she loves the people, the philosophy and, of course, the Hout Bay mountains. In her spare time she likes to sing and write, and if she were not teaching she would love to sing in a Gospel Rock band.
Jono Waldburger | Grade 9, High School Mathematics
BA in Political Thought, Writing and Editing for the Media & Film Studies (UCT, 2006)
After graduating, Jono set up his own clothing business. He was introduced to Ambleside by his sister-in-law (a former teacher at the school), and volunteered as a part-time Maths teacher in 2008. Deeply impressed with the Ambleside approach to education, he feels a strong calling to be at the school, and joined our staff full-time in January 2009.
Ambleside has challenged Jono to be a facilitator of learning within a conducive atmosphere, rather than a spoon-feeder of knowledge. His dream for Ambleside is to see it grow to its full potential as a place where a love for learning is celebrated in a way that truly impacts the world around it with the love of God.
Kim Bennet | Grade 2
BEd Foundation Phase (CPUT, 2007)
Kim joined Ambleside in January 2010, having previously taught Grade 0 and Grade 1 at other Cape Town schools. She is excited to be working with a team of like-minded teachers, and appreciates the small classes at Ambleside.
The Ambleside Method has opened Kim's eyes to the way children learn, and has taught her how to help her students learn good habits. Her dream for Ambleside is to see all the students grow in their relationships with their parents, friends and God, and to see every child reach his/her full potential.
Kim's favourite colour is teal, and her hobbies include reading, dancing and listening to music. If she were not teaching at Ambleside, Kim would like to be a speech or occupational therapist, or a salsa dance instructor.
Wendy-Jane Herbert| Grade 6
BA in English, Linguistics (UNISA), Honours in Psychology (UCT), PGCE (UCT)
Originally from Johannesburg, Wendy-Jane has taught at a number of schools in Cape Town. She joined Ambleside in January 2010. She has been struck by the school's commitment to excellence and accessibility in education, and also appreciates the beautiful surroundings and the supportive staff at the school.
Wendy-Jane is a keen swimmer (she's even swum to Robben Island), and has begun coaching a small group of junior swimmers at the school. She also enjoys photography, writing and baking, and has travelled to Italy, Hong Kong, New York and Thailand in order to experience different cultures. In addition, Wendy-Jane is currently completing her Masters degree in English at UCT.
Ambleside has challenged Wendy-Jane to re-evaluate her own philosophies, and her dream for Ambleside is that each child would feel supported and encouraged to develop into the person God created them to be.
Judy Glen | Grade 1
HDE JP&PrePrim (1983)
Judy joined Ambleside in 2006, bringing almost 10 years of teaching experience with her. She loves the small classes and broad curriculum at Ambleside, and would love to see the school going up to Grade 12.
Since joining Ambleside, Judy has come to appreciate the value of 'living books'. She has particularly enjoyed learning about composers and artists along with her students. Judy's favourite colour is pink, and she would love visit Disneyworld with her children.
Toinette Lindley | Grade 5
Diploma Montessori Teaching (2001); Diploma Interior Design (1988)
Toinette has been teaching at Ambleside, full-time and part-time, since 2001, and was one of the first staff members to visit Ambleside School of Fredericksburg when the school was first exploring the ASI approach to education. She has experience teaching both primary and high school grades, and returned to full-time teaching in 2009.
A highly creative person, Toinette has run her own interior decorating and photography businesses. Together with her brother, Gavin, she has been a key contributor to the success of our annual school productions.
Toinette appreciates Ambleside as a place where each child can grow and learn with their dignity intact - where being an individual is considered good and part of God's plan. She hopes to continue with photography as a hobby, and would love to travel to exotic places such as Morocco and Bali to experience their cultures firsthand.
Caitlin Wolstenholme | Grade 4
BA in English Literature, Media & Writing, Art History (UCT, 2007), PGCE (2008)
Caitlin joined Ambleside in January 2010. She feels that Ambleside is revolutionary in its overall approach to education, and particularly likes the emphasis on providing inspiring subject matter and an environment that inspires learning, and love and respect for one another.
Caitlin is adventurous by nature, and enjoys outdoor pursuits such as hiking, surfing, swimming and camping. A holiday in Egypt was a major highlight for her, because it was such a different environment and felt like time travel. She loves eating exotic food, and also enjoys cooking - if she were not teaching she would like to be a food critic.
Chris Waldburger | Grade 7, Sports Administration
BA (Hons) English (UCT, 2006)
Chris joined Ambleside in 2010, although he has a long association with the school - his brother Jono also teaches at Ambleside, and his wife, Lara, is a former Ambleside teacher. He has several years' teaching experience under his belt, and has also worked as a sports journalist. A keen sportsman, Chris is excited to be taking on the administration of the school's extra-mural sports program, supported by coaches from Sporting Chance.
Chris is currently completing a Masters degree in Literature, although if he weren't teaching he would like to be a farmer or sports coach (or Batman!).
Robyn Mahleka| Pre-school Assistant
Diploma in Education (Zimbabwe, 2000)
An experienced teacher from Zimbabwe, Robyn arrived in Hout Bay in 2007 and joined Ambleside in October 2008. She is currently furthering her studies in Special Education, and would love to one day work with orphans.
Robyn is a great netball fan, and hopes to be involved with netball coaching at the school. Her favourite colour is brown, and her favourite meal is macaroni cheese with Greek salad.
Lissa Fenner | Grade 3
BTh (2005), PGCE (UNISA, completing in 2009)
Lissa joined Ambleside in 2008. She feels a calling to work with children, and has prior experience doing AIDS awareness education in schools for an NGO. For Lissa, the Ambleside philosophy of education means recognising the potential in each child, and not 'dumbing down' educational material.
Elouise Meyer | Grade 0
Educare Diploma (2001), BPrimEd (UNISA, completing in 2011)
Elouise joined Ambleside, as the school secretary, in 1999. With a bubbly personality and passion for working with young children, Elouise moved to the classroom in 2006.
Elouise has visited a number of countries in Africa, the Americas and the Far East, and would also like to travel to Brazil, Egypt and Hawaii. Her favourite colours are black and pink, and in her spare time she likes to read, socialise with friends and play board games. If she were not teaching, she would like to work as a child psychologist - or an actress.
Judith Ferguson | Pre-school
Educare Diploma (2001)
Judith, a former student at Ambleside, joined the staff in 2003. She loves teaching at Ambleside because of the family atmosphere, and because the small classes allow for more interaction between teacher and student. She appreciates the mutual respect between staff and students, and the freedom to teach students to love God and His creation.
In her spare time, Judith enjoys reading (especially books by C.S. Lewis or John Grisham), with a cup of good coffee and some chocolate. She would love to visit Greece and Italy, to experience the culture and food, and to see the landscape and architecture. If she were not teaching, she would like to pursue a career in child psychology.
Sue Tuckniss | Administration
Secretarial Course in Tourism, Cordon Bleu
With extensive experience in office administration and secretarial work, Sue joined Ambleside in January 2010 and is a welcome addition to the team. She has also worked in catering industry, in both private and corporate environments.
Sue has lived in Hout Bay for many years, and her children are former students at the school. In her spare time Sue enjoys reading autobigraphies, as well as being outdoors, working in her garden or going walking. Her dream for Ambleside is for it to grow in numbers, and for families to come to know the Lord. Sue's favourite colour is green, and she loves to eat it too - her favourite foods are salads and other fresh foods.
Debi Hawkins | Drama
BA Drama & Psychology (Natal, 1990)
Debi joined Ambleside on a part-time basis in 2008. She has a wealth of experience, having taught Drama and English at primary and secondary schools in Zimbabwe for 15 years. Our students look forward to Debi's lessons, and she loves to see them blossoming in Drama class, learning to express themselves eloquently.
A highlight for Debi is the easy-going nature of relationships between staff and students at Ambleside, and the freedom that the students have to be themselves. Hers favourite colour is purple, she enjoys swimming in the sea, and she also loves to sing and dance - if she were not teaching she would be performing on stage or screen.
Future Nyanhewe | Grade 0 Assistant
Diploma in Education (Zimbabwe, 2005)
Before coming to Cape Town, Future taught for 3 years in Zimbabwe. She has been a Kumon tutor in Hout Bay since 2007, and joined Ambleside in January 2009 to assist in our growing Grade 0 class. Her son has been a student at Ambleside since 2008, and she has been impressed with the non-competitive atmosphere in our classrooms, as well as the close relationships between staff members and the high level of parent involvement in the school.
A bundle of energy and enthusiasm, Future is well-known throughout the school for her striking, colourful outfits. She enjoys eating seafood, salad and fruit, and her favourite colour is brown. She is a 'morning' person, and her favourite times of the year are Christmas and Easter.
ASHB staff were treated to afternoon tea at the Mount Nelson Hotel - October 2008
We are immensely proud of our faculty members and support staff. They are a team of passionate, dedicated and caring people, committed to creating a nurturing environment for our students.
