Silent Observations

In the heart of Africa, Kwame, a dedicated zoologist, wakes up to a silent and empty world. It's a New Year's Day like no other, with the sun rising over a landscape without human life. As he steps into the quiet wilderness, Kwame is faced with a haunting reality: he might be the last human left on Earth. With each day, the mystery deepens. The bustling streets and lively cities he once knew have become ghostly echoes of a world that seems to have vanished overnight. Nature, in all her untamed glory, is reclaiming her dominion, erasing the marks of human civilization and enveloping the earth in a wild new beauty. As months and years pass, Kwame's journey becomes a solitary quest for answers in this vast, silent world. Accompanied only by two cheetah cubs, Zulu and Nuru, he forges a unique bond with these majestic creatures, finding comfort in their fierce loyalty and the serene wilderness around him. 'The Silent Epoch' is a story of resilience and hope, a journey through a world transformed. It's a tale that invites us to follow Kwame's footsteps as he navigates through the remnants of a forgotten humanity, searching for signs of others, and a new meaning in this quiet, wild world. But is Kwame truly alone? Or does the silence hide secrets yet to be discovered? The answers lie ahead, as Kwame's odyssey takes us through the heart of a planet reborn, and the enduring strength of the human spirit.

Many teachers are increasingly concerned with how to best support the learning of the rising numbers of bilingual learners in schools – particularly those children who are new to English and therefore cannot yet communicate with the teacher or their peers in their first language – during the silent period. This book offers an alternative insight to that which is most commonly available to teachers and researchers, as instead of examining language acquisition purely from a linguistic approach; it explores the learning that is occurring through a sociocultural lens and even more significantly, from the young child’s perspective – the worm’s eye view. Investigated through the experiences of young bilingual learners allows the reader to make sense of the making meaning that occurs when the child cannot make sense of his/her new ‘world’; nor communicate verbally in the language of instruction in the classroom. Remarkably, learning through the silent period is revealed as both complex and ‘messy’ as the bilingual child mediates his or her own learning through a synthesis of alternative learning pathways. The silent period is presented as a crucial time for learning; distributed through a synthesis of close observation, intense listening and most significantly copying the practices of others. Throughout the silent period the children are not only seen to be learning but also contributing to the classroom practices. The book not only initiates new understandings of second language learning, but also offers creative ideas on how to raise the achievement of children who are learning English as an additional language.