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Reading in Times of Uncertainty How digital reading is helping children in Kenya recover from the pandemic

In response to the pandemic, East African schools experienced among the longest school closures in the world.

When it was finally time for millions of students to return to class, many (especially girls) did not.

Those that did, struggled to recover lost ground, especially in poorer schools where learning materials were limited.

With the country in crisis, it was more important than ever to provide low-income communities with learning solutions.

Joining forces with Kidogo, we brought our BookSmart digital reading program to three informal settlements in Nairobi: Kibera, Kawangware and Mukuru.

Here's a look at how we helped over 12,000 children keep reading during this uncertain time, and what we learned along the way.

The project focused on children ages 3-8 years old. By starting these little ones learning from a young age, we support phonics and comprehension, self-awareness, social-awareness, relationships skills, health and wellbeing, and more.

BookSmart provided a digital library chock-full of free books and engaging learning activities.

The project impacted students, teachers and entire communities alike . . .

Over nine months, the project reached over 12,000 children, parents and caregivers.

We trained 273 teachers to effectively use these digital resources in their classrooms . . .

and engaged +4,600 people via a community radio program.

So, how did we do it?

Phase 1

  1. We selected the books for the project intentionally, including 150 titles in both English and Kiswahili. The books included themes of comprehension and vocabulary, health and wellbeing, and more.
  2. We chose 48 complementary learning activities to help teachers and parents engage readers.
  3. We visited 86 Kidogo centres, so we could fully understand the unique needs of the schools and communities.

Phase 2

  1. We engaged the community with everything from teacher WhatsApp groups to a 16-day community radio broadcast.
  2. We held six trainings to teach 273 educators how to effectively use BookSmart in their classrooms.

Phase 3

  1. We assessed our project impact and shared our learnings with other organizations eager to help.

The results were encouraging

  • 3,800 books were accessed
  • 61 activities were completed
  • 13,250 individuals were reached

and the lasting impact reading will have on these children is immeasurable.

During the radio broadcast, young Ashanti was chosen to read a book from BookSmart live on air. After doing so with confidence and excitement, her mother said . . .

“It was great. I thought my child would panic but she was very courageous and confident. She enjoyed and wished to present again and again! Through that she can improve academically and perform well. I had not read from BookSmart before, now I know, I will be reading with my child.” – Perpetua Musili, parent to Ashanti Mwende

Thanks to this project, children in Kenya are reclaiming their educations and futures.

We couldn't have done it without Kidogo and all of our supporters.

Thank you for your support as we keep children reading.

Appreciate