Transforming Learning Through Play
Supporting children to develop the skills they need to thrive and ignite a love of learning that lays the foundation for success in school and in life.
Unlocking Potential
Children have a right to a quality education that taps into their innate curiosity and ignites a love of learning. One that nurtures academic and socio-emotional skills with active engagement. One that invites all children to participate equally and feel supported. When children can access quality education, they build the skills they need to thrive.
But for too many children, accessing quality education remains a challenge. Overcrowded and under-resourced classrooms, a lack of adequate teacher training, and systemic barriers like poverty, displacement, and conflict limit their opportunities to learn.
Play is a powerful tool to unlock children’s potential at every stage of their development. As global leaders in supporting children’s learning through play, we create opportunities for children to thrive in the classroom and beyond. We equip educators with skills that support active learning and create classrooms that are playful, engaging, and inclusive. We work with parents to highlight the importance of education, help children return to school after conflict and displacement, and collaborate with governments to shape and deliver national curriculums.
OUR IMPACT
MOZAMBIQUE
Six months into a program in Mozambique, pre-primary school children boosted their literacy, numeracy, socio-emotional, and motor skills from 33% to 50%.
Tanzania
Students at Right To Play-supported schools in Tanzania were 2.5x more likely to be proficient readers compared to children in other schools.
Pakistan
In Pakistan, children taught by Right To Play trained teachers scored 10% higher on standardized tests than children with no Right To Play trained teachers.
The world is facing an urgent education crisis. Millions of children are out of school, and those who can attend aren't getting the education they need.
More than 600 million children don’t have adequate math or reading skills, even though two thirds of them are in school. Gender inequality and discrimination has forced 130 million girls into the role of wife and mother instead of student.
Without the chance to develop foundational skills, an entire generation of children will struggle to build skills needed to participate in an increasingly complex world.
Our Focus
Early Childhood Education & Care
Providing young children aged three to six with high-quality and playful early learning, laying the foundation for success in school and in life.
Primary Education
Ensuring that primary school-aged children, especially girls, have an enriched learning experience and leave school with improved literacy and socio-emotional skills.
Teacher Training
Training educators to integrate play-based learning to create inclusive classrooms that support children’s learning and well-being.
Education in Emergencies
Responding in emergency contexts to ensure that children can continue learning and playing, and that they can return to school when it is safe.
Education System Strengthening
Working with national education systems integrate play-based learning into curricula, supporting children’s learning and development for generations to come.
Selected Impact
Through the Play to Grow project in Tanzania and Uganda, Right To Play trained parents to use play at home to help 12,500 young children build early literacy, numeracy, and socio-emotional skills. In Tanzania, the percentage of caregivers who reported observing positive socio-emotional skills and behaviour in their children increased from 39% at the start of the project to 64% at the end.
In five countries, the Enhancing Quality and Inclusive Education (EQIE) project has expanded access to quality education for children experiencing marginalization, including children with disabilities, helping them build literacy and life skills. In Tanzania, students at Right To Play-supported schools were 2.5x more likely to be proficient readers compared to children in other schools.
Conflict and displacement are keeping many Malian children out of school. We’re partnering with refugee-led community organizations to give 37,500 children living in refugee settlements and host communities the chance to return to learning.
In Pakistan, we’re supporting children’s foundational learning by improving access to child-friendly spaces in schools and non-formal centres. More than 28 million children in Pakistan don’t go to school, many of them girls. In the centres, educators use play-based learning activities to help children in underserved communities develop positive associations with school and return to learning.
In Ghana, we’re training 75,000 primary teachers in the most under-resourced regions of the country to deliver the national curriculum using play-based approaches that promote student participation and improve learning outcomes. Through a partnership with the Ghana’s Ministry of Education and other partners, we aim to reach three million children through the national-scale program. We’re sharing learnings from the program with Ministries of Education of Sierra Leone and other countries to reach even more children.
In 2017, we successfully lobbied G7 chair Canada and member G7 countries to prioritize girls’ education. As a direct result of our advocacy, the G7 and World Bank committed CAD $2.9 billion to programs supporting vulnerable girls around the world, so that they can receive a quality education. Through the GREAT program, which was active in five countries, we supported education actors to deliver gender-responsive education to help girls stay in school and succeed.