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Magical Classrooms

Improving access to quality, affordable Early Childhood Care & Education in poor communities.

Over 80% of the population where we work are dependent on low level subsistence farming which is mainly for food with no viable source of income and survive on one meal a day. This has accelerated the vicious cycle of poverty and high illiteracy rates because it is nearly impossible for these families to educate their children making it difficult for the residents to get access to services and opportunities.

On average, 90% of children in poverty fail the first grade or drop out, and many others simply do not attend school – the majority of them come from highly rural, marginalized communities. For children with disabilities, the situation is even more dire, as they face additional barriers to accessing education and achieving academic success. Ba Nga Afayo believes that all children, regardless of their background or abilities, deserve the same opportunities to succeed in school as their peers. To address this inequality, Ba Nga Afayo aims to create a network of low-resource home-learning centers to provide access to high-quality, early childhood education in these communities, ensuring that every child, including those with disabilities, can thrive.

The first six years of a child’s life are critical, laying the foundations for their future development and wellbeing. Inadequate care and stimulation in these early years often leads to poor health, poor education, lost life opportunities and poverty.

As well as disadvantaging these children and their families, it is estimated that this lost potential reduces adult earning income by 20% on average.

Conversely, children who receive quality early care are proven to have better school readiness, school achievement and higher adult earnings.

We identify, train, and support local young women and parents (Literacy Champions) to run low-resource home-based learning centers (Magical Classrooms) in their local communities.

By joining the program, these young women receive intensive training and mentoring on early childhood care and education, health and nutrition, and professional strategies for working with children with physical disabilities. This comprehensive training aims to improve the quality of services they offer to preschool children in their communities. They are also provided with a starter kit, including a guided, contextualized ECD curriculum. The curriculum is culturally relevant and designed to ensure success for children with no previous exposure to classroom learning. The teaching is bilingual, integrating mother tongue and English to prepare preschool children for success in Primary One (Grade One), which is taught in English. By equipping our facilitators with the skills to support all children, including those with physical disabilities, we ensure that our Magical Classrooms are inclusive and accessible to every child.

Our Magical Classrooms Model

At our magical classrooms, preschool children receive literacy and numeracy lessons through play-based activities and the stimulation they need to prepare and get ready to start primary school.

Healthy, Nutrition & Wash

Create linkages with community health systems, provide nutrition counseling & menus, and ensure adequate sanitation & hygiene practices for cleanliness. 

Play-based Activities

Support early learning & stimulation across cognitive, social, and physical domains through fun & engaging activities throughout the day. 

Nurturing Caregivers

Train and mentor caregivers to support children’s development with care and individual attention.

Safe & Stimulating Environment

Design spaces that allow children to explore safely and discover the world around them.

Inclusive Education

We ensure that every child, regardless of their background or abilities, has equal access to high-quality early childhood education.

Parents & Community Engagement

Work closely with parents and the entire community to ensure community ownership and sustainability.

How you can help

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We partner with a range of organization that share our passion and results have been fantastic.

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Early Education

The Early Education program’s objective is to provide children ages 2-6 with the attention, stimulation, and nutrition they need to succeed at the primary level and beyond. The program supports children’s holistic development and early learning, helping children to meet key milestones in accordance with their developmental stage.

Through the program, children from 2 to 6 years of age develop skills in areas of personal and social formation in order to gradually build awareness of their existence as independent persons belonging to a family, a community, and to one world.

Communication is also developed to exchange ideas, feelings, and emotions with others and to encourage the development of cognitive processes that favor learning.

Ba Nga Afayo Initiative Uganda aims to promote the transition to the next educational stages for children in vulnerable situations, highlighting the educational role of the family, the community, and the team of teachers who guarantee quality education by participating in extensive training and workshops.

Program Initiatives:

  • Parent training on early stimulation, as well as health and nutrition education, held in homes and our community center.
  • Teacher training on early literacy methodologies.
  • Support with school supplies for rural public preschools.
  • Child nutrition support through school meals, food supplements, vitamins, and more.

Primary Education for OOSC

Primary education is a fundamental human right, contributing to the mitigation of out of Out-of-School Children (OOSC), child labor, as well as allowing individuals to play an active role in society.

In a bid to ensure inclusive and equitable quality education for Out-of-School Children (OOSC) and help them enroll into formal schools in age appropriate grades, Ba Nga Afayo Initiative Uganda is implementing this remedial program in partnership with our supporters.

The goal of the Program is to help Out-of-School Children and primary students from underserved communities who are lagging behind in school to develop their full potential through personalized, age-appropriate teaching methodologies. It aims to contribute to the reduction of educational gaps by promoting the development of life skills such as literacy, logical-mathematical reasoning, as well as critical and creative thinking. Through play-based methodologies, BaNgaAfayo teachers stimulate the learning process for successfully achieving the next stage of education.

The program is designed to help OOSC gain sufficient knowledge and skills to merge with the formal educational systems. When the child reaches age appropriate level, BaNgaAfayo helps them enroll into school with ongoing evaluation of student reading, writing, and mathematical skills.

Program Initiatives:

  • After-school enrichment activities for slow learners that focus on reading, math, writing, and socio-emotional development.
  • Teacher training on play-based, innovative methodologies such as Open Learning.
  • Parent training on strategies to support children’s education, nutrition, and food security.
  • Support with school supplies for public primary schools.
  • Child nutrition support through school meals, food supplements and more.
  • Literacy promotion through reading clubs, fairs, mobile libraries, among others.
  • Ongoing evaluation of student reading, writing, and mathematical skills.

Back to School Program

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The Back to School Program ensures that children from low-income families in our area receive the tools they need to succeed in school. This includes backpacks stuffed with grade level supplies for children plus sanitary towels for teenage girls in our programs and those from poverty stricken families. Thanks to generous people like you, the program has so far reached over 3000 students.

The Back to School Program is one of many ways that Ba Nga Afayo Initiative is working to keep families in stable housing, supplying them with the assistance needed to free up financial resources to pay rent and grow some food. The program also provides relief to families worried about the extra expense, and joy to children as they prepare for a great year ahead.

In the coming years we are looking forward to serving even more children, schools, and communities that need the support to help young learners succeed in the classroom. We continually seek partnerships with new donors and organizations dedicated to making a difference in the educational sphere while keeping our current bonds as strong as ever. While we, as an organization, have learned every step of the way, we still have much learning to do. We will continue to champion education for students in need and make it a priority to establish equality in the classroom, persisting to challenge the income disparities children face to improve educational opportunities and academic outcomes.

Girl's Education

Girls where we work face gender discrimination – just for being born a daughter and not a son. A girls education is less likely to be valued, and she’s more likely to be forced into early marriage or face violence. Her childhood cut short – her life and future at risk.

A girl’s education changes everything. An educated girl is more likely to grow up healthy, safe and empowered to determine the course of her life and future. She’ll decide when she’s ready for marriage and children. She’ll likely send her children to school – and even live a longer life.

We understand the importance of education for girl children. We do whatever it takes to ensure every last child has a chance to grow up healthy, educated and safe – her best chance for a bright future.

With your help, we can educate girls who may not otherwise have the chance to learn — changing the course of their lives, their children’s lives and the future of their communities.

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