15 years of doing #GlobalGood through Play !
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| The minds and hearts that make learning a joyous process. #PlayAmbassadors |
On 19th June, Toybank was honoured as the Gold recipient of the Global Good Award under the Education category. Based in the UK, The Global Good Awards is an independent international awards programme veered towards recognizing and rewarding organizations across the globe committed to social impact across a variety of categories. This is a special moment of recognition for our organization; we wanted to take this opportunity to share with you the work we do and why we believe it is vital to the development of young children’s mental well-being.
What we stand for !
Our ethos is firm – it is easier to build strong children than to repair broken men. We believe that children in their formative years have more room to grow and mould, and this is the ideal time to integrate learning methods that’ll shape their personality for the better. Since children are drawn to play innately, integrating play in their lives is actually the best method to build their mental and emotional well-being. Millions of children in India are at risk of missing out on a healthy and happy childhood. Subject to ills like physical and sexual abuse, malnutrition and other forms of disease, they have extremely limited, if any, access to institutionalized education.
We believe that a unique play-based approach, as a complement to traditional education, can unlock growth in their most receptive years which sets them up for success later in adulthood.
We believe that a unique play-based approach, as a complement to traditional education, can unlock growth in their most receptive years which sets them up for success later in adulthood.
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| Children playing together to make words at our Play Center in Beed district. |
Why Play?
Learning through play has many benefits. At an academic level, it can help students rediscover an interest (and consequently improve their attendance) in language, arithmetic and classes of that variety. Games that require teams or groups emphasize teamwork and communication, and strategy games build their capacity to reason and think tangentially. However, most importantly, play helps them develop emotionally – games are the perennial equalizer in terms of gender, income and social status, which has a significant effect on a child’s self-confidence. Every child already has the potential to succeed, we just want to lend them the right tools to do so.
What we do?
We partner with organizations that work with children on the grassroots level – non-profits, community-based organizations, government schools. After intensive need assessments, Play Centers are set up and specific training is lent out to the teachers, care takers who interact daily with these children. By giving them the tools & expertise on the importance of play and working with them in conducting “play sessions”, we increase awareness ensuring that maximum children can benefit from our programme.
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| Our Programme Officer using flash cards to talk about body parts and why it's important to stay healthy. |
Each Play Center is then visited and monitored by a Programme Officer from our team. They play an integral role in ensuring that the children have quality play experiences facilitated at these centers. We do this through activities, our well curated board-games and conversations with the children. The activities help ease the atmosphere and make the children feel safe and welcome in the classroom. Children are full of energy, but if they don’t have positive experiences to stimulate their minds, that energy can steer towards hyperactivity, impatience and lack of attention. This leads to fights, distraction from studies and even cause anxiety.
Its of utmost important that children play and learn in a quality manner. We regularly follow up, get feedback from centers and take a stock of games that have worn out and replenish them with new games.
Creating safe and happy spaces for children for the past 15 years
Everyday we celebrate the role of play in the development of young children's mental well-being and we wanted to share that spirit of play with you. We couldn't have achieved this without the immeasurable aid each of you - our supporters, partners and volunteers have given us. We're thrilled to continue our work with you - FOR ALL CHILDREN.
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