A kindergarten packed in a box!
From the young to old, for many people in Türkiye, National Sovereignty and Children's Day, declared by Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, the founder of the Republic of Türkiye, symbolises friendship, sibling-hood, and equality. And it reminds us that adults have much to learn from and with children.
“I am also learning from what my child learns”
“I play many games with them. I read with them. I improve myself. I am also learning from what my child learns.”
These words belong to Yıldız Aysel taking advantage of the “My Playbox” activity. Aysel lives in the village of Bağarası in Bitlis. She has two children; her son and daughter are just two of the three thousand children supported by the activity in 20 pilot provinces.
“My Playbox” is an activity that makes everyone smile.
“They gain confidence”
Aysel explains the benefits of the Playbox, in other words, a kindergarten packed in a box, for children: “They get to know themselves, they gain confidence. The way they express themselves changes.”
The children look forward to playbox time.
The children look forward to Playbox time. While the box is being opened, a smile spreads on their faces. When the children are happy, the teachers are happy, and so are the parents. This is an activity that makes everyone smile.
From number sticks to puppets
Children without access to early childhood education benefit from an educational playbox one day a week, accompanied by teachers. The playbox includes 25 educational material such as number sticks, blocks, puppets, puzzles, and story sets. They also use an early childhood education calendar. This activity will support more than 5 thousand children.
The activity supports three thousand children in 20 pilot provinces.
The EU has had the opportunity to back a highly effective My Playbox activity focusing on early childhood education. The activity is carried out in cooperation with the Ministry of National Education and UNICEF Türkiye within the scope of the “Increasing Access and Quality in Early Childhood Education Project.”
One of the large-scale establishments endeavoring to protect children and children's rights is the EU, which provides essential co-financing and grant support to many worthwhile projects to improve conditions for all children in Türkiye.