The project – “Resource Centers – Play and Learning Spaces”

Implementation period: 01.07.2024 – 30.06.2025
Implementer: Educational Program “Pas cu Pas”
Implementation Partner: UNICEF Moldova, Government of South Korea, and LEGO Foundation
Location: 150 Early Education Institutions (EEIs) in the Republic of Moldova, the activity center for refugee children within the Republican Puppet Theatre “Licurici.”
Beneficiaries:
● Children from the community and refugee children from Ukraine
● 29,500 children enrolled in kindergartens where resource centers have been established
● Parents

Equipment of a Resource Center:
● Furniture and educational materials for educational activities
● Books and designated reading spaces for cognitive stimulation
● LEGO and DUPLO sets for developing motor and creative skills
● Educational kits for teachers and parents
● Sets of didactic and interactive materials for early education
● Over 120 books (a set of 12 titles from the “Step By Step” International Association’s reading corner and multiple volumes of books with guides and activity plans from the ThinkEqual collection) for socio-emotional education, reading stimulation, attention development, vocabulary, and imagination.

Project Objectives:

• Establishment and arrangement of Resource Centers as safe spaces for play and learning
• Providing educational and emotional support to children from the community and refugees
• Developing teachers’ competencies through training sessions
• Equipping EEIs with teaching materials and toys to support the educational process

Activities carried out:

• Setting up Resource Centers – each of the 150 participating kindergartens benefited from equipment and educational resources to enhance the learning environment
• Training sessions for all teachers in 150 EEIs – training programs to improve inclusive and interactive teaching methods
• Distribution of educational materials and toys – support for educational activities and the development of children’s social and cognitive skills
• Integration of refugee children – specific activities for their inclusion and adaptation in the local education system
• Increasing access to quality education for vulnerable children
• Strengthening the social and cultural inclusion of refugee children