The LEGO Foundation donates $97 million to bring play-based learning to over 5 million children in conflict zones | Fortune

LEGO Foundation committed $97 million over five years to expand International Rescue Committee programs that use play to help children learn and recover in conflict settings. The partnership aims to reach 5 million children across East Africa and the Middle East, with target countries shifting as conflicts change. Priority will go to children in the most dire contexts, including places currently under consideration such as Ethiopia, Lebanon, the Palestinian territories, Somalia, South Sudan, Sudan, Syria, and Uganda. The funding uses an agile framework to deliver play-based learning where it is most needed rather than relying on fixed, place-based grants. The investment expands IRC’s PlayMatters program, which trains teachers of children ages 3 to 12 to integrate playful learning into lessons tailored to trauma-affected students, while also advocating for education funding at national levels and embedding materials with government officials.

"“Children who are born in conflict have their childhood stolen from them,” IRC President David Miliband told The Associated Press. “But what's remarkable about children is that if you give them a bit of their childhood back, they make the most of it. And this is about giving the best of childhood back.”"

"“In the world we are living in right now, nobody knows honestly what is happening tomorrow or in two months,” Kristensen said. “That (flexibility) is what we need right now.” The five-year partnership aims to reach 5 million children across East Africa and the Middle East, with who they serve changing as conflicts evolve."

"Kristensen said the “truly agile” framework is designed to bring play-based learning wherever it's needed most, rather than funding individual place-based grants that might become outdated as conflicts evolve in real time. The investment will introduce more classrooms to an IRC-led program called PlayMatters that offers training for teachers of 3-to 12-year-olds to integrate what they call “playful learning” into lessons."

"The goal is not to tell educators what they should teach but help tailor their instruction to the needs that arise in schools serving children traumatized by crises. Program leaders also act as a policy advocates for education funding at the national level, working with government officials to embed their materials into their"

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