Sesame Workshop in India launches ‘LEARN TO READ’ Campaign to reach 6000 children in Delhi government schools


New Delhi, September 16, 2016: Sesame Workshop India (SWI) launched the ambitious “Learn to Read Campaign” on International Literacy Day, September 8, 2016. With the commencement of the campaign the organization aims to reach 6000 children of Grade 1 with engaging educational tools which can help improve their reading, listening and speaking skills. Sesame Workshop India targets to raise INR 15, 00,000 to reach children studying in 100 government schools of Delhi and train 100 teachers. Supporters can log on to https://www.bitgiving.com/learntoread, an online crowdfunding platform, and be a part of the campaign by donating as low as INR 250.


The recent report released as part of the Delhi Government’s initiative, Chunauti 2018, re-affirms that improving the quality of preschool and early primary education has to be on a war footing if we want to ensure that this generation grows-up with the requisite 21st century skills. In the light of the survey results, Sesame Workshop India (SWI) takes this step to make sure that the children are supported with engaging education materials through the foundational years of 0 to 8 years. Over and beyond improving infrastructure and enabling policies, children need well-researched and engaging content, exposure to creative multi-media platforms, trained and motivated teachers and parent engagement.


Through the money raised by the campaign, SWI will provide a reading kit to each child in the identified government schools. The underlying theory behind this reading kit is that every child has a potential to learn, when provided with creative and engaging content. SWI has developed a series of 8 educational tools which include story books, reading sheets, work sheets, activity books and a phonic phone (an innovative tool which helps children monitor their own reading skills as they read aloud and hear their own voice).  The kit has many interesting components such as:

-          A pictorial storybook which helps the kids use language for self-expression and to create their own stories;

-          An activity book which helps children to scribble and draw their imagination;

-          A workbook that helps children follow instructions, recognize and write simple letters and words;

-          Reading sheets which help the child in spotting rhyming words, reading short sentences and strengthening his reading fluency and listening comprehension

About Sesame Workshop India Trust

Sesame Workshop India Trust is leading the movement to change the educational paradigm through its innovative projects that puts children at the center of development. Under our flagship initiative Galli Galli Sim Sim, we work in low resourced classrooms and communities to bring children and their caregivers’ language and strategies that have proven impact on their literacy, numeracy, physical wellbeing and social emotional skills. Since 2007, we have reached over 5 million children across India in partnership with the government, other nonprofit organizations and the corporate sector in our mission to help kids grow smarter, stronger and kinder.