Mission Statement

We believe all South African Children, regardless of “zip code”, should have access to a quality preschool experience because 90% of the brain’s development happens (or does not) in the first five years of life. ASAP funds resources enabling children to love learning and succeed when they start kindergarten.

ASAP and our South African partner PEN:

• Provide critical building blocks (Play and Learn Kits) for children in informal childcare settings,

• Train and mentor caregivers, equipping them as educators,

• Create new Educational Toy Library Hubs in under-resourced communities where coaches help informal daycares become preschools.

  
  
  

Why We Do What We Do

More than 60% of preschool children in South Africa live below the poverty line.

Most grow up in single-mother households. The official unemployment statistic is 34% although some reports say it is 65% among 18-30 year-olds. Someone must look after young children while their mothers work, look for work, or beg.  If relatives are not available, as is increasingly the case, children often spend their preschool years at informal daycares called “creches”. There may be 6 creches within a 1-mile radius.

In the inner-city of Pretoria, often 20-35 children sit in front of a TV all day in the apartment of a woman who has taken them in to earn money.  She has an entrepreneurial spirit, but lacks training in early childhood development and has no money for educational toys. Government support is almost nonexistent.

As a result, few children from these communities are ready for public kindergarten. 80% of South African fourth graders cannot understand what they read; 40% cannot read at all. This deficit follows them through school. Such students drop out, become pregnant, get involved with substances, or join gangs in search of self-esteem, power, diversion, and belonging. Preschool education enables children to learn through play, preparing them to thrive in school and and become responsible, employable, and successful adults who can reach for their dreams.

Collaboration with PEN Forum

PEN is a 30-year old, independently-funded, nonprofit ministry network in Pretoria (www.pen.org.za). The name stands for Participate, Empower, Navigate. PEN’s vision is to “Ignite, Change, Nurture Individuals, Heal Communities”. With a full-time staff of 150 employees, PEN focuses on three areas of impact, one of which is preschool education.

Working with PEN Forum, ASAP provides Play and Learn (PAL) Kits which align with and enhance the PEN curriculum. PEN coaches trained in Early Childhood Development (ECD) mentor owners of creche-daycares. These women and their staff are immediately called teachers, and their settings are immediately referred to as preschools. Weekly lesson planning, weekly visits from their PEN coach, and monthly trainings enable teachers to learn how each toy they borrow enhances a child’s skills and helps teach the theme of that week’s curriculum module. Preschool owners are eager to enhance their schools and learn essential business skills.