Lively Minds

Lively Minds Lively Minds is working to get pre-school children in rural Ghana and Uganda school-ready.

Working through government we build the skills and confidence of rural parents to run educational Play Schemes and provide nurturing care at home. We work in partnership with local governments to set up community-run play schemes and Parenting Courses. The courses empower parents and communities to change their children’s lives, and their own, for the better. Through the play schemes and care at h

ome, children learn through play and parents are encouraged to provide good hygiene and care to support their children's health and development.

“How was your day?”“What do you think will happen next in the story?”“What do you see in this picture?”These might soun...
08/09/2026



“How was your day?”

“What do you think will happen next in the story?”

“What do you see in this picture?”

These might sound like ordinary questions. But for a young child, they’re opportunities to listen, think, learn new words and express themselves.

And this is the kind of learning that can happen anywhere, while playing, telling stories, singing songs or simply talking together. Literacy isn’t only about reading a book. It starts with the everyday moments.

Through our work with parents and governments, we support families to make the most of these everyday moments, helping feel confident in their role as their children’s first teachers.

Because building the foundations for literacy doesn’t always require a classroom. Sometimes, it starts with a conversation.

Happy International Literacy Day!

What does it take to fund organisations to scale with government and what gets in the way?At , Lively Minds and Spring ...
08/09/2026

What does it take to fund organisations to scale with government and what gets in the way?

At , Lively Minds and Spring Impact are co-hosting a conversation on funding government-led scale, bringing together funders and NGO practitioners to look at how funding can better support organisations working alongside governments to reach more people.

For Lively Minds, this is a question we know well. Scaling through government can take approaches that work from reaching hundreds or thousands of people to reaching millions but the funding models behind that journey matter.

We'll explore what kinds of funding enable this work, where current approaches fall short, and what needs to change.

The conversation will draw on Spring Impact's new Scaling with Government study, developed with LGT Venture Philanthropy and Instiglio, as well as the experiences of those working across funding, implementation and government systems.

Joining us will be:
• Alex Storey, Spring Impact
• Alia Karim, Teaching at the Right Level (TaRL) representative
• Alison Naftalin, Founder and CEO, Lively Minds
• Mohini Bhavsar, Grand Challenges Canada
• Dr Natnael Amnew, Africa Centre for ECD, Ethiopia
• Tressa Johnson, The ELMA Philanthropies

The conversation will be moderated by Tyler Spencer, Director of Partnerships and Growth at Spring Impact.

● Date: Monday, 21 September, 2026
● Time: 3-4:30pm
● Location: 1345 Avenue of the Americas, Suite 2302, New York, NY 10105

Spaces are limited. Registration link in the comments.

We love talking all things and Early Years and that's why we’re heading to participate in an Early Years Salzburg Glob...
04/09/2026

We love talking all things and Early Years and that's why we’re heading to participate in an Early Years Salzburg Global convening next week.

Salzburg Global brings together government, funders, and delivery organisations, providing time and space to work together and build relationships that lead to partnerships and effect real change.

From 6 – 11 September, our Founder & CEO Alison Naftalin and Advocacy Lead Eleanor Sykes, and our partner Dr Tolla Berisso, Head of the Oromia Education Bureau will join Salzburg Global’s A Tale of 2000 Days: New Partnerships in Early Childhood in Salzburg, Austria.

We will join people working across health, nutrition, education and parenting to explore how we can better connect support for children across their first 2,000 days, from pregnancy through the early years.

For Lively Minds, this is a conversation we’re very excited to be part of.

and caregivers are a constant in a child’s early years. Yet support for them is often treated separately from early learning and other services.

Our work is about changing that - working with governments to make engagement a practical part of early learning systems.

We’re looking forward to sharing our experience, learning from others and exploring through working groups what stronger connections across the early years could look like.

A significant milestone for our partnership with the Ministry of Basic and Secondary Education, The Gambia (MoBSE).Throu...
03/09/2026

A significant milestone for our partnership with the Ministry of Basic and Secondary Education, The Gambia (MoBSE).

Through our technical assistance, we’ve supported MoBSE to pilot a parent-led ECD approach across 32 schools, helping teachers engage parents in supporting their children’s learning and development at home.

There’s been a lot to learn from the pilot, and we’re looking forward to building on these lessons as MoBSE considers the next steps towards national scale.

Good ideas start with listening. Before we ask families to change a habit, try something new or spend more time learning...
31/08/2026

Good ideas start with listening. Before we ask families to change a habit, try something new or spend more time learning with their children, we need to understand what life actually looks like at home and recognise that this can look very different from one place to another.

Recently, we held focus group discussions across selected communities in and , speaking with caregivers about everyday family life - what works, what gets in the way, and what kind of support could actually help.

We explored everyday practices around , , and learning at home, and , as well as how the Lively Minds Together radio programme could help reinforce positive practices.

We also spoke with caregivers who had previously been exposed to Lively Minds programmes and those who had not. This helps us understand their different experiences, as well as the context in which families are making decisions and developing everyday habits.

The conversations are helping us think about some very practical questions:

• What makes a healthy habit easier to maintain? What gets in the way of trying something new?
• What kind of reminder would actually make a difference?
• How can support fit into family life, rather than add another burden?

As Lively Minds works across different countries and contexts, understanding families and the realities of their everyday lives is a vital part of developing approaches that are practical, relevant and responsive to where they live.

There is still more to learn from what caregivers shared, and we’re looking forward to taking these insights forward.

Good programmes don't scale on their own. Relationships do too.During the Global Parenting Initiative webinar, our Found...
27/08/2026

Good programmes don't scale on their own. Relationships do too.

During the Global Parenting Initiative webinar, our Founder and CEO, Alison Naftalin , joined Aimee Vachon of The Human Safety Net and Zainal Madon of Universiti Putra Malaysia to explore what it takes to bring evidence-based parenting support into government systems.

Hosted by Isang Awah, Head of Advocacy at the Global Parenting Initiative, the discussion brought out one message clearly: lasting change takes lasting relationships.

Aimee Vachon spoke about the importance of building resilient relationships across government teams, not just with one person or department. Government priorities change. People move on. But strong relationships across a system can help programmes withstand those changes.

Alison shared a similar lesson from Lively Minds' experience:

'The best way to convince government is to show them.'

That can mean bringing government partners to see parents in action and investing in opportunities for them to experience the potential of an approach for themselves even when the model they see is not necessarily the one they will eventually take forward.

It also means staying the course.

Building trust with government takes time. Priorities change. Roadblocks come up. But every opportunity to strengthen the partnership can help move things forward.

As Aimee put it: understand the government's priorities, understand the system, and be clear about the value you bring.

For us, that's been an important part of working towards lasting change: not just demonstrating that something works, but building the relationships and partnerships needed to make it part of the system.

Link to full webinar: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n8M-JDliqjA

We are looking for an HR Manager with a strong focus on Learning & Development. Could it be you? Or someone you know?As ...
25/08/2026

We are looking for an HR Manager with a strong focus on Learning & Development. Could it be you? Or someone you know?

As Lively Minds grows, we’re investing in the people and capabilities that will help us deliver our work and prepare for what comes next.

You’ll help us:
• Lead our Learning & Development strategy and create practical, high-impact learning opportunities
• Strengthen talent development and succession planning
• Identify capability gaps and help teams build the skills they need
• Champion continuous learning, knowledge sharing and professional growth
• Bring new ideas and external best practice to Lively Minds
• Support wider HR priorities including organisational development, recruitment and employee experience

We’re looking for someone with strong general HR experience and a particular passion and expertise in L&D - someone who is a great trainer, facilitator and communicator, and loves finding creative ways to help people learn and grow.

Are you interested in the role, or you know someone who could be a great fit? Find out more and apply via the link in the comments.

'I spend at least ten minutes each day with my children. We talk, laugh, play games and imagine together.'For Hawa Mbake...
25/08/2026

'I spend at least ten minutes each day with my children. We talk, laugh, play games and imagine together.'

For Hawa Mbakeh, a parent in Kolley K***a, Lamin Koto, those few minutes have become part of everyday life.

Hawa is one of more than 1,500 who took part in the Parenting Integration Pilot in Region 5 North, led by Ministry of Basic and Secondary Education, The Gambia (MoBSE).

Through the pilot, and caregivers explored simple ways to support their children’s learning at home from storytelling and songs to play, homemade learning materials, positive discipline, hygiene and nutrition.

We’re proud to be partnering with by providing technical support as they explore how parenting can be integrated into early childhood education.

And Hawa’s experience shows why this matters: when have simple, practical ways to turn everyday moments into learning, children benefit.

We look forward to learning from the pilot and supporting as these approaches continue to develop in The Gambia.

"The mother will know what to do."How many times have we heard this? Too often, mothers are expected to carry most of th...
20/08/2026

"The mother will know what to do."

How many times have we heard this?

Too often, mothers are expected to carry most of the responsibility for their children's early learning and development. But raising a child isn't just a one-person job.

Research shows that children thrive when the caring adults in their lives are actively involved in their early learning and development. have a vital role to .

A who , tells stories, asks questions, listens and encourages a child to keep trying is doing far more than spending time together, he is helping build the foundations for lifelong learning.

These moments build confidence, spark curiosity, strengthen language and help children feel safe, valued and loved.

Across our programmes, we see the difference it makes when families share in children's early learning. When fathers, mothers and other caregivers all play an active role, children are more confident, more engaged and better prepared to learn.

This week, we have a simple challenge for fathers, grandfathers, uncles and caregivers: give a child just 10 uninterrupted minutes. Talk, play, read, tell a story and explore together.

Those 10 minutes may feel ordinary to you but to a child, they can make all the difference.

Two sessions. Two different ways of looking at what children need to learn, grow and succeed.On 22nd September, Lively M...
17/08/2026

Two sessions. Two different ways of looking at what children need to learn, grow and succeed.

On 22nd September, Lively Minds will be joining Education House @ UNGA81 in New York, contributing to two sessions focused on early learning, foundational skills and the power of .

9:00–10:00 𝐄𝐃𝐓 | 𝐁𝐮𝐢𝐥𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐒𝐭𝐫𝐨𝐧𝐠 𝐅𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐝𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬: 𝐏𝐫𝐚𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐜𝐚𝐥 𝐒𝐨𝐥𝐮𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐄𝐚𝐫𝐥𝐲 𝐅𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐝𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐚𝐥 𝐋𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠

How can we better connect early childhood and the early grades so children enter school ready to learn and continue building strong foundational skills?
This session brings together government, philanthropy and practitioners to explore practical approaches to strengthening this continuum, with examples from , and .

Organised by: Salzburg Global, Early Childhood Development Action Network - ECDAN, Federer Foundation, Lively Minds, Brookings Institution and The ELMA Philanthropies.

11:00–12:00 𝐄𝐃𝐓 | 𝐆𝐚𝐦𝐞 𝐂𝐡𝐚𝐧𝐠𝐞𝐫𝐬: 𝐏𝐥𝐚𝐲𝐟𝐮𝐥 𝐋𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐑𝐞𝐬𝐢𝐥𝐢𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐄𝐝𝐮𝐜𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐒𝐲𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐦𝐬

What happens when we stop talking about playful learning and actually experience it?

This interactive session will invite participants to take part in hands-on activities before exploring how play can build skills such as empathy, collaboration, creativity and perseverance and contribute to more resilient education systems.

We will be joining Right To Play Ghana, the International Rescue Committee (IRC), World Vision International, Special Olympics International and the Refugee Education Council (REC) for this session.

We’re looking forward to bringing our experience to both conversations and learning alongside partners from across the education sector.

20th August is the date to watch. Registration opens then and we’ll be sharing more about our sessions in the lead-up to 22nd September.

Find the link to the session agenda in the comments.

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Lively Minds
Tamale

Opening Hours

Monday 09:00 - 17:00
Tuesday 09:00 - 17:00
Wednesday 09:00 - 17:00
Thursday 09:00 - 17:00
Friday 09:00 - 17:00

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