Early Learning
With crowded homes and few safe play areas slum children often miss out on early learning. Kindergartens run by local women provides pre-school learning for these children, preparing them to make the most of future educational opportunities.
Karuna reaches 2180 children through funding 109 kindergartens
Karmala is a small market town in a remote, drought-prone area of rural Maharashtra. Here Karuna is helping to set up and run a network of local kindergartens, known in the Marathi language as balwadis. 17 balwadis providing places for 400 children aged 3 to 5. The kindergartens serve all the different communities in the town and the management committee overseeing the project is made up of Hindus, Muslims and Buddhists, working together to provide education for all their children.
Shehana Farouk Momin is 22 years old and lives in Moulali Mal, the Muslim district of Karmala. When her husband was killed in a car accident, she was left to bring up their three young children. She lives with her family in a hut only 12 feet square. The family’s entire income is 1,200 rupees (less than £20) a month. It is scarcely enough to survive on.
Her two older children go to the nearby kindergarten. This has made life a little easier, giving her more time during the day to rest and work. The children enjoy going there and have learnt many songs and games. Since they started at the kindergarten their confidence has increased, preparing them for school in a few years’ time.
“I go to the mosque every day”, Shehana says. “Each day I pray that my children may have happiness and enjoy health and peace of mind."