Toys to help mothers develop their children’s skills
● Mothers in one of Cape Town’s poorest areas are getting a boost from what, at first, seems like just a bag of toys that opens up into a yellow floor mat.
But in reality, the Bright Start bag and toys are part of a project to help mothers from Crossroads grow the cognitive development of their children.
The programme is based on research by professor Lorraine Sherr of University College London, who says that “play is essential to development” and that “if play is led by caregivers in the home, children benefit from positive developmental outcomes”.
Last year, 120 mother-child pairs went through the pilot phase, with 240 more slated to benefit each year.
Dr Emma Chademana, who is senior programme manager at One to One Africa, where Bright Start is a programme, said: “What came out at the end of last year was that cognitive development was just one aspect of it. Many of the parents said it helped them bond with, and understand, their child.”
The programme is also popular with women with HIV.
Julia Bishop, country director of One to One Africa, said: “There is mounting evidence that 70% of children who live in HIV affected households experience developmental delays and cognitive deficit, whether the children themselves are infected or not.”
One of the mothers told the Sunday Times she had noticed “a bond between my child and me because I was not used to spending quality time with him before these toys”.
One to One Africa was set up by David and Jenny Altschuler, a South African couple in the UK who established the One to One Children’s Fund in 2001 after the war in Kosovo. They set up programmes in Israel and Palestine, and for refugees in Greece. The fund has reached 122,000 children.