Watoto Wasome was ideated in 2019 by two passionate educators after volunteering to teach children in Kibera slums and experiencing firsthand the challenges these children faced in reading. This included 10-year-olds struggling to identify more than three letters in the alphabet. This interaction, and our founder’s love for children, instilled a lot of empathy for their struggles in accessing quality education which ultimately led to the founding of Watoto Wasome.
We chose to focus on the early years to prevent the young ones from falling behind and helping the older ones gain foundational literacy skills missed. As teachers, we also noticed a stark difference in the reading attitudes between children in well-resourced schools and those we served and wanted to bring the joy of learning to them through engaging activities, knowing that joy and participation are powerful motivators to learn and improve. So far, we have grown to a team of 20+ active volunteers and each year we record over 50% increase in children’s literacy levels, and even more joy and smiles from them.
Danielle Ochieng’
Founder & CEO
As a passionate educator dedicated to children’s literacy, Danielle finds profound fulfillment in integrating the joy of learning into the lives of underserved children. Watoto Wasome continuously gifts her the chance to make a tangible impact, nurturing children’s literacy one letter-sound at a time.
Onyango Ochieng’
Director & Finance Manager
Having taught before, Richard realized the profound impact of not just teaching, but teaching effectively. This experience ignited his passion for helping children learn. Watoto Wasome provides an opportunity to improve children’s lives by teaching thus bridging the literacy gap.
Joan Masinde
Head of Communication
Joan takes pride in using storytelling as a tool to drive social change. As an advocate for women and children, her work at Watoto Wasome shapes the future of underserved children and sparks essential conversations on eradicating illiteracy as a path to a sustainable future.
Our focus age is children aged 3-10 years, primarily those in children’s homes, rescue centers and out-of-school because they are often forgotten in learning outreach since they usually aren’t school. However, we also work with community schools and organizations in slum and rural areas. Our work is centered on environments where children often lack access to quality and engaging literacy education due to socio-economic factors and are most at-risk of falling behind in learning.
Watoto Wasome is on a mission to eradicate illiteracy among Kenyan children by 2050. We strive to ensure that every Kenyan child, regardless of their circumstances, gains the best foundational literacy skills and resources to become their best possible self.
Our Core Values
Become a Partner,
Help us Teach a Child to Read.
Become a Volunteer
with Watoto Wasome
The more the hands. the more children learn to love reading.
