PlayMatters: Learning through Play in Uganda, Ethiopia, Tanzania and South Sudan

PlayMatters is a multi-country education initiative that supports children affected by crisis and displacement to learn and thrive through quality Learning through Play (LtP) approaches. Initially working across Ethiopia, Uganda, and Tanzania, PlayMatters partners with governments, schools, communities, and national institutions to strengthen education systems so that play-based learning is not treated as a short-term intervention, but as a sustainable and scalable part of quality education that improves holistic learning and wellbeing outcomes for children aged 3-12+.

At its core, PlayMatters recognizes that play is not separate from learning, it is a powerful way children develop foundational academic, social, emotional, and cognitive skills. In contexts affected by conflict, displacement, and disruption, learning through play can also support children’s wellbeing, resilience, and recovery.

The initial phase of PlayMatters demonstrated that learning through play can improve children’s holistic learning and support teachers to create more engaging and inclusive classrooms. Building on this foundation, PlayMatters 3.0 focuses on the next phase of scale: embedding learning through play within existing national education systems, teacher training structures, and school practices. It also includes South Sudan in its geographic scope.

Rather than creating parallel models, PlayMatters works to integrate play-based pedagogy into the systems that shape how education is delivered. This includes supporting teacher professional development, strengthening institutional capacity, generating evidence on what works, and partnering with ministries, teacher training institutions, universities, and local actors to advance long-term adoption.

PlayMatters also prioritizes inclusion, ensuring that children of different genders, abilities, and backgrounds can access safe, meaningful, and joyful learning opportunities. Across all its work, the initiative combines implementation, research, policy engagement, and strategic communications to strengthen the credibility and visibility of learning through play as a practical solution for education in crisis-affected contexts.

Implemented through a consortium led by the International Rescue Committee (IRC) in partnership with Plan International and War Child Alliance, and supported by the LEGO Foundation, PlayMatters is helping build a future where more children can experience learning that is not only effective, but engaging, joyful, and transformative.