Using Play to Foster Healthy Development of Children in the Americas

Learning through Play (LTP) is a curriculum-based training program for parents and caregivers that is rooted in the science of child development. The objectives of this project are: i) to ensure that approximately 13 200 children under the age of seven in Haiti and Ecuador achieve healthier physical social emotional and cognitive development so that they are better prepared to enter primary school; and ii) to reduce the exposure of these children to physical and verbal abuse. Approximately 330 nurses midwives teachers and childcare workers in Haiti and Ecuador receive LTP training and then deliver training to 6 600 parents and caregivers. As a result these parents and caregivers are expected to be capable of using play and other techniques to ensure the healthy development of their young children. LTP training also contributes to reduced gender-based violence in the target communities.