Sesame Workshop Launches Resources for Families Affected by Crises in Afghanistan and UkraineSesame Workshop Launches Resources for Families Affected by Crises in Afghanistan and Ukraine

Sesame Workshop has launched new educational resources for displaced and refugee children, available on SesameStreetinCommunities.org/WelcomeSesame in Dari, Pashto, Ukrainian, Spanish and English, with more languages to come.  

The teaching and learning materials, part of the Welcome Sesame initiative to support families affected by conflict and crisis, are designed to provide support for families coping with the trauma of forced displacement communicate and process what they are experiencing and develop a sense of belonging in new places.  

The resources are tailored to the needs of Afghan and Ukrainian families on the move. In addition to being available online, they will be used by a range of direct service providers and implementing partners working with Afghan and Ukrainian families, including resettlement agencies in the U.S. and humanitarian organizations globally. New educational materials will be released later, adding to a growing body of Welcome Sesame resources and programs reaching families around the world, from the Middle East to East Africa to the southern U.S. border and beyond.  

Read More: Sesame Workshop Launches Resources to Help Families Build Foundation of Resilience 

“With the number of displaced families worldwide reaching record highs, the need for early learning and nurturing care for young children and caregivers affected by crisis has never been greater,” says Sherrie Westin, president, Sesame Workshop. “Our Welcome Sesame initiative is reaching children in the narrow window of their lives when it’s most important for their healthy development. Today’s expansion of Welcome Sesame will bring critically needed early childhood development support to families whose lives have been upended, including by the recent crises in Afghanistan and Ukraine.”  

The new teaching and learning materials include:  

Welcome Sesame is anchored by two large-scale initiatives – Ahlan Simsim, reaching families affected by conflict in the Middle East and North Africa, and Play to Learn, reaching families affected by the Rohingya and Syrian refugee crises and beyond. Welcome Sesame unites Sesame programs across five continents to deliver early learning and nurturing care to families through a combination of mass media and direct services, in addition to research and advocacy.  

On June 21 at 7 p.m., Welcome Sesame: A Digital Special Event will be hosted by talk show host, Tamron Hall. For additional information on Welcome Sesame, visit SesameWorkshop.org and watch Welcome Sesame here.