Age
5
Country of Residence
Nigeria
Founding Story: What was the spark that led you to start your project? What was the "Aha!" moment that led you to get started and see the potential for this to succeed?
The spark for my project came from who I am and how I relate to other children. I am a gentle, kind, generous, attentive, and joyful child, and I enjoy making other children feel happy and included. I began to notice that not every child has the same experience. Some children struggle with learning, confidence, relationships, or challenges at home, and they may not always have someone to listen to them. My mother’s background in Guidance and Counseling also helped me understand how important it is for children to have someone who cares about their emotional and academic well being. My aha moment was realizing that my love for children could become something bigger: a project that visits schools, listens to children, understands their challenges, and helps them get the support and learning materials they need to thrive.
How do you encourage other people to join your project or learn about the problem you’re working on? If you have a new idea, tell us how you will do this in the future.
As the project grows, I will encourage others to join by sharing what we learn from children and showing why listening to them matters. With the support of my mother and counselors, we will create simple awareness activities in schools and communities about children's emotional well-being, learning challenges, and the importance of early support. We will invite counselors, teachers, parents, and other young people who care about children to volunteer, share ideas, or support school visits. We will also use social media to share age appropriate stories, lessons, and information about the issues children face. I hope that by starting small and showing the impact of listening and caring, more people will want to become part of the project.
How many people are on your team?
6
Impact: How has your project created impact / made a difference so far? Or, if at an early stage, what will impact look like?
Impact will look like children feeling heard, understood, and more confident to talk about the challenges they face. It will mean identifying children who may be struggling with academics, emotions ,and socially, or at home and help them access appropriate support early. We hope to see improved participation in learning, better relationships with others, increased confidence, and greater access to learning materials. Most importantly, success will mean children knowing that their challenges matter, their voices are important, and they are not alone.
Project Category
My project is a brand new / emerging idea
Project Stage
Idea (We’re hoping to get started in the future)
Project Summary: Describe your project in one sentence
My project supports primary school children by visiting schools to provide them with age appropriate counselling, identify academic, emotional, social and home related challenges affecting their learning, and connect them with practical support, learning materials, mentorship and appropriate intervention to help children thrive academically and personally.
Project title
Little Voice, Big Dreams
The Problem: What problem are you helping to solve? Why does it matter to you and your community?
Many children struggle in school because of challenges they face at home, emotionally, socially, or academically, but they may not have anyone who listens to them or understands what they are going through. This can affect their confidence, learning, relationships, and future. I want to help create a safe space where children can talk, be understood, and receive support, while also helping provide learning materials to children who need them. This matters to me because I believe every child deserves to feel heard, supported, and given a fair chance to learn and succeed.
Website URL(s) or social media handles.
https://www.instagram.com/littlealexworld?stkn=OG5qcmtzeHl3czZj
What’s Next: What are the next steps you plan to take to grow or strengthen your project over the next year? If your project is still in the idea stage, describe the steps you will take over the next three months to launch or begin developing it.
Over the next three months, we plan to turn the idea into a small, practical pilot. In the first month, we will develop the project plan, identify a primary school to work with, speak with teachers and parents, and bring together counselors who can provide guidance and safeguarding support. In the second month, we will conduct our first school visit, hold child friendly listening and counseling sessions, identify common challenges, and provide learning materials where needed. In the third month, we will review what we learned through feedback from children, teachers, and counselors, improve our approach, and develop a plan to reach more schools. The goal is to start small, learn from the children we serve, and build a stronger model before expanding.
Your Innovation: What is different about your project compared to other programs or solutions already out there? How is your project new or innovative?
What makes my project different is that it starts with listening to children before deciding what they need. Instead of focusing only on academic performance or providing school materials, we want to understand the emotional, social, family, and learning challenges that may be affecting each child. The project brings together child-friendly listening sessions, early identification of challenges, counseling support, and practical learning assistance in one approach. It is also inspired by a child’s desire to help other children, making kindness, empathy, and children’s voices part of the project itself. My goal is to create a simple model that schools and communities can adapt and continue using to support children early, before their challenges become bigger barriers to learning and well being.
Your Solution: How are you solving this problem? Share your specific solution.
My project will visit primary schools to create safe and friendly spaces where children can talk about challenges affecting their learning and well being. With the support of my mother, who has a background in Guidance and Counseling, we will listen to children, identify common academic, emotional, social, and home related challenges, and connect them with appropriate support. We will also provide learning materials to children who need them and encourage positive learning habits, kindness, confidence, and self expression. By listening early and offering practical support, I hope to help children feel valued, learn better, and believe in their ability to succeed.
Your team: What role(s) do your team members play? How do you share leadership with them?
I will be the youth leader of the project, helping shape its vision and making sure the project stays focused on what children need. My mother will serve as an adult mentor and project coordinator, using her background in Guidance and Counseling to guide the counseling activities and help with planning and safeguarding. We will also involve other qualified counselors who can support school visits, listening sessions, and referrals when necessary.
