In November 2025, twelve members of the association Au Cœur de Nos Rêves spent one month in northern Togo, working with four rural schools in the Kara region: Wéloudé, Tablao, Kadjada, and Kpandéda. Around 600 pupils, from kindergarten to fifth grade, benefit from this ongoing support, renewed every 18 to 24 months.

Donations Turned into Educational Tools

The games donated by the Long-Term Collections of the CERN Staff Association, shipped a few weeks earlier and originally intended as Christmas gifts, found a much broader purpose on site: becoming genuine learning tools.

Balance Games for Kindergarten Classes

In the kindergarten sections, 96 wooden “Dancing Tower” games were distributed. In these schools, which often have very limited equipment, these materials helped develop fine motor skills, balance, and imagination through hands-on manipulation and construction workshops. Teachers quickly embraced these new tools, while the children’s enthusiasm was immediate.

“Little Explorer” Kits for CM1–CM2 Pupils

The 36 “Little Explorer” kits, containing binoculars, magnifying glasses, and compasses, were used with pupils aged 9 to 11. Workshops focused on orientation, observation of plants and insects, and exploration of the local environment.

These topics are part of the school curriculum, but many children had never handled a compass or used binoculars or magnifying glasses before. Curiosity, active participation, and a sense of wonder characterized these activities. The kits will remain in the schools so that future classes can also benefit from them.

A Sustainable Initiative

The mission also provided an opportunity to assess the impact of the Kpandéda school canteen, funded by the CERN Long-Term Collections in 2025.

Beyond the material support, these donations brought motivation, enjoyment in learning, and recognition to both pupils and teachers. A concrete and sustainable initiative carried out with the local partner A3E (Friends of the Environment and the Flourishing Child).

Catherine Guidot

President of Au Cœur de Nos Rêves