From 5th to 9th January 2026, the National Rollout of the Grade One teacher training programme in Jolly Phonics took centre stage in Lusaka, the heart of Zambia's Capital Province. The training brought together educators for focused and engaging capacity-building sessions aimed at strengthening early grade literacy teaching skills in primary schools.
A total of 910 Grade One teachers received hands-on training in Jolly Phonics, strengthening the foundation of early reading skills. Training activities reached all six districts across Lusaka Province, ensuring widespread impact and consistent learning standards. The rollout made Lusaka the fifth of the ten provinces in Zambia to be trained in Jolly Phonics for their Grade One teachers.
To support effective implementation, 28 education officials were also trained in monitoring using the Jolly Monitor app, reinforcing quality delivery in classrooms. The training for officials was to ensure successful implementation of Jolly Phonics methodologies in various schools. A strong step toward better literacy, one child at a time.
Officials and delegates were given a snapshot of the core purpose of the Jolly Phonics training. The launch highlighted that the training equipped educators with practical knowledge and skills to deliver effective phonics instruction. Officials and delegates were guided through the five key skills of phonics — learning letter sounds, letter formation, blending, identifying sounds in words, and tricky words — by engaging them in a multisensory lesson demonstration that was done by two of our trainers.
The launch meeting ended with interactions and networking with directors from various departments of the Ministry of Education as well as other stakeholders.
The ripple effect of this initiative is expected to reach about 54,600 pupils, transforming classrooms and improving literacy outcomes in early graders.
Five days. Hundreds of teachers equipped. 28 officials trained, and over fifty thousand learners to be impacted by Jolly Phonics.
INVESTING IN TEACHERS. IMPROVING LITERACY LEARNING. THE FUTURE IS JOLLY!