Toto magazine turning classroom into a learning adventure

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When Toto Magazine editor Grace Nampiima first visited the Karamoja and Acholi regions to train teachers on how to use newspapers in the classroom under the Newspapers in Education (NIE) programme, she discovered that many teachers were already using the study materials in Toto to teach their children.

Some of the teachers were not very well trained, she says, but the Toto magazine was helping them as a teaching aid, and the learners were doing the exercises and activities in the magazine.

“There are so many activities which are interesting in Toto,” she says. “There is joining the dots, crossword puzzles for the upper classes, a reading series for the upper classes, and spot-the-difference for the lower classes. There is something for every level in primary.”

Teachers in Amuru going through the new vision newspaper to make learning materials

Toto magazine is a pullout in the New Vision newspaper and appears every Wednesday.

Training teachers in Karamoja and Acholi

On March 3, Nampiima and the New Vision NIE team embarked on two weeks of training for teachers in community schools in the Karamoja and Acholi regions on how to use newspapers in the classroom under the NIE programme.

The trainings were conducted in Napak, Nakapiripirit, Moroto and Kotido districts in Karamoja, and Omoro, Amuru, Nwoya and Gulu districts in Acholi.

Teachers who have used the Toto magazines said during the training that their learners are always eager to complete the activities and are very active in class. The magazine has turned the classroom into a fun-filled adventure.

Newspapers are used as instructional tools in many subjects and at different class levels globally. Typically, most NIE programmes focus on subjects such as English language, reading, social studies, mathematics and science.

In collaboration with Save the Children, New Vision is actively implementing the Newspapers in Education (NIE) programme across 92 schools in the Karamoja and Acholi regions, including training teachers on how to use newspapers in teaching.

Developing content for community schools

“By the time I realised that the teachers were using Toto as a learning aid, I went back and began developing these study materials intentionally with these children in mind,” Nampiima says.

“I discovered that even if I prepared work for the kindergarten level, in these regions, teachers were using the materials for P1, P2 and P3. So I began developing these materials intentionally with those learners in mind.”

Nampiima develops material for the magazine for children at the kindergarten level, between three and six years.

“Whatever I would set for urban schools is not the same for the community schools being supported by Save the Children,” she explains. “So I put emphasis in particular places and organise the work in a particular way.”

Encouraging children to participate

Nampiima also discovered that children enjoy reading about learners from other schools.

“I discovered that children love reading about learners in other schools because when they read about learners in other places, they compare with what is happening in their own school,” she says. I am glad that wherever we go, I have received reports that Toto is having a great impact in the teaching and learning process of our learners.”

Toto Magazine editor Grace Nampiima and Esther Arinaitwe, the Vision Group Newspapers in Education manager training teachers in Amuru.

She also appreciates Save the Children for ensuring that the materials reach the learners.

“I appreciate Save the Children for getting these materials to our learners. For some of them, these are the only study materials they have, and they are using them. It is practical for them,” she says.

She has encouraged teachers to involve their learners actively in contributing content to Toto.

“It is not enough to read about other learners. Children need to see themselves in the magazine as well, sharing their knowledge,” she says. She encouraged teachers to let their learners contribute and appear in Toto so that next time they get the newspaper with the Toto magazine, they see themselves in it.

The New Vision NIE team began the training of teachers on Tuesday, March 3, 2026, and concluded on March 13, 2026, in the Karamoja and Acholi regions.

“Thanks to New Vision and Save the Children for the NIE initiative. It is having a great impact,” Nampiima says.

Impact on teaching and learning

Esther Arinaitwe, the Vision Group Newspapers in Education manager, says the team has been encouraged by what teachers are reporting from their classrooms.

“From the trainings conducted, we are happy with what the teachers are doing and what they are reporting from their classrooms,” Arinaitwe says. “The newspapers are making their classrooms more lively and fresher, making children participatory and more active in their lessons.”

She says the teachers demonstrated lessons during the training using newspapers.

“We believe that with this kind of training, they will grow and do much better,” she says. “We have seen them do demonstration lessons in the different subjects they teach. They choose their own subject and topic and teach with the support of a newspaper, and they have been doing a good job.”

“If they continue to do the same when they return to their schools, we know that classrooms are going to be more vibrant and children are going to enjoy learning.”

Appreciating the support

Arinaitwe also appreciated Save the Children for supporting the programme.

“They have sponsored 92 schools across the Karamoja and Acholi regions to receive 25 copies each of the New Vision newspaper with Toto magazine inserted in them,” she says. “They are doing a very good job and helping the children to learn much better.”

In some schools, she adds, the newspapers are among the only study materials available to teachers.

"It is really a major resource and a major tool for the teachers in these regions. We appreciate the support and hope that it will continue.”