why we measure impact

At Telling Our Tales, we believe the only measure of success that
truly matters is how children respond to Reading Made Easy.

Do they enjoy the stories?

Do they feel seen and inspired?

And most importantly—are they growing in reading confidence, ability, and joy?​​​

​To answer these questions, we partnered with qualified volunteer researchers to run a two-year pilot across ten rural schools in Oyo State, Nigeria. More than 300 pupils participated in classroom and before/after school activities. Progress was assessed using the internationally recognised EGRA (Early Grade Reading Assessment) tool.​​​

​The results speak for themselves:

  • Zero scores in Listening Comprehension dropped from 97% to just 4%.
  • Over 95% of pupils showed measurable improvement in reading skills.
  • The biggest gains came in phonics and comprehension—cornerstones of lifelong literacy.

These outcomes confirm what we see every day: that joyful, culturally relevant stories
can unlock real change.

A special thank you
Joseph Adedeji, B.Ed, M.Ed
Mustapha Jamiu, B.Sc, M.Sc
our volunteer researchers:
for their dedication to
rigorous, child-centered
research.

What we learned

The pilot didn’t just improve reading test scores — it sparked real growth in how children engage with language and books.

Key Findings:

  • 85.9% of pupils improved in letter sound recognition
  • 95.8% of pupils improved in listening comprehension
  • Scores increased across every reading category — including letter names, familiar word reading, unfamiliar word decoding, and reading fluency
  • Lowest-performing pupils made the biggest gains, showing the programme’s ability to lift learners at every level
  • Teachers observed marked improvements in pupils’ speech and pronunciation — a powerful indicator of real-world language confidence

in their words

Real voices from children,
parents and teachers in our pilot study

a ripple effect

The impact extended beyond individual literacy.

The programme:

  • Increased parent and community engagement in their children’s reading journeys.
  • Inspired teachers to go above and beyond, starting class earlier to accommodate reading time.
  • Demonstrated the power of inclusive, community-led education.
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A mother waiting outside the classroom, sounding out words from a Reading Made Easy book. As these books go home, so does the learning.

what’s next?

We’ve seen what’s possible.

In schools in rural Nigeria, joyful, culturally rooted stories are transforming how children read – and how families and communities engage with learning.​​​​

This change was led by teachers and community elders, supported by parents, and powered by a network of everyday people who helped bring affordable, culturally relevant books to a community that needed them. This is what simple, scalable, community driven change can look like.

Now it’s time to grow.

With support from around the world – from cities to the diaspora to local champions – we can reach more children with stories that celebrate Nigerian culture and spark a lifelong love of reading and African storytelling.

This isn’t charity. It’s a community-powered model – one where every book enjoyed helps deliver another to a child who needs it.

Because every child deserves to share in the adventure of Reading Made Easy.

Now that Fatia can read, can you
imagine what she could become?