Kiko saw bottles under the big tree. She counted them. There were eleven!
Talk about itWhere do you think the bottles came from?
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Children who read the world then go out and change a piece of it.
Soma Squad is a year round reading movement for children aged 5 to 16. They read about something real, talk it through, meet someone who knows it and then do something about it in their community.
Somameans read in Kiswahili. It is where everything we do begins.
Try it: the same story at three reading stages
This is how stories look in our sessions. A facilitator plays them on a big screen while the squad reads along and talks it through.
Word of the week
Mazingira
It means environment. This month our squads are learning it while they read about waste and pollution.
Reading opens the door. Experience makes it stick.
Every theme we explore follows the same five steps. We call it the Soma Loop.
Step 1
Read
Each child reads a story at their own stage.
Kiko finds plastic under her favourite tree.
Step 2
Talk
The squad discusses what happened and why it matters.
Where does our rubbish go once we throw it away?
Step 3
Meet
Someone who knows the topic joins us to answer questions.
A waste recycler explains what happens to plastic.
Step 4
Do
Children take part in something practical linked to the story.
A Saturday clean up near our venue.
Step 5
Lead
Older readers guide younger ones through the next Quest.
Deep Readers run the recycling story session.
Then the loop begins again with a new theme.
See how it worksFind your way into the squad
Everyone who joins Soma Squad gives something different and gets something back.
For parents and guardians
Give your child a reason to read
- Free sessions placed by reading level
- A question each week to talk about at home
- A clear view of who your child meets
For supporters and partners
See exactly what your gift does
- Fund a whole Quest or give monthly
- A report on every Quest you help fund
- Join the children live at our showcases
For experts and volunteers
Share what you know in one morning
- A one page brief with the children’s questions
- Join in person or by video
- See what the squad did with your ideas
Running now
The Clean Streets Quest
Thirty children across all three stages are reading about waste this month. Here are the next four Saturdays.
- Read and talkKiko and the Baobab with stories matched to each stage
- Read and talkWhere does our rubbish really go?
- MeetA live session with a local waste recycler
- DoA community clean up with parents and volunteers
From the Mission Log
What our squads did after they closed the book.
Saturday 26 September 2026
Deep Readers led their first discussion with the youngest squad
After reading about Wangari Maathai they planted twelve seedlings beside the venue.
Deep Readers
Saturday 12 September 2026
A historian answered forty questions about the Swahili coast
The Page Turners then built a timeline of the old trading towns on our wall.
Page Turners
Saturday 29 August 2026
Nine Story Starters read a whole book on their own
Each of them finished a picture book from start to end without help.
Story Starters
Every Quest starts with one book.
Help us put the next one into a child’s hands. Gifts of any size are turned into books, missions and moments that stay with them.