“Ukraine Kindergarten”

In 2023, NPR’s Elissa Nadworny spent eight months traveling to different countries and continents to share stories of a kindergarten class and its teacher from Kharkiv, Ukraine. Nadworny’s work, a mix of audio, visual and written reporting, told the complicated stories of the children and their families after their classroom shut down, followed by trauma, changes and fear.

With assistance from NPR’s Steve Drummond, Lauren Migaki, Claire Harbage and Hanna Palamarekno, Nadworny’s reporting gave audiences a look into a country upturned by war.

Her reporting took audiences inside the classroom, showing details as small as the color of the students’ lockers and as complex as parents deciding they could no longer discuss kindergarten and their past lives. She provided an intimate look at the lives of children during some of their most pivotal years of growth and how the students changed since the start of the war.

Nadworny interviewed students, parents, teachers, school officials and child development specialists. The audience learned how the last year impacted each member of the class.

Nadworny’s reporting resulted in a heartbreaking yet heartwarming portrait of growing up during a war and the resilience of children and the people who worked so hard to protect them.

Article by: Abbi Ross