Grants:Programs/Wikimedia Community Fund/Rapid Fund/Wiki for Kidz - Making Wikipedia accessible for children ages 6-12 (ID: 23733436)
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Applicant Details
[edit]- Main Wikimedia username. (required)
Wikiforkidz
- Organization
N/A
- If you are a group or organization leader, board member, president, executive director, or staff member at any Wikimedia group, affiliate, or Wikimedia Foundation, you are required to self-identify and present all roles. (required)
N/A
- Describe all relevant roles with the name of the group or organization and description of the role. (required)
Main Proposal
[edit]- 1. Please state the title of your proposal. This will also be the Meta-Wiki page title.
Wiki for Kidz - Making Wikipedia accessible for children ages 6-12
- 2. and 3. Proposed start and end dates for the proposal.
2026-04-03 - 2027-04-02
- 4. Where will this proposal be implemented? (required)
International (more than one country across continents or regions) Primary target: United States (main expansion focus) Secondary markets: United Kingdom, Germany, France, Spain Base of operations: Sweden
Wiki for Kidz is available in 6 language versions serving these markets:
- Swedish (sv.wikiforkidz.com)
- English US (en-us.wikiforkidz.com)
- English UK (en-gb.wikiforkidz.com)
- German (de.wikiforkidz.com)
- French (fr.wikiforkidz.com)
- Spanish (es.wikiforkidz.com)
- 5. Are your activities part of a Wikimedia movement campaign, project, or event? If so, please select the relevant project or campaign. (required)
Not applicable
- 6. What is the change you are trying to bring? What are the main challenges or problems you are trying to solve? Describe this change or challenges, as well as main approaches to achieve it. (required)
Problem: Children ages 6-12 cannot independently access Wikipedia's vast knowledge. The reading level is too advanced, sentences are too long, and vocabulary is too complex. At the same time, most AI tools like ChatGPT require users to be 13+, leaving young children with few options for self-directed learning online.
Solution: Wiki for Kidz (wikiforkidz.com) transforms Wikipedia articles into child-friendly content with simplified vocabulary, shorter sentences, inline definitions, "Did you know?" fact boxes, and glossaries. The platform is live in 6 languages and specifically designed for accessibility, including children with reading difficulties and special needs.
Change: This grant will enable expansion into the US market and build sustainable community growth, reaching 15,000 monthly users and establishing Wiki for Kidz as the bridge between Wikipedia and its youngest future contributors.
- 7. What are the planned activities? (required) Please provide a list of main activities. You can also add a link to the public page for your project where details about your project can be found. Alternatively, you can upload a timeline document. When the activities include partnerships, include details about your partners and planned partnerships.
Phase 1 (Months 1-4): US Market Launch
- Establish English-language social media presence
- Outreach to US homeschool communities (3.7 million homeschooled children)
- Contact teachers, schools, and libraries
- Targeted social media advertising
Phase 2 (Months 3-8): Content and Community Growth
- Expand article library based on user requests
- Implement feedback system for content suggestions
- Create teacher resources (lesson plans, classroom guides)
- Build volunteer contributor network
Phase 3 (Months 6-12): Documentation and Knowledge Sharing
- Document methodology on Meta-Wiki for replication
- Create open-source guidelines for child-friendly content adaptation
- Present at Wikimedia community events
- Publish impact report
- 8. Describe your team. Please provide their roles, Wikimedia Usernames and other details. (required) Include more details of the team, including their roles, usernames, Wikimedia group, and whether they are salaried, volunteers, consultants/contractors, etc. Team members involved in the grant application need to be aware of their involvement in the project.
Project Lead: Peter Berndtsson (Wikimedia username: Wikiforkidz) Role: Founder, developer, content strategy Status: Volunteer (unpaid) Background: 15+ years in marketing, UX design, and brand development
To be hired with grant funding:
- Community Coordinator (part-time contractor, 8 hours/week)
Role: Social media management, US outreach, teacher relations Status: Paid contractor ($100/hour)
The project founder handles all technical development and strategic decisions. The Community Coordinator position will focus on audience growth and community engagement in English-speaking markets.
- 9. Who are the target participants and from which community? How will you engage participants before and during the activities? How will you follow up with participants after the activities? (required)
Primary audience: Children ages 6-12 and their parents/caregivers
- Parents seeking safe, educational content for independent learning
- Homeschooling families (3.7 million children in US alone)
- Families with children who have reading difficulties or special needs
Secondary audience: Educators
- Elementary school teachers (grades 1-6)
- School librarians
- Homeschool co-op organizers
Engagement strategy:
- Before: Social media outreach, school/library contacts, educator newsletters
- During: Regular content updates, feedback collection, user surveys
- After: Email updates, social media community, teacher resource sharing
Follow-up: Monthly newsletter, social media engagement, annual user survey
- 10. Does your project involve work with children or youth? (required)
Yes
- 10.1. Please provide a link to your Youth Safety Policy. (required) If the proposal indicates direct contact with children or youth, you are required to outline compliance with international and local laws for working with children and youth, and provide a youth safety policy aligned with these laws. Read more here.
Wiki for Kidz has NO direct contact with children. The platform is a read-only educational website with no user accounts, no comments, no chat features, and no data collection from children.
Safety measures:
- No user registration or login
- No personal data collection
- No comment sections or social features
- No direct communication with users
- Content sourced from Wikipedia and automatically simplified
- Ad-free, safe browsing environment
The platform is designed to align with GDPR (EU), COPPA (US), and the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child. Full Youth Safety Policy available upon request at info@wikiforkidz.com
- 11. How did you discuss the idea of your project with your community members and/or any relevant groups? Please describe steps taken and provide links to any on-wiki community discussion(s) about the proposal. (required) You need to inform the community and/or group, discuss the project with them, and involve them in planning this proposal. You also need to align the activities with other projects happening in the planned area of implementation to ensure collaboration within the community.
As an individual applicant with a new project, I have taken the following steps:
1. Research: Studied existing Wikimedia education initiatives including Wikipedia Education Program to ensure Wiki for Kidz complements rather than duplicates efforts.
2. Platform alignment: Wiki for Kidz sources all content from Wikipedia and maintains CC BY-SA licensing, ensuring full compatibility with Wikimedia values.
3. Community contribution plan: Will document our child-friendly content methodology on Meta-Wiki for other projects to use and adapt.
4. Feedback integration: The grant includes creating feedback mechanisms to incorporate community input into content development.
This proposal represents a new approach to extending Wikipedia's reach to younger audiences - a demographic currently underserved by existing Wikimedia projects.
- 12. Does your proposal aim to work to bridge any of the content knowledge gaps (Knowledge Inequity)? Select one option that most apply to your work. (required)
Age (recency)
- 13. Does your proposal include any of these areas or thematic focus? Select one option that most applies to your work. (required)
Education
- 14. Will your work focus on involving participants from any underrepresented communities? Select one option that most apply to your work. (required)
Age (diversity of age groups)
- 15. In what ways do you think your proposal most contributes to the Movement Strategy 2030 recommendations. Select one that most applies. (required)
Innovate in Free Knowledge
Learning and metrics
[edit]- 17. What do you hope to learn from your work in this project or proposal? (required)
Key learning questions:
1. What content do children want most? Which topics generate the most engagement?
2. How effective is our simplified content? Do children understand the articles?
3. What drives sustainable growth? Which marketing channels work best for reaching parents and educators?
4. How can this model be replicated? Can our methodology be documented for other Wikimedia projects?
Data collection: Website analytics, user feedback forms, social media engagement metrics.
- 18. What are your Wikimedia project targets in numbers (metrics)? (required)
| Other Metrics | Target | Optional description |
|---|---|---|
| Number of participants | 5000 | Website visitors who actively use Wiki for Kidz to read and learn. Target: 5,000 unique monthly visitors by end of grant period. |
| Number of editors | 0 | Wiki for Kidz does not involve direct editing of Wikipedia. Content is automatically simplified from existing Wikipedia articles. |
| Number of organizers | 1 | Peter Berndtsson - project founder, handling all development, content strategy, and marketing. |
| Wikimedia project | Number of content created or improved |
|---|---|
| Wikipedia | 1 |
| Wikimedia Commons | |
| Wikidata | |
| Wiktionary | |
| Wikisource | |
| Wikimedia Incubator | |
| Translatewiki | |
| MediaWiki | |
| Wikiquote | |
| Wikivoyage | |
| Wikibooks | |
| Wikiversity | |
| Wikinews | |
| Wikispecies | |
| Wikifunctions or Abstract Wikipedia |
- Optional description for content contributions.
Will document the Wiki for Kidz content simplification methodology on Meta-Wiki, creating a reusable guide for other projects wanting to adapt Wikipedia content for younger audiences.
- 19. Do you have any other project targets in numbers (metrics)? (optional)
No
| Main Open Metrics | Description | Target |
|---|---|---|
| N/A | N/A | N/A |
| N/A | N/A | N/A |
| N/A | N/A | N/A |
| N/A | N/A | N/A |
| N/A | N/A | N/A |
- 20. What tools would you use to measure each metrics? Please refer to the guide for a list of tools. You can also write that you are not sure and need support. (required)
- Website analytics: Vercel Analytics (built into platform) for tracking visitors, page views, time on site, and geographic distribution
- Social media metrics: Meta Business Suite for Facebook/Instagram engagement, follower growth, and reach
- User feedback: Google Forms for collecting feedback from parents and teachers
- Content performance: Internal tracking of most-viewed articles and search queries
Financial proposal
[edit]- 21. Please upload your budget for this proposal or indicate the link to it. (required)
- 22. and 22.1. What is the amount you are requesting for this proposal? Please provide the amount in your local currency. (required)
52000 SEK
- 22.2. Convert the amount requested into USD using the Oanda converter. This is done only to help you assess the USD equivalent of the requested amount. Your request should be between 500 - 5,000 USD.
5000 USD
- We/I have read the Application Privacy Statement, WMF Friendly Space Policy and Universal Code of Conduct.
Yes
Endorsements and Feedback
[edit]Please add endorsements and feedback to the grant discussion page only. Endorsements added here will be removed automatically.
Community members are invited to share meaningful feedback on the proposal and include reasons why they endorse the proposal. Consider the following:
- Stating why the proposal is important for the communities involved and why they think the strategies chosen will achieve the results that are expected.
- Highlighting any aspects they think are particularly well developed: for instance, the strategies and activities proposed, the levels of community engagement, outreach to underrepresented groups, addressing knowledge gaps, partnerships, the overall budget and learning and evaluation section of the proposal, etc.
- Highlighting if the proposal focuses on any interesting research, learning or innovation, etc. Also if it builds on learning from past proposals developed by the individual or organization, or other Wikimedia communities.
- Analyzing if the proposal is going to contribute in any way to important developments around specific Wikimedia projects or Movement Strategy.
- Analysing if the proposal is coherent in terms of the objectives, strategies, budget, and expected results (metrics).