Bintou Manneh
SPIRIT OF ENTREPRENEURSHIP AWARD • TECHNOLOGY
A Teddy Bear That Helps Children Read
BearBot
Children who are struggling to read may need practice, but they may also need a learning tool that feels safe, familiar, and encouraging.
Bintou Manneh helped create BearBot with Maram Ahmed, Marangelis Uben, and Ashley Romero. The stuffed reading companion is designed to combine learning with play, using a built-in scanner and personalized features intended to help children practice reading in a more comfortable way.
The team was motivated by post-pandemic declines in reading levels and the challenges faced by children with reading disabilities. Their goal was to make practice feel less like another assignment and more like help from a companion a child wants to hold.
What your support made possible:
A Spirit of Entrepreneurship Award providing early funding and recognition to help Bintou continue developing BearBot.
Because of you... Bintou received an early vote of confidence and resources to keep testing what BearBot might become.