Once again, the Mission of Mercy blog is focusing on education – I say again because we gave a short introduction to its importance in August, and because we really can’t emphasize it enough. Education is almost a right here, but something that’s threatened by so much in the third world.

Piuma’s story got me thinking. There were so many chances for her education to go off the rails: if her mother got too sick, if she had to stay home and care for siblings, if they couldn’t rebuild after the flood and were forced to move elsewhere.

So my first tip is obvious. PRAY. Pray for protection for parents and child alike.

Pray for your sponsored child to have a good teacher, one who delights in the kids and encourages them in their subjects. Someone who can recognize developing talent and skill. Someone who pays attention when a child is struggling in a subject and can come alongside and offer additional help.

Tip #2: Tell stories from your own education. Write about your favorite subjects, but also write about subjects you found difficult. It may help your sponsored child to know that struggles are somewhat normal – but more importantly they can be overcome!

Your child may be the first in their family to have the opportunity to attend school. They know success is important, and obstacles may seem overwhelming and even final. If a child struggles in school, a parent may think it best to put the child to work. Your encouragement may be as helpful to the parent as your child.

Tip #3: Pay attention to your child’s interests, and use them as analogies. Soccer and cricket are extremely popular sports in many of our countries, and they lend themselves well to encouragement in academics. How so? Let’s say your sponsored child struggles in math and would much rather be playing a game of soccer with his friends.

How do you become a better soccer player? You practice. Every element of play is important – ball handling, passing, knowing your weaknesses. The same is true for math. Math skills are pretty essential – just like ball handling is in soccer. Practicing is one of the only ways to improve your skills. It also helps to ask for help – you can only improve your dribbling so much by yourself. You need others to work with you, challenge you, point out that you’re only using your right foot…

I hope you get the point, because I’m running out of soccer metaphors! Offer encouragement in a language they understand, be it sports, music, or art. It also helps to follow it up with a story of your own hard work and success in school.  

And now, a fourth tip that covers one of my favorite subjects: school supplies. I took great joy in picking out the right color notebook or special pen.

Did you know that in some projects, children share pens and pencils? That they often don’t have enough textbooks for the entire class, if they have them at all? Some parents, unable to provide proper school supplies, will keep a child at home rather than send them empty handed.

Our project workers try to provide the children with school supplies, but some supplies are difficult or very expensive to come by in the developing world.

But there are small things you can send. Yes, I know, you can’t fit much into a #10 envelope, but you can get creative:

• Bookmarks (think academic: formulas and facts are helpful!)
• Flashcards (math or other subjects)
• Small maps
• Paper plane printouts (folding instructions)
• Small notebooks (look in dollar stores or travel sections of stores)
• Protractors, rulers
• A small number of pencils, pens, or foam pencil grips
• Colored pencils

One word of caution- crayons will melt before they get to your child- even if it is freezing in our hemisphere. Other forbidden items include anything with a battery (which includes calculators – even the small solar-powered ones) or metal (so unfortunately, pencil sharpeners won’t make it).

I can't emphasize enough how crucial it is for our sponsored children to receive encouragement in their education. And given how much schooling we received in life, it's a subject we know well. Even if we've forgotten most of our math facts.