Picture of the Week

“A few months ago this boy had never held a pencil or opened a book. He had never been to school because he was born in the rural north of Ghana, where many children are shepherd kids who look after cattle all day or help their parents on their farm. They fetch water, take care of their siblings, pound fufu and carry out 1001 other chores. His parents have now agreed he should go to a special open-air school in their community in the afternoon for a few hours – after he has finished with his chores. He is catching up on what his peers who go to the normal school have learned over the past years and will join 3rd grade of the formal school next school year. I love the determined look on his face. In the background you can see the older community members proudly looking on at him. I trust he is going to make it and that learning how to read and write will change his life.”

This picture and essay were submitted to the 2012 Reading Changed My Life Contest by Iwanna Swart from the Netherlands.

Take a look at some of the nearly 1,000 photos and videos submitted to the Reading Changed My Life Photo and Video Contest and then get involved in helping children learn and grow.