Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world. ~ Nelson Mandela

Every child deserves the right to go to school, but unfortunately not every child is given the opportunity. To be inspired and valued. To grow their mind. Expand their imagination. Explore. Discover and learn. It’s a basic human right. In fact, it’s the right of every child.

This week marks the beginning of the new school year for many families throughout Australia but sadly there will be many who will turn up to class with nothing but themselves. This week also marks the year that the SchoolKids Bonus won’t be handed out, hurting more than six million Australian families.

It is a reality for many children as they pull on their school uniform. But you can do something to help change this.

The reality

To turn up to school with a tummy full of excitement yet an empty school bag; to be left behind when the bus turns up for school camp or to grumble with hunger pains instead of singing happily in the playground – some know no different. But others? They cringe at the dread of being seen to be different to other children. They long to be “normal” with a backpack full of freshly covered notebooks, new sharp pencils and a lunchbox brimming with a yummy recess and lunch.

Poor. Disadvantaged. Call it what you will but the message is the same.

No child should be without.

It’s been determined that more than 600,000 Australian children fall below the poverty line. For every one in seven children, that means no access to healthcare, protection services and most importantly, education. But there is a way to help and it won’t cost you the earth… just your kindness.

Acts of kindness

To go to school is to fill the mind. Heighten the senses. And grow the human spirit. And of course, make plenty of friends that will be there by their side throughout the next 13 years of schooling. Who wouldn’t want that for their child?

When you don’t have what you need to fit in, school can feel like the worst place in the world. The Smith Family

I grew up with a single parent in Alice Springs. Being a redhead already made me a target for bullying, but Mum did her best to make sure the three of us kids never went without and that we fit in with what it meant to be “normal”. If she struggled, she certainly didn’t show it. But it’s only now — 15 years later — that she has shared with me just how many times she turned to organisations like The Smith Family for food coupons and help, just so we could have a full lunch box the next day at school and a uniform that wasn’t three sizes too big for us from the school’s second-hand shop.

Back then, I didn’t know any different. I thought Mum was doing her best. And she was.

Many families do exactly the same, but sometimes it is just all too much. You work hard. Love them. And hug them when they’ve had a bad day. They are your world.

Your absolute everything.

But sometimes life doesn’t always go to plan despite the best of intentions.

What can you do?

A little bit of charity, kindness and a spare few dollars can go a long way for a child.

Organisations like The Smith Family and Officeworks are working together to help disadvantaged children and families in need so that no child is left behind. As you gather supplies throughout the new school term pop in a few extra notebooks, pack an extra lunch for your child to share with a friend…(of course, in a society of allergies and intolerances proceed with care) or gather an extra “Back to School” pack that can be left at the school office for those who really need it.

The Smith Family believes every child deserves a chance. And I do too.

They are seeking donations and offering an opportunity to sponsor a child — right here in your own backyard — for as long as they are at school.

If you’re not keen to donate to a charity organisation, get in touch with your school to find out how you can help.

Beyond the classroom

Learning is more than just what can be taught in the classroom at a chalkboard. It’s in the gestures and acts of kindness we encourage our children to make. It’s the way we, as parents, interact with others under the watchful eye of our little ones. And on the flutter of the wind as they play about in nature. Always exploring. Always watching.