World Mission Posters

I was looking through Oriental Trader's catalog a couple weeks ago and saw these mission posters. I knew they would make a great addition to our home ~ especially in our homeschooling room. 

I love how each poster represents a different geographical region where Compassion works. We will likely memorize these verses and talk about them in relation to the ministry our family has through sponsorship. We will also likely look up the flags and identify what country each one belongs to.

I also love how these posters look under our world map.

Here is a link to where you can order your own....Mission Posters at Oriental Trading

I Lost My Tooth in Africa by Penda Diakite

I Lost My Tooth in Africa by Penda Diakite is a fun book that tells the story of a young girl who loses her tooth while visiting family in Mali. Although Mali is not a country where Compassion works, this story gives you a look into the life of many western Africans, regardless of their country. Mali is directly north of Burkina Faso, which is directly north of Ghana and Togo. On one page there is even a picture of a bed with mosquito netting around it. It's a delightful book and both of my girls loved it.

Countries Around the World ~ DVDs

This DVD series features 9 of the countries where Compassion works - Bolivia, Brazil, Guatemala, India, Indonesia, Kenya, Mexico, Peru and Rwanda.

You can buy them individually if you are interested, but I suggest checking your local library system to see if they have them!

Geography Map Quiz - Seterra

About a month ago someone brought this website to my attention and I have LOVED using it.

Seterra is a free map quiz game that helps you learn all the countries around the world.

I'll admit....I was a bit addicted at first. Trying over and over to master the continent of Africa. But it's a really fun way to learn geography.

Compassion works in some relatively unknown countries - like Togo and Burkina Faso. Unless you sponsor a child there, you don't likely know where these countries are.

So go ahead and give this FREE website a try. My littles love it too!

Homeschool Curriculum Lessons

Do you homeschool?

That's ok if you don't...this post is still for you.

Someone within the ranks of Compassion has put together some pretty awesome homeschool lesson plans.



They are free. They are downloadable. And they are right HERE.

Are you excited? I am!

Here's a little more info....

Each lesson has a spiritual emphasis, a country emphasis and a scripture emphasis.

• Lesson 1: Evangelism, Burkina Faso, Romans 12:6-8
• Lesson 2: Stewards of God's Earth, Brazil, 2 Corinthians 8:1-9
• Lesson 3: Giving / Tithing, Peru, Luke 5:1-11
• Lesson 4: Prayer, Mexico, Leviticus 19:36, Proverbs 11:1 and Proverbs 16
• Lesson 5: Helping Others in Need, India, Nehemiah 2:1-5, 6:15-16

As I was looking through these, many of them looked familiar. Most of these ideas (if not all) have been featured in Compassion's Explorer magazines which are geared for kids. These lesson plans are full of activities, information about the countries they feature and opportunities to dive into and explore what Scripture has to say.

If you have already used these with your littles, I'd love to hear about it in the comments.

West African Drumming - Ghana

My girls and I had the awesome opportunity to attend a special program at our library ~ an interactive workshop put on by Chata Addy. Mr. Addy is originally from Ghana and now lives in our area. He preforms his music regularly and teaches kids the basics of west African drumming. His enthusiasm was evident and contagious. His drums were beautiful!

He even let the parents give it a try ~ oh what fun it was!

Did I mention the drums were beautiful? I think I did, but just in case....

 If you sponsor a child in Ghana, you will enjoy listening/watching Mr. Addy play. I can't wait to write to our Portia in Ghana and tell her about our experience. I'm sure she will enjoy this connection we made with her culture and country.

Geography Games

Do you want a fun way to learn about the world?

Do you like to play games?

If you are still looking for a gift or two for your family, consider a geography game. I've found quite a few and thought I would share some of them here. If you click on the title, you will be taken to Amazon where you can read more about each game.

Where in the World

Ten Days in Asia

Ten Days in Africa

Ten Days in the Americas

Passport to Culture

GEO Dice

GEO Bingo

Personally I'd like to try them all. Do any of you have any experience with any of these games?

Christmas in Africa

Here are some books I've found about Christmas in Africa.....

12 Days of Christmas by Rachel Isadora

The Night Before Christmas in Africa by Jesse. Hannah and Carroll Foster

An African Christmas by Ifeoma Onyefulu 

The Night Before Christmas by Rachel Isadora

A Kenya Christmas by Tony Johnston

A Stork in a Bobaba Tree by Catherine House

Christmas Around the World

I've compiled a list of resources that might be helpful in learning more about how Christmas is celebrated in your child's country. I also have a list of books for Christmas in Africa and Christmas in Latin American countries which I'll post later.

Books:

• Christmas Around the World by Mary D. Lankford (Ethiopia, Guatemala, Mexico, the Philippines)
• Merry Christmas Everywhere by Arlene Erlbach with Herb Erlbach (Bolivia, Ethiopia, Ghana, India, Mexico, the Philippines)
• Christmas Around the World by Emily Kelley (Mexico and Ethiopia)
• Joy to the World: Christmas Stories from Around the World by Saviour Pirotta (Mexico and Ghana)
• Children Around the World Celebrate Christmas by Christine Tangvald (Sri Lanka, Brazil, Africa, Mexico)

***There are many others, but these are the ones I've seen and can tell what countries are represented.

Websites:

• Christmas Cultures - Brazil, Ethiopia, Ghana, Guatemala, India, Mexico, Philippines, Sri Lanka
• The Holiday Spot - Brazil, India, Mexico, Nicaragua, South America
• Santa's Net - Africa, Bangladesh, Brazil, Ethiopia, Guatemala, India, Mexico, Nicaragua, Peru, the Philippines

Books by Barbara Kerley

Author Barbara Kerley has written some excellent books that show what life is like for children living all over the world. I have already written about You and Me Together, but have since found three more books.

 features Bangladesh, India, Bolivia, Kenya, Indonesia and Brazil

 features Indonesia, India, Thailand and Peru

features Bangladesh, Indonesia, Kenya, Guatemala, India and Brazil

 features Thailand, India, Uganda, Tanzania, Indonesia, Brazil and Guatemala

Books by Margriet Ruurs

I've recently come across two fun books by Margriet Ruurs.

My Librarian is a Camel: How Books are Brought to Children Around the World features the following Compassion countries: Thailand, Indonesia, Peru and Kenya.

My School in the Rain Forest: How Children Attend School Around the World features the following Compassion countries: Guatemala, Kenya and India.

If you sponsor children in these countries, you might want to check these books out.

A School Like Mine ~ A Life Like Mine

A School Like Mine and A Life Like Mine, both by DK Publishing, offer beautiful glimpses into the lives of children all over the world.

A School Like Mine features children from Peru, Brazil, Mexico, Ethiopia and India, as well as many other non-Compassion countries.

A Life Like Mine features children from India, Bangladesh, Colombia and Rwanda, as well as many other non-Compassion countries.

Children From Australia to Zimbabwe

Children from Australia to Zimbabwe: A Photographic Journey around the World by Maya Ajmera and Anna Rhesa Versola is a beautiful book that your family will love looking at. The countries where Compassion works include Brazil, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Guatemala, India, Kenya, Mexico and Philippines.

In my opinion, this is a book worth owning, or at the very least check this out from the library more than one time!

Books by Marla Stewart Konrad

Author Marla Stewart Konrad has written several children’s books (associated wtih World Vision) that beautifully feature children from around the world. It is obvious that Ms. Konrad has a heart for hurting children around the world.

Just Like You ~ (Amazon, India, Africa)

Grand

Mom and Me

I Like to Play

Getting There

Another Round of Letters

It’s that time of the month again – time for writing to your sponsored children. If you haven’t done so already this month, then pick a date and write in on your calendar.

For some reason, I did not receive very many letters this month. I’m not sure why – did anyone else experience this?

Anyway, for this round of letters, I wrote about losing teeth. A friend told me about the book Throw Your Tooth on the Roof: Tooth Traditions from Around the World by Selby B Beeler, so we checked it our from our local library.

Since we have a 6 year old who has lost 7 teeth this past year, I thought it would be fun to ask our sponsored children how they handle this tradition. My daughters and I had fun reading this book and I think we’ll have even more fun reading the responses from our sponsored children.

The book covers the following Compassion countries: Mexico, Guatemala, El Salvador, Haiti, Dominican Republic, Colombia, Brazil, Uganda, India, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Philippines and Indonesia.

More pretty paper, a photo of our toothless daughter, another photo taken at the coast last weekend, a colorful bookmark, my daughters’ memory verse from church….but most importantly – words of love and encouragement for our sponsored children.

Have you written to your sponsored kids this month? What did you write about?

Be sure to come back tomorrow for a fun, letter-writing related giveaway!

You and Me Together

You and Me Together: Moms, Dads and Kids Around the World by Barbara Kerly is a beautiful book that features families in many countries.

The Compassion countries include: Thailand, India, Uganda, Tanzania, Indonesia, Brazil and Guatemala.

Books by Ann Morris

Ann Morris and photographer Ken Heyman have teamed up to create this wonderful series of books. These books feature photographs from all over the world and are a wonderful way to broaden your global awareness. Included in parenthesis are the Compassion countries featured in each book.

Houses and Homes

(India, Colombia, Guatemala, Peru, Kenya, Thailand)

Work

(Mexico, India, Togo, Kenya)

Weddings

(India, Indonesia, Ghana, Thailand)

Tools

(Peru, India, Brazil, El Salvador, Haiti, Mexico)

Bread, Bread, Bread

(Peru, Ghana, Indonesia, India, Mexico, Guatemala, Ecuador)

On the Go

(Peru, India, Ghana)

Play

(Nicaragua, Brazil, El Salvador, Thailand, Indonesia, Ecuador, Peru, Guatemala)

Families

(Ethiopia, Brazil India)

Hats, Hats, Hats

(Peru, El Salvador, Indonesia, India)

Shoes, Shoes, Shoes

(Kenya, Guatemala, Colombia, Bolivia, Thailand)

Teamwork

(India, Thailand, Indonesia)