You've seen the ads, and if you have a student in the house, you've likely decided where you will shop to get bargains on school supplies. While you're stocking up, consider spreading the joy of a clean notebook and new pencil to other children around the world by putting together school kits for Mennonite Central Committee.

School kits are MCC's most requested item. Years ago, I visited a school in Sité Soley, a low-income section of Port-au-Prince, Haiti, that had received MCC school kits. In that school, the teachers handed out one piece of paper at a time to each student. The pages were carefully ripped from the notebooks and the pencils were shared around the room.

From 1995 to 2003, MCC distributed 440,638 school kits. Last year, they gave out more than 90,000. This year, touch a pencil with your prayer as well as your hand, so a child might have the tools to learn.

School kit contents:

• 4 spiral notebooks or notebooks with perforations (8.5" x 10.5 " or 21.5 cm x 27 cm; 70-80 sheets U.S.; 140-160 pages Canada)

• 4 unsharpened No. 2 pencils

• 1 ruler (flexible plastic, indicating both 12 inches and 30 cm)

• 1 box colored pencils (12-24)

• 1 large pencil eraser