AGE: 13
GRADE: 1
HOMETOWN: Erdenetsogt Village
FAMILY INFORMATION: 2 parents, 1 brother, 1 sister

Baljinnyam’s Story
Baljinnyam Erdenekhuul lives with his parents and one-year-old sister in Erdenetsogt Village in Bayankhongor Province. His father is a herdsman, his mother is unemployed, and his brother is herding animals for another family in the countryside.

Poverty is a way of life for Baljinnyam. His parents didn’t allow him to go to school because they felt that herding didn’t require an expensive education. However, they changed their minds when a teacher told them about their local literacy project. Inspired by what literacy could do for their son, they immediately enrolled him.

The literacy project has opened up a whole new world for Baljinnyam. As he puts it: “At first when I enrolled in this class I didn’t know anything. I couldn’t even count. It was difficult for me to deal with people before I attended this class. Now I understand that learning is possible for me.” In the future he wants to become a government leader.

AGE: 16
GRADE: 2
HOMETOWN: Erdenetsogt Village
FAMILY INFORMATION: Single mother, 1 brother, 1 sister

Erdenetsetseg’s Story
Erdenetsetseg Lhkagva lives in Erdenetsogt Village in Bayankhongor Province. Her family lives in desperate poverty. She has no father and her mother is unemployed. She lives with her mother in the village centre, and between the two of them they share absolutely no income. Her brother and sister are in Ulaan Baatar City. Her brother works as a builder and her sister works as a dressmaker.

Affording the fees or basic stationery to attend school was not even a remote possibility for Erdenetsetseg. But the literacy program changed everything. When approached by a local teacher about the program, she was more than enthusiastic. “When I enrolled in this school I couldn’t read or write,” she says, “Now I can do both. I would like to learn more. In the future I want to be a singer. In order to achieve my purpose I will do my best.”

AGE: 11
GRADE: 1
HOMETOWN: Khotont Village
FAMILY INFORMATION: 7 in family

Tselmentsol's Story
Tselmentsol Boldbaatar lives in Khotont Village of Aarkhangai Province with her parents and 4 siblings. Her parents are unemployed, but one of her brothers helps look after the animals for a herding family. The family doesn't have any animals of their own or regular work, so life is difficult for them. Though Tselmentsol started attending first grade, she was not able to continue due to her families’ poverty.

When the teacher from the literacy project approached her family and invited her to attend the classes, she was very enthusiastic. She is enjoying the opportunity to study again. She says “When I first went to school my classmates didn't like me and looked down on me. This doesn't happen in these classes and I'm glad to be learning here. When I finish school I want to be a teacher.

AGE: 14
GRADE: 1
HOMETOWN: Khotont Village
FAMILY INFORMATION: 6 in family

Sosorburam's Story
Sosorburam Chultemdorj lives with his parents and three younger siblings in Khotont county in Aarkhanagi Province. His parents are herders and they have 250 goats, 100 horses, 200 sheep and 40 camels. Sosorburam had to have an operation on his head when he was a child, and that prevented him from going to school. Because he got so far behind he was unable to be admitted under an education system that didn’t cater to children who had dropped out. He heard about the classes from his uncle in Khotont Village and was eager to join. He says, "I'm glad to learn here and my parents are really happy for that. When I grow up I would like to be the president of Mongolia so I can establish a school for poor and sick children. I know that in order to achieve my goal I need to study very well."