One Laptop Per Child the Gift that Gives Twice for Christmas in 2008

Last year as part of the Give One Get One program, we donate a laptop to a child in a developing country and got one for our daughters to share.

While they initially had wanted one for each of them, they eventually decided that it was pretty neat sending a laptop to a child in another country.

What we did last year really hit home as they watched the video stories of thanks from the children who have received laptops. As they watched the clips they asked, "Did we give him his Laptop?"

The mission of One Laptop per Child (OLPC) is to empower the children of developing countries to learn by providing one connected laptop to every school-age child.

By giving a laptop, you are helping bring education to children in some of the world's most remote areas.

You are connecting them to each other. To us. To hope. And to a better future.

Image Source: One Laptop Per Child. Nigerian Girl with XO. Creative Commons. Some Rights Reserved.

Both of my daughters aged 8 and 6 now have gotten a lot of use out of their XO laptop. Even better was that they figured out how to use the laptop on their own.

They have had a lot fun recording silly video clips (most of which will be embarrassing years from now). They have also had fun writing and typing stories.

For our girls, the XO laptop was one of the Christmas gifts that we got them last year that they have continued to use on a weekly basis.

Give a Laptop.
Get a Laptop.
Change the World.

It's an education project, not a laptop project.

Professor Nicholas Negroponte

One Laptop Per Child (OLPC) is a non-profit organization founded by MIT Professor Nicholas Negroponte and a team of educators, developers and technologists dedicated to educating children in developing nations with the goal of eradicating poverty.

OLPC has developed the XO laptop, the first laptop ever created specifically for the purpose of educating children in developing countries. The XO is a children's machine, designed to tap into a child's innate capacities to learn, share and create. The rugged design and sealed casing make the XO the only laptop capable of being used in outdoor classrooms and in harsh environmental conditions, powered with human energy.

One learning child.
One connected child.
One laptop at a time.

You can bring the light of learning to a child who would otherwise be left without adequate access to information and education with a donation of one or more XO laptops.

A donation of $200 will pay for and deliver one XO laptop to a child in a developing nation. A donation of $400 will pay for and deliver two XO laptops, and so on. Your entire contribution will be tax-deductible.

This is a donation. You will not receive a laptop.

OLPC Foundation follows the United Nations definition of least developed countries. A complete LDC list is available on the UN Website.

The least developed countries according to the United Nations list alphabetically include:

Afghanistan
Angola
Bangladesh
Benin
Bhutan
Burkina Faso
Burundi
Cambodia
Cape Verde
Central African Republic
Chad
Comoros
Democratic Republic of the Congo
Djibouti
Equatorial Guinea
Eritrea
Ethiopia
Gambia
Guinea
Guinea-Bissau
Haiti
Kiribati
Lao People's Democratic Republic
Lesotho
Liberia
Madagascar
Malawi
Maldives
Mali
Mauritania
Mozambique
Myanmar
Nepal
Niger
Rwanda
Samoa
São Tomé and Principe
Senegal
Sierra Leone
Solomon Islands
Somalia
Sudan
Timor-Lesté
Togo
Tuvalu
Uganda
United Republic of Tanzania
Vanuatu
Yemen
Zambia

Give a Laptop to a child
in another part of the world.
Get a laptop for the child
in your world.

Last year Americans bought 100,000 laptops for children across the world. In addition the Give One Get One campaign raised over $35 million and delivered 500,000 laptops to children in countries like Afghanistan, Iran and Lebanon.

Give One Get One is the perfect gift for those looking to do more for the holiday; the XO is the gift that gives more.

If you were already thinking purchasing a computer for your child for the holidays, consider getting to One Laptop per Child. For $399 you can purchase two of the revolutionary XO laptop--one for a child in a developing nation and a second one for a child in your life.

One Laptop Per Child is an education project, not a laptop project.

This lens benefits the Squidoo Charity Fund and Save the Children, the leading independent organization creating lasting change in the lives of children in need in the United States and around the world.

This year again a donation will be made to the One Laptop Per Child Foundation by this lensmaster.