This mum’s super sweet ‘special’ pencil idea is the perfect way to encourage your child

What a lovely idea.

An American mum's super sweet method of encouraging her little boy has gone viral - and it is oh-so-simple to re-create. Amanda Cox, an elementary teacher in Texas, posted a photo of 21 pencils belonging to one of her students earlier this month. She explained that she had been running low on pencils earlier this month, so she asked her students to pull out any of the ones that had borrowed from her and still had in their desks. However, one student asked if he could keep the writing tools that his mum had given him for school. She continued:

"Of course, I said yes. He then said, 'well, I guess I’ll give you a few so my classmates can have them too.' "I thought nothing of it and took the pencils that he handed me. When I was sharpening them, I noticed writing on a few of them. "I then realized that my student’s mother took the time to write on his pencils. I asked him if he would mind showing me the rest of them."

Amanda said that what she read "melted her heart" - as the mum had written a sweet affirmation on every one of them. Here is what they said:

- You are so talented. - This will be a great year. - You are creative. - You are phenomenal. - Never give up. - You can do this. - You are knowledgeable. - You are a math whiz. - You are intelligent. - Proud of you everyday. - I love you. - You have a brilliant mind. - You are wonderful. - You are a problem solver. - Follow your dreams. - You are perfect. - I am proud of you. - You will change the world. - You are amazing. - You are the best. - You are important.

The proud teacher added that while this had probably taken the boy's mum just a few minutes to do, "it lit up his whole day at school." She continued:

"He wasn’t embarrassed that his mom wrote on his pencils. "Thanks to his mom, he was reminded of his self worth and wanted to share the same feeling with his classmates. "THESE are the things that we should be reminding our kids (both parents AND teachers). "Imagine the look on a child’s face when they are reminded that they are important, talented, loved, knowledgeable and so much more. "Help them know that someone believes in them and is proud of them in everything they do. "Even if you think it is cheesy or you don’t have enough time or that you will have little impact, remember that you may be the only one telling and reminding them these things and EVERY kid needs to know their value. This is why I teach."