The article interrogates current international development constructs of childhood, rights, vulnerability, and schooling in light of the daily experiences of two Malawian children affected by HIV/AIDS. It aims to better understand how development efforts targeted at these children function in practice, and suggests that current development discourses and frameworks may sometimes operate to make the lives of vulnerable children and communities harder and less secure. New frameworks for international HIV/AIDS development programming are needed that conceptualize the child and community as part of global educational, social, political, and economic systems that can fuel inequality as well as improve life experiences.