This activity is intended to promote consideration of rights questions in daily life, a sense of responsibility for
advancing and protecting the rights of other children, and confidence that young people can take positive action for rights.
 

 
  • Slips of paper about 7 cm x 25 cm
  • A Rights Card for each pair of students, put into a bag


1. Working in pairs or small groups, students randomly choose one of the Rights Cards from the bag. They write their right on the paper strip provided, and illustrate it with a colourful logo. The strips are then joined in a paper chain hung across the classroom, as high as possible.

2. Students review the rights and reflect on life at home, at school and in the community over the last week. They try to remember two things they did for friends or other young people which were in some way beneficial to them. Each action is summarized on a separate strip of paper.

3. The strips are read anonymously to the class, one by one, and the class decides which children's right was supported or enhanced by the action. The strip is then hung from the corresponding link in the rights chain. For example, "I read a book to my younger sister" would be linked to the right to education.

4. The class discusses which rights have been best supported and which others could entail positive action by them. The students can resolve to take positive action to support the rights of other young people individually or as a group.

5. Steps two and three can be repeated the following week if appropriate. The students might then discuss the right to share opinions, contrast this to the low voter participation among youth in many industrialized countries, and discuss possible reasons.

 


Students bring to school newspaper headlines, articles, photos and so on, which have a bearing on children's rights. These are discussed, summarized and hung from the appropriate right in the chain.