This activity helps young people see the links between different rights, and how they affect the lives of real children;
encourages thinking about the consequences of rights denials; and raises awareness of the fact that rights denials
can occur in any part of the world.
 

 


1. Students form pairs. Give half the pairs a Rights Card, and half the pairs a Children from Around the World Card.

2. Pairs move around the room, reading each other's cards. They match Rights Cards (rights from the Convention on the Rights of the Child) with individual stories from the Children Around the World Cards, thereby forming groups of four or more.

3. Once groups are formed, each pair holding a Rights Card sits down together. Each seated pair is given eight additional copies of their Rights Card.

4. The other pairs of students, who represent the "child", walk around to each seated pair in the room, and discuss with them whether there is any sort of link between their child's story and these other rights of the Convention.

5. Each time a link between a child's story and another right of the Convention is established, the pair representing the "child" receives another copy of that Right Card from the seated pair.

6. Once all possible links have been established, the class discusses the type of links that were found.

 
 

An example of links between rights:

Children From Around the World Card:
"Because my family lived so far from the health centre when I was a young child, I was never vaccinated. Now I am 8 years old and I have polio."

This story illustrates article 24 of the Convention on the Rights of the Child, the child's right to a safe environment and health care.

In negotiating with other class members, links between this story and the following right may be found:

Article 28, the right to education: if the child does not receive adequate health care, his or her ability to participate in school and to learn may be impaired.
 


1. Students may write their own Children from Around the World Cards.

2. Students can write stories that demonstrate ways in which children's rights are upheld, rather than denied, and carry out the activity using these.

 


1. Students can discuss ways in which these basic rights have been upheld or denied in their own lives.

2. Students can use newspaper or magazine articles to find local and global examples of violations of children's rights, as well as steps that are being taken to protect them.