Human Rights ~ Grade 4
Miss Berndl's Fab Fours

Studying Human Rights is a natural introduction to the study of history and society. In the Fall, events such as the following make the study of Human Rights and Children's Rights fitting. As well, we need to learn about others to know more about ourselves.

  • September 11th 2001
  • Terry Fox Run - September
  • Food Drive for Thanksgiving
  • Thanksgiving - 2nd Monday in October
  • Collection of money for UNICEF at Halloween - October 31
  • Remembrance Day - November 11th
  • the Declaration of Children's Rights November 20, 1959
    • Visit the UNICEF Convention on the Rights of the Child site
  • the Anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Human Rights December 10, 1948

     

Young people can develop compassion and caring if they think of other children in the world and compare how they live with how we live. Child Labour 
The Rights of the Child
Web Sites about Human Rights
Children and War
A Global Perspective

Much of my inspiration for believing that children can appreciate human rights comes from the actions of Craig Kielburger.

Unit Expectations
Skills

  • to express their feelings and reflect on what they have learned
  • to stat their appreciation for their own lives and living situations
  • maintain a neat and complete notebook
  • use an index / gazateer in an atlas to locate a country and particular city
  • to use grid coordinates to locate places on a map

Knowledge

  • what Children's Rights are and why it is necessary to have the United Nations look out for the worlds' children

Activities

  • I am Thankful For poem for Thanksgiving
  • participate in a school-wide food drive
  • view a number of films related to children and their lives and to write about their feelings in reflection pieces
  • make a collage from National Geographic magazines showing people of the world
  • participate in a Thanksgiving festival at school to which they have contributed a food dish

 

 

CHILD LABOUR is an important issue. 

Kids Can Free The Children is a site that arose out of the work of Craig Kielburger, a young Canadian who is working to get people of all ages involved in this important issue. http://www.freethechildren.com/

"One person can make a difference."

To see what you can do, visit a new site established by Craig and his brother Marc called MeToWe
http://www.metowe.org/metowe.htm If your parents allow it, sign up to get an electronic newsletter from this organization that is trying to raise awareness about the power of becoming involved in things that matter. It is never too early or too late to become involved.

The RIGHTS of the CHILD
source: UNICEF – Re-statement of Rights from the Convention on the Rights of the Child  

  1. Kids deserve to be with their family and taken care of.
  2. Kids need enough food and clean water.
  3. Kids should live safely and at a decent standard of living.
  4. Kids should be protected from disease and get help when they are sick.
  5. Kids with special needs deserve to have people care for them.
  6. Kids need time to play.
  7. Kids have the right to learn and schools should be free for everyone.
  8. Adults don’t have the right to hurt or neglect children.
  9. Kids should not be made to work full time, should not be sold as slaves or not have a childhood. Adults should not make kids be soldiers and fight in wars.
  10. Kids should be able to stay with their family and speak the same language, practice the same religion, eat the same food, celebrate the same traditions as their parents.
  11. Kids should be able to say what they think, listen to ideas and be friends with other kids of their choice.

 

Sites about Human Rights and Children's Rights

There are many interesting sites on the web with information on Human Rights. What is good about them is that they give current information - something you don't find in the books we have at school. Take a moment to look at how others live:

  • Give Water is one of the UK's most successful fundraising web sites. Learn about the importance of water & help raise funds by clicking when you visit. http://www.givewater.org/
  • The Hunger Site is run by a charitable organization and has a map that represents where the 24,000 people who die of hunger every day live. http://www.thehungersite.com/cgi-bin/WebObjects/CTDSites
  • The United Nations Association in Canada has a Kids site to explain some issues.
  • CIDA - The Canadian International Development Agency is how we as Canadians, through our government, help others in the world less fortunate than we are. - Youthzone
  • Youth Zone is a CIDA links page about International Development on the Web for Kids

Children who are Victims of War

Landmines are a continuing threat to young children around the world. We will view The Silent Shout, a video that talks about the impact of landmines on the lives of children.

If you want to know more about supporting children who are victims of war, then there are a number of agencies who are involved in providing aid.

Top

A Global Perspective ~ Something to think about

STATE OF THE VILLAGE REPORT December 2005
This material is copyright-free. You may reproduce it. Original version by Donella H. Meadows More info at www.odt.org/pop.htm

If the world were a village of only 100 people, there would be:

  • 60 Asians,

  • 14 Africans,

  • 12 Europeans,

  • 8 people from Central and South America, Mexico and the Caribbean,

  • 5 from the USA and Canada, and

  • 1 person from Australia or New Zealand.

The people of the village would have considerable difficulty communicating:

  • 14 people would speak Mandarin,

  • 8 people would speak Hindi/Urdu,

  • 8 English,

  • 7 Spanish,

  • 4 Russian,

  • 4 Arabic.

  • This list accounts for less than half the villagers. The others speak (in descending order of frequency) Bengali, Portuguese,Indonesian, Japanese, German, French, and 200 other languages.

In the village there would be:

  • 33 Christians,

  • 22 Moslems,

  • 15 Hindus,

  • 14 Nonreligious, Agnostics, or Atheists,

  • 6 Buddhists,

  • 10 all other religions.

In this 100-person community:

  • 80 would live in substandard housing.

  • 67 adults live in the village; and half of them would be illiterate.

  • 50 would suffer from malnutrition.

  • 33 would not have access to clean, safe drinking water.

  • 24 people would not have any electricity.

  • Of the 76 that do have electricity, most would use it only for light at night.

  • In the village would be 42 radios, 24 televisions, 14 telephones, and 7 computers

  • (some villagers own more than one of each).

  • 7 people would own an automobile (some of them more than one).

  • 5 people would possess 32% of the entire village’s wealth, and these would all be from the USA.

  • The poorest one-third of the people would receive only 3% of the income of the village.

The following is also something to ponder...

  • If you woke up this morning healthy ... you are more blessed than the million who will not survive this week.

  • If you have never experienced the danger of battle, the fear and loneliness of imprisonment, the agony of torture,

  • or the pain of starvation ... you are better off than 500 million people in the world.

  • If you have food in the refrigerator, clothes on your back, a roof overhead and a place to sleep ...

  • you are more comfortable than 75% of the people in this world.

  • If you have money in the bank, in your wallet, and spare change in a dish someplace ...

  • you are among the top 8% of the world's wealthy.

  • If you can read this, you are more blessed than over two billion people in the world who cannot read at all.

When one considers our world from such a compressed perspective, it becomes both evident and vital that education, acceptance and compassion are essential for the progress of humankind.

 

 

 

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