Group items tagged

Children's needs and rights are interdependent to sustainable development. This is the central argument for a new report from UNICEF, "Sustainable Development Starts and Ends With Safe, Healthy, and Well-Educated Children," which makes the case for purposefully considering children in the post-2015 development agenda in which sustainable development is a core tenet. Divided into three parts, the report first provides the context: how and why children are central to the concept, principles and future progress of sustainable development, and why sustainable development is essential for children and their future. The second part conveys three key messages for those involved in deciding upon the Post-2015 Development agenda. Subsequently, the third and final part of the report provides supporting evidence and recommendations on how children's rights and well-being can be integrated within future development goals. The three key messages that the report highlights for decision-makers to actively consider are: 1. Sustainable Development starts with safe, healthy, and well-educated children 2. Safe and sustainable societies are, in turn, essential for children 3. Children's voices, choices, and participation are critical for the sustainable future we want. Sustainable development is an integrated approach that considers the complex societal, economic, environmental, and governance challenges that directly impact the lives of the world's children. According to the report, which is described as a "call to action," the Post-2015 Development Agenda is a unique opportunity to aspire to a world truly "fit for children."

David J Smith and Shelagh Armstrong, This Child, Every Child: A Book about the World's Children (Tonawanda: Kids Can Press, 2011). Age Level: 8 and up Grade Level: 3 and up Publisher Description: A groundbreaking book of statistics and stories that compare the lives of children around the world today. Every second of every day, four more children are added to the world's population of over 2.2 billion children. Some of these 2.2 billion children will be cared for and have enough to eat and a place to call home. Many others will not be so fortunate. The bestselling author-illustrator team behind the phenomenal If the World Were a Village and If America Where a Village return with a revealing and beautifully illustrated glimpse into the lives of children around the world. This Child, Every Child uses statistics and stories to draw kids into the world beyond their own borders and provide a window into the lives of their fellow children. As young readers will discover, there are striking disparities in the way children live. Some children lack opportunities that others take for granted. What is it like to be a girl in Niger? How are some children forced into war? How do children around the world differ in their home and school lives? This Child, Every Child answers such questions and sets children's lives against the rights they are guaranteed under the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child. Organization Affiliation: CitizenKid

Awarding heroes to help more children. Our Awards recognize real-life heroes working to dramatically improve the lives of children. But that's not all: our Honorees also receive grant funds and media attention, both of which help their gold standard programs grow so that they will ultimately impact the lives of even more children.

Want to make a difference to the children in your life and the world? Here are 8 reasons why teaching children about child rights is vital.

Age Range: 4 - 8 years What do you do when you lose a tooth? Do you put it under your pillow and wait for the tooth fairy? Not if you live in Botswana! In Botswana, children throw their teeth onto the roof. In Afghanistan they drop their teeth down mouse holes, and in Egypt they fling their teeth at the sun! Travel around the world and discover the surprising things children do when they lose a tooth. Selby B. Beeler spent years collecting traditions from every corner of the globe for this whimsical book, and G. Brian Karas adds to the fun, filling every page with humorous detail. He perfectly captures the excitement and pride that children experience when a tooth falls out.

Shea, Pegi Deitz, and Leane Morin. The Carpet Boy's Gift. Gardiner, ME: Tilbury House Publishers, 2006. Age Range: 6 and up Leadership comes easily for Nadeem, the biggest and oldest boy in a rug factory in Pakistan. But how can he lead the other child laborers to freedom after he's been shamed and beaten for his first attempt? Nadeem and his fellow workers are bonded laborers, children who work day and night to pay off loans their families have accepted from a factory owner. While Nadeem and his cousin Amina take pride in helping their poor families, they feel trapped. They yearn to go to school and to have time to play. One day a former carpet boy named Iqbal Masih leads a parade in the village. New laws have abolished bonded labor! Iqbal urges Nadeem to fight for freedom and to lead the children to a new school in town. Can Nadeem summon the courage to try again? This fictional story honors the legacy of Iqbal Masih, a real boy who had escaped from a factory. Protected and educated, he worked to liberate child workers like Nadeem by the thousands. His work won him the ReebokYouth in Action award and special recognition at the International Labor Conference. When he returned to Pakistan after his trip, he was fatally shot while riding his bicycle. He was only twelve, but he had already made a difference in children's lives all over the world. Resources at the end of the story lead to more information about child labor issues and encourage children to support companies that work to make the world a better place for all.

Caduto, Michael J. Riparia's River. Gardiner, ME: Tillbury House Publishers, 2011. Age Range: 8 and up Publisher's Description: Riparia's River is an eco-tale for children that teaches both the cause and the creation of solutions for non-point pollution of flowing water streams and rivers. Filled with lush, sun-splashed watercolor paintings of river and riverside habitat and the birds, insects, and plants that shelter there, Riparia's River is a beautiful teaching fable for children in elementary grades 3-6. A group of friends discovers their favorite swimming spot on the river is polluted, and harmful to the fish and animals that live in it. They are taught by a lady naturalist named Riparia what can be done to clean and repair the riverbanks and restore clean river habitat. The children cooperate and work with a will, inviting others to help when their replanting of riverside plants project grows. Riparia's River is a wonderful, empowering story for children who will inherit tomorrow the rivers, habitat, and creatures of today s ongoing stewardship. A nice community spirit message is embedded in the illustrations use of multiracial profiles for all the children, conveying the added idea that cleaning up our rivers and habitat is a global concern.

Ruth Rocha and Otavio Roth, Universal Declaration of Human Rights: An Adaptation for Children (Pennsylvania: United Nations Publication, 1990). Age Level: 7 and up Publisher Description: This book is a lovely picture book about the complicated subject of human rights. The author, Ruth Rocha, rewrote parts of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights to help children understand this subject. Rocha reduces the Declaration's articles into easily understood one or two line sentences. This allows children to grasp the essence of human rights, and makes the book a great introduction to human rights.

Elizabeth Partridge, Marching For Freedom: Walk Together Children and Don't You Grow Weary (New York: Viking Juvenile, 2009). Age Level: 10 and up Publisher Description: An inspiring look at the fight for the vote, by an award-winning author only 44 years ago in the U.S., Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was leading a fight to win blacks the right to vote. Ground zero for the movement became Selma, Alabama. Award-winning author Elizabeth Partridge leads you straight into the chaotic, passionate, and deadly three months of protests that culminated in the landmark march from Selma to Montgomery in 1965. Focusing on the courageous children who faced terrifying violence in order to march alongside King, this is an inspiring look at their fight for the vote. Stunningly emotional black-and-white photos accompany the text.

Color Me Healthy is a program developed to reach children ages four and five with fun, interactive learning opportunities on physical activity and healthy eating. It is designed to stimulate all of the senses of young children: touch, smell, sight, sound, and, of course, taste. Through the use of color, music, and exploration of the senses, Color Me Healthy teaches children that healthy food and physical activity are fun.

The Centers for Youth & Families. "Goal Setting for Children." Accessed April 2, 2013. http://centersforyouthandfamilies.org/news/goal-setting-for-children Grade Level: K and up Description: This website looks into explaining to children why goal setting is important as well as how to take on easy goals, which may be beneficial for younger students.

Kidtelligent. "Goal Setting With Children." Accessed April 2, 2013. http://blog.kidtelligent.com/goal-setting-with-children/ Grade Level: K and up Description: This blog looks into the different questions to approach creating and achieving goals with children, and then tying those those questions into different steps.

Achive Goal Setting Success.com. "Teaching Children Goal Setting." Accessed April 2, 2013. http://www.achieve-goal-setting-success.com/teaching-children-goal-setting.html Grade level: K-5 Description: This website provides the insight into different approaches and resources for goal setting with children. Includes templates for goal setting worksheets and a life planning workbook.

Published on Jun 22, 2012 In Mauritania, as elsewhere in the Sahel, drought has led to terrible food shortages and malnutrition is threatening the lives of thousands of children. Luckily, mothers can bring their children to UNICEF-supported treatment centers. Deida is typical of the mothers who arrive. "All of the families are suffering, " she says. " Her son, Ahmed Salim, is almost a year old, but weighs just 11 pounds. Rougui's two-year-old son, Idy, regained his health after treatment at the center, but the family's struggle to survive continues. UNICEF is providing micronutrient-enriched food and milk and is ahelping health-care workers keep track of children's development. But as long as the crisis continues, families will continue to need help.

Page McBrier and Lori Lohstoeter, Beatrice's Goat (New York: Atheneum Books for Young Readers, 2001). Age Level: 4 and up Publisher Description: More than anything, Beatrice longs to be a schoolgirl. But in her small African village, only children who can afford uniforms and books can go to school. Beatrice knows that with six children to care for, her family is much too poor. But then Beatrice receives a wonderful gift from some people far away -- a goat! Fat and sleek as a ripe mango, Mugisa (which means "luck") gives milk that Beatrice can sell. With Mugisa's help, it looks as if Beatrice's dream may come true after all. Page McBrier and Lori Lohstoeter beautifully recount this true story about how one child, given the right tools, is able to lift her family out of poverty. Thanks to Heifer Project International -- a charitable organization that donates livestock to poor communities around the world -- other families like Beatrice's will also have a chance to change their lives.

Photos of Children From Around the World With Their Most Prized Possessions

Guillain, Adam, and Elke Steiner. Bella's Chocolate Surprise. London: Milet Publishing, 2008. Age Range: 7 - 9 years | Series: Bella Balistica Lessons about fair trade are at the center of this adventure that begins on Bella's birthday. Her mother has baked a chocolate cake and, delicious though it is, Bella begins to wonder where chocolate comes from. With the help of her friend the Quetzal bird, Bella harnesses the powers of her mystical pendant and flies to Ghana in West Africa, where she befriends a group of children working in the cacao fields. She soon learns that they are part of a collective that guarantees a fair income to workers and pays for the children to go to school. Delighting in her new cross-cultural friendships, Bella starts to plan how to get people from home involved in supporting fair-trade practices around the world.

Susan Campbell Bartoletti, Kids on Strike! (New York: Sandpiper, 2003). Age Level: 9 and up Publisher Description: By the early 1900s, nearly two million children were working in the United States. From the coal mines of Pennsylvania to the cotton mills of New England, children worked long hours every day under stunningly inhumane conditions. After years and years of oppression, children began to organize and make demands for better wages, fairer housing costs, and safer working environments. Some strikes led by young people were successful; some were not. Some strike stories are shocking, some are heartbreaking, and many are inspiring - but all are a testimony to the strength of mind and spirit of the children who helped build American industry.

Goal Setting Guide. "Teaching Your Children How to Set Goals." Accessed April 2, 2013. http://www.goal-setting-guide.com/self-help-articles/goal-setting Grade Level: 2 and up Description: This website contains many different articles and approaches to goal setting including more long term goals such as New Year's resolutions. The article about goal setting in children includes key things to remember when helping children create and set goals including: start early, let them lead, make a plan, be realistic, and be a cheerleader.

UNICEF Contributing to Sustainable Development, Equity and Children's Rights: Tree Planting, Ethiopia.........................................................................21 Rainforest Protection and Disaster Risk Reduction, Guyana..................... 26 Swimming Lessons for Emergencies, Bangladesh....................................31 Preparing for Natural Disasters, Philippines........................................... 33 Cyclone Proof Schools, Madagascar...................................................... 35 Skills-based Learning Materials and Packages, Nigeria............................ 44 Junior Ambassador Programme..................................................... 50 National and International Conference for Children and Youth, Brazil. 53 Children Advocating United4Climate, Zambia................................. 61 Voices of Youth............................................................................ 64