Universal Children’s Day
When is Universal Children’s Day?
Universal Children’s Day is celebrated each year on November 20th. Although Universal Children’s Day is not a national holiday in most nations, it is celebrated globally and is promoted by certain United Nations agencies, including UNICEF (the United Nations Children’s Fund). Universal Children’s Day should not be confused with International Children’s Day, celebrated in June or with the national children’s days recognized in individual countries. Universal Children’s Day is not a public holiday in the United States.
When was Universal Children’s Day Started?
This day was instituted in 1956 by the United Nations General Assembly to promote the well being of children around the globe. The United Nations urged member states to recognize children on an appropriate date. Since 1956, the day has been commemorated on November 20th in significant ways. First, on November 20, 1959, the United Nations adopted the Declaration of the Rights of the Child. The declaration stated that every child, regardless of color, nationality or gender, is entitled to certain rights, including the right to education, medical care, and recreation. Decades later, in 1989, the Convention on the Rights of the Child was adopted. This agreement requires countries that have ratified the convention to provide certain basic rights to children in their national legislation. These basic rights range from the right of free speech to the right to nationality and enjoyment of health. Currently, only two nations in the world have not ratified the Convention on the Rights of the Child – the United States of America and Somalia.
What are Children’s Rights?
The content of children’s rights differ from one country to another. Nonetheless, there are some rights that are recognized as universal. These rights are found in conventions or declarations adopted in the United Nations by member states. Some of those rights include the right to food, education, health care and freedom of religion. These conventions and declarations also stress the right of children to a name and a nationality.
Children’s rights can be enumerated in many different ways – in national laws or in government policies and initiatives. They can also be incorporated into public school education or into the court systems or social work agencies of a state. In general, children’s rights are rights that must be respected by individuals, entities and countries.
What are Some Ways to Celebrate Universal Children’s Day?
Since the purpose behind the institution of the day was to promote the rights of children, why not learn some of the basic rights given to children in the Declaration of the Rights of the Child (Declaration) and the Convention on the Rights of the Child (Convention)? The following ideas are designed for the elementary classroom.
1. Post lists of children’s rights around the classroom.
Materials: Computers with internet access, large easel paper (Post-it), markers.
Instructions: Pair students into groups of two people and permit them to visit the websites where the Declaration or the Convention are located. Ask them to read one section and make a list of the rights they read in that section. (Help students focus on a section where rights are listed or assign a specific article that you have read in advance.) Students should write at least two rights on a large sheet of paper and post it on the wall in the class.
2. Design a greeting card to send to another child for Universal Children’s Day.
Materials: Provide students with construction paper, crayons, colored pencils and markers to design a greeting card.
Instructions: Read some of the rights that are given to children in the Declaration or the Convention, such as the right to recreation, good medical care, or freedom to assemble. Let students use their imagination to draw an illustration of children carrying out these rights. Those illustrations will serve as the front of the greeting card.
Resources about Universal Children’s Day
The Dag Hammarskjold Library: Universal Children’s Day: Information about Children’s Day from the The Dag Hammarskjold Library
Human Rights Education Association: Universal Children’s Day: Information from the Human Rights Education Association about Children’s Day
Resources about Children’s Rights
United Nations Treaty Collection: Convention on the Rights of the Child
Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights: Convention on the Rights of the Child
University of Minnesota Human Rights Library: Declaration of the Rights of the Child
I am a former ESL teacher who loves helping adults learn new skills. I enjoy going to concerts and listening to great music when I'm not teaching. I currently live in Chicago, IL and really enjoy the city life.
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