Age group: Elfins/Pioneers

How long it will take: 30 minutes

What materials you will need: None

The aim of the activity: To increase understanding of the issues covered in the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child

What to do:
OK, the adults at the United Nations admit that their first attempt at the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child is too long, too wordy – and just too boring. They have contacted your elfin/pioneer group, to see if you can come up with a better convention.

In small groups, see if you can come up with your own ideas.

Reminder: the UN is very concerned that these rights should be able to apply to all children, throughout the world, wherever they live.

An adult for each group (the UN appointed secretariat) should write down all the ideas raised on cards or small pieces of paper (ie this is like a brainstorm).

Adult prompt, if ideas stop flowing: what do children need? what things need to be covered if children are going to be able to live their lives to the full? food? houses to live in? love? protection? information and knowledge? the right to be taken seriously?

When everyone in the group has had a chance to have their say, lay all the cards/paper out on the floor. Each child should look at them. Anyone has the right to turn over any they do not agree should be part of the Convention.
The ones left face up are the ones that everyone agrees with.

Now look in turn at the ones which have been turned over. Can the group collectively agree whether or not to include these as well, perhaps by changing the wording a little? If so, turn these back up.

You have now nearly got the Articles of your Convention. If some of the cards cover similar areas, see if you can merge them together. When you’ve done this, number your cards. Have you managed to come up with less than the UN’s mammoth list of 54 articles?

If there is time – or at the following week’s group night - the whole group can come together to repeat the ‘turning over’ exercise, looking at all the articles from each of the sub-groups and seeing which Articles meet with everyone’s approval. Discuss those which have been turned over. Try to produce a UNconventional UN Convention for the whole group.

And afterwards:

• Why not publicise your work? Send in a short press release to your local newspapers and radio stations, with your Convention. If this is done in late April/early May 2002, it can be linked directly to the UN Special Session.
• Write to Woodcraft World and tell them what you’ve done. If your Woodcraft Folk district has its own website, put up your Convention there.

[Source: activity produced by the Woodcraft Folk © 2002]