This year, as a way of closing out The Lunchbox Season and getting ready for our Summer of Funner, I wanted to give the kids an illustration project that they could use for Teacher Cards and for Father’s Day. Of course, the project has grown exponentially….
The kids have widened their horizons this school year by developing interests in basic human rights and freedoms. In terms of our domestic life, this has resulted in a lot of thoughtful conversations about creating healthy boundaries and appreciating personal space. In terms of our country and our world, the kids have been concerned about the passing of the controversial Bill C-51 here in Canada and the terrifying prospect of ethnic cleansing in the Dominican Republic. The kids wanted to know what they could do about these pressing issues. So, they hit the library shelves.
One of the most affirming books we came across was We Are All Born Free: The Universal Declaration of Human Rights in Pictures. Published by Amnesty International in 2008, this book celebrates the sixtieth anniversary of the publication of the UN’s Universal Delcaration of Human Rights. The book presents child-friendly versions of the thirty articles in the Declaration accompanied by illustrations by artists including John Burningham, Debi Gliori, Axel Scheffler, and Alan Lee [pictured below].
Here’s a little sampling:
And, here’s the accompanying video:
Inspired by the work of Amnesty International, the kids will be writing their own simple interpretations of the Universal Delcaration of Human Rights and illustrating those articles accordingly this weekend. Usually, for The Lunchbox Season, I wait for the kids to actually create their illustrations before we publish. This time, however, we thought we’d inspire you to get to work alongside of us…
So, why not take some time this weekend to look at the thirty articles of the Universal Delcaration of Human Rights, talk about them, write them out in a way you understand, and illustrate them for yourself?!! Then, make copies of those illustrations and create Teacher Cards for the end of school or last-minute Father’s Day cards!!! Why not go ahead, then, too, and make mini-posters to send to your local or national representatives to tell them how you feel about the world you’re living in and the world you’d like to create?!!
How’s that for a challenge for the end of school? Congratulations grads!
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