Olivia Howes | November 19, 2018
Before you celebrate with friends, families and loved ones for the holidays, join us as we celebrate United Nations Universal Children’s Day this November 20th. Universal Children’s Day was created to “build a world where every child is in school, safe from harm and can fulfill their potential.” The United Nations Universal Children’s Day was established in 1954 and was created by the UN to promote an international common goal to improve children’s overall welfare throughout the world. The date of November 20th has a specific significance for the United Nations because on November 20, 1959 the UN General Assembly established the Declaration of the Rights of the Child. November 20th is also the date that the UN General Assembly adopted the Convention on the Rights of the Child in 1989. The United Nations has declared this day as an international holiday and encourages every country around the world to celebrate this special day every year.
There are various ways that people and organizations all over the world celebrate Universal Children’s Day. In some places UNICEF holds specific events to raise awareness surrounding children’s rights, and in other places schools and organizations take it upon themselves to celebrate and recognize the holiday. Sometimes these events take the form of social media movements or nationwide campaigns surrounding themes such as the importance of education, immunizations, and ending violence in schools.
This year the world is “going blue” to celebrate the holiday. You can wear blue clothing or accessories and use the hashtag #GoBlue when sharing your posts on social media. As an educator you can also recognize this holiday in your classrooms with various lessons and special activities. The World’s Largest Lesson Plan, in partnership with UNICEF, has created three great lesson plans to use in your classrooms to recognize all the different types of children that love all over the globe.
With these lesson plans and information, we hope that you take the opportunity to advocate and celebrate children’s rights. Doing this will empower your students to have impactful dialogues that will lead to meaningful actions to help build a better world for children everywhere.