Children's Rights and Responsibilities
FoundationThe Convention on the Rights of the Child protects survival, development, protection and participation rights. Rights come with duties — with the right to learn comes the duty to study hard; with the right to speak comes the duty to respect others.
- The Convention protects children's survival, development, protection and participation rights.
- Rights are what we should enjoy; responsibilities are what we should do — never parted.
- The right to learn brings the duty to study hard; the right to speak brings the duty to respect others.
文體小知識：公民權責說明文講清楚每個人享有的權利和應盡的責任，權利與責任總是一對。
§Text Passage
1Rights are the treatment and freedoms everyone should enjoy; responsibilities are what everyone should do. In 1989 the United Nations adopted the Convention on the Rights of the Child, protecting everyone under eighteen; it applies to China and to Hong Kong. The Convention sets out four groups of rights: survival, development, protection and participation.
2Survival rights cover life itself and basic care — food, shelter and medical treatment. Development rights cover the chance to learn, to play and rest, and to grow one's talents. Protection rights cover being safe from abuse, neglect, exploitation and the harm of war. Participation rights cover having a say in matters that concern us — school arrangements, for example — with adults listening to children's views.
3Rights and responsibilities are partners and cannot be parted. With the right to education comes the responsibility to study hard and not disturb others' lessons. With the right to speak comes the responsibility to respect others' views and never attack them personally. With the right to use school facilities comes the duty to care for public property. With the right to be cared for comes the duty to be considerate to parents and share housework.
4Practise rights and responsibilities at school and at home. The pupil on duty keeping order should also listen to classmates' explanations. In the library everyone has the right to read in quiet, and the duty to keep quiet and return books on time. Knowing your rights and shouldering your responsibilities brings harmony with others and makes you a welcome young citizen.
1Summary 重點摘要
The Convention on the Rights of the Child protects survival, development, protection and participation rights. Rights come with duties — with the right to learn comes the duty to study hard; with the right to speak comes the duty to respect others.
2Vocabulary cards Vocabulary
The treatment and freedoms everyone should enjoy.
What everyone should do and the duties one should shoulder.
The UN convention of 1989 protecting children's rights.
The rights to life, food, shelter and medical care.
The rights to education, play and rest, and to develop one's talents.
The rights to be safe from abuse, neglect, exploitation and the harm of war.
The right to have a say in matters that concern oneself.
Facilities belonging to everyone, such as parks and library books.
The attitude of knowing rights and responsibilities and caring for society.
3Step by step Steps
- Step 1: Tell rights from responsibilitiesRights are what we should enjoy, and responsibilities are what we should do — different, but they go together. For example, borrowing books in the library is a right; returning them on time and keeping them clean is the responsibility — neither can be left out; borrow and never return, and the right is taken away. Enjoying rights while doing our duties lets everyone live together in harmony and respect one another.
- Step 2: Learn the four groups of children's rightsChildren's rights fall into four groups: survival, development, protection and participation. For example, daily meals and a home are survival rights; school and play are development rights; safety from bullying and abuse is a protection right; speaking at the class meeting is a participation right. The Convention on the Rights of the Child protects these rights, which every child in the world should enjoy equally, and adults have the duty to listen to children's voices.
- Step 3: Pair rights with responsibilitiesEvery right has a matching responsibility, and enjoying a right means thinking of its duty. For example, with the right to play comes the duty not to disturb others' rest; with the right to ride the school bus comes the duty to queue in order and keep it clean; with the right to speak comes the duty to respect others' views. Learning to pair rights with responsibilities teaches us to value our rights and to think of others.
- Step 4: Practise in classThe classroom is a good place to practise rights and responsibilities, and everyone has a role. For example, the pupil on duty has the duty to clean the board and tidy the room, and the right to suggest improvements to the teacher; every classmate has the right to use the classroom facilities and the duty to care for public property. When everyone does their part, class affairs run smoothly and all can learn in a safe, peaceful room.
- Step 5: Practise at homeRights and responsibilities exist at home too, and we should learn to share the housework. For example, we enjoy the right to be cared for, and owe the duty to help set the table, tidy toys and take out the rubbish — household work belongs to everyone, not to one person. Doing our small duties means the work is shared and family life is happier; we also learn to look after ourselves and live more independently when we grow up.
- Step 6: Respect others' rightsWe enjoy rights, and so do other people, so we must learn to respect theirs. For example, we want to discuss homework loudly while classmates want quiet revision; respecting their right, we lower our voices or move to the playground or hall to talk. Being able to put ourselves in others' place and find a way that suits everyone when rights clash is the mark of a mature citizen, and the wisdom of getting along with people.
- Step 7: Learn to protect your own rightsWhen our rights are violated, we should know the correct way to protect ourselves. For example, when bullied, speak out bravely and tell the teacher and parents — seeking protection is a right and a duty of self-care. Silence lets the problem continue; speaking out brings help. It is not tale-telling but caring for yourself, and at the same time it protects other classmates too.
4Diagrams Diagrams
5Worked example Example
Example: Yan says the classroom is shared, so she may draw on the wall with chalk whenever she likes. Where is she wrong, and what should she do instead?
- Wrong one: the chalk and the classroom are the school's public property, shared by all — not her own, to use or damage as she pleases.
- Wrong two: in exercising her right she ignores her duties — to care for public property and to respect classmates' right to use the room.
- Right way one: create on drawing paper, using the art materials the school provides, satisfying her interest without harming property.
- Right way two: raise the idea of beautifying the classroom with the class teacher, and do it together once everyone agrees.
- Answer: Rights come with responsibilities: public property belongs to all and must be cared for while respecting others' rights. Draw on paper, and raise suggestions through proper channels, acting only with everyone's agreement.
6Common mistakes Mistakes
7Quick check Quick check
Q1What four groups of rights does the Convention on the Rights of the Child protect?
Q2Which group does the right to education belong to?
Q3How are rights and responsibilities related?
Q4With the right to use school facilities, what is the matching duty?
Q5Why must we not think only of our own rights?
8Recap Recap
- The Convention protects children's survival, development, protection and participation rights.
- Rights are what we should enjoy; responsibilities are what we should do — never parted.
- The right to learn brings the duty to study hard; the right to speak brings the duty to respect others.
- Sharing housework at home and caring for property and order at school practise responsibility.
- Respect others' rights, and tell a trusted adult when your rights are harmed.