With every act of service, you are standing up for human rights, whether working with the homeless or advocating for a clean environment. Talking about human rights with children is a great framework for understanding social issues. The simple message is that all people should have rights simply because they are human beings. It may sound like a complicated idea because of its breadth and ambiguity, but the resources below will help spark conversation and action in your family.

Eleanor Roosevelt-United Nations Chairwoman

Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, on January 17, is the ideal time to encourage service and bring awareness to human rights. Here are three ways to begin:

• Have each person in your family choose one right (or, if you're ambitious, all of them!) from the Declaration of Human Rights and create a piece of art around it. Talk about why a particular right was chosen and why it is important. Display the art at home -- or perhaps at a library or other public space to educate others and raise awareness about critical issues.
• If you want to celebrate MLK Day by doing for others, visit mlkday.gov (or volunteermatch.org) to find a service project in your community.
• Amnesty International is a leading human rights organization. If your children are middle-school-age or older, join the group's Urgent Action Network as a family and together write letters to help free prisoners of conscience. Basic letter-writing tips for youngsters are included on the Amnesty site.

 Recognizing Human Rights

Talk about it.....

While making art, writing letters, doing a service project, or reading one of the books below, chat about human rights. Pose these questions:

• Why is it important for all human beings to have rights?
• What additional rights would you like to see included in the Declaration of Human Rights?
• What examples have you seen in your life, or in the news, of where human rights have been ignored?
• What ways can we get involved to make sure that all humans have their rights protected?

Learn about it.....

My Dream of Martin Luther King, written and illustrated by Faith Ringgold (Dragonfly Books, 1998), is a beautiful book about the life and dreams of this bold, influential leader.

We Are All Born Free by Amnesty International (Frances Lincoln Children's Books, 2008), is a simplified, kids' version of the Declaration of Human Rights. Each right is illustrated by a different artist.

 "A right is not what someone gives you; it's what no one can take from you."

                                                        Ramsey Clark, former U.S. Attorney General

Join us for

Small Hands Big Hearts: Sparking the Spirit of Giving

at the

Minnesota Children's Museum!

Doing Good Together and this beloved St, Paul museum are partnering during the last two weeks of this month, January 15-30, to present a fun forum for family giving. Before or after they play in the museum, adults and children can take part in a variety of fun service projects, such as creating special cards for sick children and decorating lunch bags for Meals on Wheels recipients. Visitors are encouraged to bring along new socks (child or adult sizes), to be donated to Simpson Housing, a local homeless shelter. Check the museum website for hours, admission rates, directions and parking information.

Small Hands Big Hearts: Sparking the Spirit of Giving at the Minnesota Children's Museum

Join us for Small Hands Big Hearts: Sparking the Spirit of Giving at the Minnesota Children's Museum!

Doing Good Together is a nonprofit, 501(c)3 organization that provides information and support to help people raise compassionate and socially conscious children through family volunteerism.

Copyright © 2011 Doing Good Together