After ten years of study and consultation, UNICEF, the premier organization devoted to the care and welfare of the world's children, published the results of the Convention on the Rights of the Child. Using these tenets as a base, A Life Like Mine profiles children from all over the globe leading their lives in different and fascinating ways. The challenges of nations both developed and developing are revealed in the stories and photographs in this special volume. DK and UNICEF have combined their inspirational forces to provide remarkable insight into children's lives.
This is a lovely book full of information and colour photographs. It is based around children's rights; to survival, development, protection and participation and how these are met around the world. We are introduced to children from different countries and text and photographs inform us about their daily lives. This book covers many topics such as healthy living, identity, shelter and education. Each page bursts with beautifully presented information. This is a great book for PSHE and Geography, but also has many other links particularly in literacy.This book could be used for both fiction and non fiction texts. For instance children could write an imaginative piece about the life of one of the children,a letter to the child themselves or to an oraganisation / the government/queen regarding children's rights internationally. There are also endless possibilities for comparisons between the lives of children in the U.K and children abroad.I would say this book is suitable for both Key stages and could inspire some interesting projects or units of work. it may also be useful for making fund raising relevant and for helping children to understand we are all the same but all different.I recommend teachers get this book, it could be a great resource in the classroom.
Books about the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child tend to be problematic because the focus is really on what's easy for us to cope with - the articles that focus on Protection and Provision and that's what the problem is here. But, as well, I also have an issue with trying to present the lives of children, as this book does, as if they weren't problematic - there's an essentialist perspective that I find troubling. I'm not sure exactly what the best way to approach this is but this book isn't it
In large, colorful spreads A Life Like Mine shows the lives of children living all over the world. The book is divided into sections showing how different children get water, feed themselves, go to school, play, stay healthy, etc. The book also discusses the fact that a large number of children don't have the basic necessities. This is a great book for browsing and will be interesting to kids who like to know about kids in other cultures.
In A Life Like Mine : How Children Live Around the World , UNICEF introduces the reality of children around the world. Centred around the Convention of Rights of the Child and using photographs, quotes, statistics and personal stories, the book unpacks different realities from around the world.
As far as international development books go, this is one of the better ones I have read through.
Here are some of the things that I liked : - UNICEF shows Black, Indigenous and People of Colour from North America and Europe instead of just showing BIPOC folk from the Global South and depicting the Global North as White folk - UNICEF does a great job at weaving in bits about child protection into personal stories so that the book is engaging and informative - The book includes a number of easy-to -digest comparatives to help readers better understand different experiences in relation to their own. For example, to demonstrate issues related to drought or restricted access to clean water, UNICEF uses helpful infographics to illustrate how much water is used when flushing the toiler, when running the faucet, when filling the bathtub etc in comparison to how much water some communities have access to. - I liked that UNICEF didn't exploit a power imbalance between historically disadvantaged countries and the Global North. For example, children from all over got to take pride in introducing their staple foods/meals, activities, and interests. - I liked the ability and religious inclusivity. (Though those pieces were earmarked as sections on their own instead of inclusively woven throughout)
Here are some things I thought could be approved : - The book sometimes relied too heavily on a singular story to represent a country. Instead of recognizing the vast diversity within a region, one child was put forth (almost as a token) to represent their entire country. In some cases, the book even compares the state of things in different countries and then compares Africa as though it too was a country.
Ultimately, for a book published in 2002, A Life Like Mine is a good introduction to the experience of children around the world.
This was really cool. A lot of DK books can feel really scattered and disorganized, but this one does a really good job of grouping information. I wonder if there's an updated book, because I'd love to see more recent things, but this book does hold up well since it's about the basic needs/ rights of all children everywhere.
Every teacher should have this book so that children can learn about children around the world...their basic rights and how their lives differ around the world. Beautiful photographs, and language that children can understand make this a very informative and beautiful book.
This book has such great information on how children live around the world. It is less of a read aloud book and more of a reference book that be a starting point for a cultural research project.
Jutaan anak di dunia menjalani kehidupan berbeda dengan kita. Tak hanya memiliki tampilan fisik dan bahasa yang berbeda, mereka juga menghadapi tantangan yang berbeda setiap hari.
Namun, mimpi dan harapan mereka serupa. Apa sajakah itu?
Hak-hak Dasar Anak
Dengan mengusung misi UNICEF yang menggarisbawahi hak-hak dasar anak, buku ini terdiri atas empat bab: Survival, Development, Protection, Participation. Dalam bab Survival, akan dibahas hak-hak dasar anak untuk memperoleh air, makanan, rumah, serta hidup yang sehat.
Sementara bab Development membahas hak anak untuk memperoleh pendidikan dan bebas bermain, bab Protection membahas hak anak untuk memperoleh perlindungan dan kasih sayang. Bab ini juga melarang eksploitasi terhadap pekerja anak-anak dan keterlibatan anak-anak dalam perang. Tak hanya itu, juga dibahas tentang anak-anak yang memiliki keterbelakangan mental. Betapa mereka juga memiliki hak dasar yang sama, dan semestinya tak terkungkung dengan kekurangan mereka.
Participation sebagai bab terakhir membahas hak anak untuk memiliki identitas, baik berupa nama, kewarganegaraan dan agama. Pada bab ini pula, dibahas hak anak untuk berekspresi dan mengemukakan pendapat, serta menjalani kehidupan yang bahagia.
Dalam buku setebal 128 halaman ini, kita juga berkenalan dengan anak-anak di seluruh dunia. Dari 18 profil anak dengan rentang usia 9-18 tahun, ada Taralyn dan CJ dari Amerika Serikat, Natalie dari Inggris, Mayerly dari Kolombia, Ivana dari Yugoslavia, Mahasin dari Sudan, Sbongile dari Afrika Selatan, Vincent dari Rwanda, Sibasih dari India, Arif dari Bangladesh. Tak ketinggalan, ada Maria dari Afghanistan, Nou dari Laos, Michael dari Australia, Najasha dan Abdisukri dari Belanda, Eli dari Israel, Ivana dari Yugoslavia, serta Nadin dari kamp pengungsian di wilayah Palestina.
Dari balik jendela mereka, kita pun akan diajak melihat lebih dekat. Sementara Najaha di Belanda bisa dengan mudahnya mencuci piring dari keran di dapur, Nou di Laos harus berjalan kaki ke sungai terdekat demi memperoleh seember air.
Di Afrika Selatan, ada Sbongile yang akhirnya bisa bersekolah di Ellerton Primary School. Beberapa tahun lalu saat hukum apartheid masih berlaku, hal ini sungguh mustahil. Sementara di Australia, Michael menjalani sekolah jarak jauh. Karena tinggal ratusan kilometer dari sekolah, ia pun berkomunikasi dengan guru menggunakan radio dua arah dan mengirim PR lewat pos.
Dampak perang dan Isu Buruh Anak
Sejumlah anak menghadapi hambatan besar untuk memperoleh hak-hak mereka. Saat terjadi perang di Sierra Leone, sejumlah tentara menculik Isa. Dua tahun ditawan, Isa kemudian dibebaskan. Perang dan masa tawanan itu membuatnya kehilangan tiga tahun masa sekolah.
Hambatan lainnya, perburuhan anak. Dalam buku ini, kita akan melihat lebih dekat Dana dan Arif. Berusia sepuluh tahun, Dana bekerja sebagai penjual manisan di sebuah jalan di Erbil, Irak. Sementara Arif bekerja sebagai pelukis becak di Bangladesh.
Wilayah anak dipekerjakan bisa beragam. Namun kita kerap lupa, betapa wilayah itu tak hanya terbatas di ladang atau pabrik. Namun juga, di rumah sendiri. Di Mauritania, ada Mame Diara. Gadis yatim piatu yang tinggal dengan para sepupunya ini, sehari-hari bertugas memasak, membersihkan rumah, serta menggembala ternak.
Beruntung, Isa kini telah pulang dan kembali bersekolah. Sementara Arif memperoleh kesempatan menjadi seorang reporter suatu acara televisi untuk anak, Mukta Khabor. Tentang cita-citanya, Arif berujar “If I were president, I would help parents so they don’t have to send their children to work.” (halaman 81).
Asa, dan yang Menyerupainya
Tinggal di belahan dunia yang berbeda, seluruh anak dalam buku ini memiliki satu kesamaan. Mereka ingin mengubah dunia menjadi suatu tempat yang lebih baik.
Maria di Afghanistan bercita-cita menjadi guru. Sementara Isa ingin menjadi dokter dan Ivana di Yugoslavia ingin menjadi perawat. Tak ketinggalan, Nadin di kamp pengungsian di wilayah Palestina yang mengharapkan perdamaian antara Israel dan Palestina. Dan Mayerly di Kolombia, bergerak dalam Children’s Movement for Peace. Perang sipil yang terjadi di Kolombia selama lebih dari empat puluh tahun ini telah begitu melelahkan Mayerly.
Bersama lebih dari 100 ribu anak, Mayerly bergabung dalam aksi perdamaian yang mengutamakan permainan dan persahabatan. Disusun dengan melibatkan sembilan orang fotografer yang tersebar di sejumlah negara, dan belasan guru, sekolah, serta organisasi, buku ini merupakan media yang baik bagi anak untuk belajar mengenai perbedaan dan cara hidup anak-anak lain di dunia. Tak hanya menyajikan data dengan ilustrasi yang mudah dipahami, buku ini juga diperkaya dengan foto-foto indah.
Seindah keunikan dan keistimewaan setiap anak. Karena mengutip kata pengantar dari Jemima Khan, UNICEF UK Special Representatives. “You are special. You deserve protection and support as you grow to adulthood. You are part of the present, but all of the future.”
Similar to the book Children Like Me, in that it exposes children to the differences in how people live around the world. It goes through the necessities of life like food, water, education, etc., and gives a realistic view of what many children have and don't have in different countries. But it does this in an appropriate way for a child (probably intended for children ages 8-11, but can be read by an adult to any-aged child) to understand and to realize that they should be grateful for what they do have. Again, my 20-month-old just loved flipping through the book and pointing out several of the things that she recognized and I attempted to tell her a little bit about what was going on in the photos, but I would consider buying this book as a great (and fun) reference book to have at home to enjoy in the future.
I am finding that I really appreciate children's books published by DK for their nonfiction. They always use really good photographs and I've been impressed by the quality of the ones that we have read so far. A neighbor showed me a kids' cooking book that she had by DK and she raved about the recipes, too.
De pequeña me leí este libro como cincuenta veces. Me encantaba, y a día de hoy me sigue encantando.
Solía pasar página tras página mirando las fotografías de los niños y leyendo una y otra vez sus historias y sus vidas. Dónde vivían (probablemente aprendí más gegografía gracias a este libro que en todos mis años de primaria), qué comían y cómo se llamaban. Los nombres me llamaban mucho la atención, porque eran raros y no comunes y cuando hablaban de lo que comían me imaginaba cómo debía de saber, si estaría bueno o no. Imaginaba cómo sería vivir la vida de cada uno de esos niños, con todo lo que conllevaba.
Aprendí mucho más de otras culturas, de la vida en los distintos lugares del planeta y de las desigualdades que hay en el mundo de este libro, que de todas las palabras (y pocos hechos) que nos pudiera contar cualquier persona adulta en forma de sermón. Incluso empecé a escribir una historia basada en una de las vidas del libro.
I really enjoyed this book. I read it for a project in one of my education courses. I was already interested in learning more about children from all over the world, but this definitely heightened my interest. It gives great perspective on the rights of children, and does so in a way that is approachable for all readers. I found this book inspiring, and i think it would be a great way to get more students/kids interested in being better global citizens. It is a very manageable book, although there is a lot of detail, a child could read it in a day. The best part about this book for me was the topics, and that with many of the blurbs on each page I was interested in looking up more information on those topics. This book led me down a variety of rabbit holes, but in the end I felt like I had learned a lot and my eyes had been opened to a variety of new ideas. I would recommend this book to anyone who is interested in gaining a new world perspective.
This book was recommeded in our class in an article written by our teacher and a fellow student. This book is considered global literature. I am familiar with these books that DK publishes. This book could be used to teach about the concept of neighborhoods. Students could see how children live around the world and see the differences and similarities. The photographs are engaging and would lend to great discussions. The book is set up into four parts. I have the book Children Just Like Me which is organized in the same fashion. I am going to try to find other books in this DK series to house in my library. I think they would be great references books for children.
This book provides plenty of interesting photographs and quick glimpses into the lives of children from all over the world. I appreciated the fact that it focuses on the four major areas that the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child decided are necessary for children to have a happy life. Those four things are survival (water, food, shelter, etc.), development (school,etc.), protection (love and care, etc.), and participation (nationality, religion, etc.). Each section focuses on children who do and do not have their needs met. I had some good discussions with my older students (4th and 5th grade) about what human beings need to be happy.
This nonfiction book is assembled by UNICEF,and was published by DK publishing in 2002.
This collection of wonderful pictures and stories of children from all over the world enthralls students as they can flip through the pages and discover all about how different children survive, develop, are protected, and what makes them who they are. The book does an excellent job of interweaving the idea that all children are the same, but at the same time, they have a right to a unique and special identity that they should be proud of.
I truly believe that diversity is a key component to educating children. When reading books or celebrating holidays all students should feel included in the lesson. This book truly celebrates the value of diversity and multiculturalism. Whether a student is African-American, Hispanic, Caucasian, Asian, or Indian they can relate to the four components addressed in various cultures: survival, development, protection, and participation. This is an amazing book for children to learn more about themselves and others.
"A Life Like Mine" is a great way for children to learn about other children around the world. This book can also open children's eyes to the poverty and difficulty that some children face. I look forward to reading this book with my students and leading discussions on what they can do to help people in need around the world. This book has beautiful pictures and the information is organized and easy to read.
I really enjoyed this book but it wasn't quite at the right level either for me or for my 5 and 7 year olds. Perhaps it would be best for a 10 year old or so. I like the pages dedicated to more in-depth stories about individual kids and I wish there was more of that. I guess in the end I would prefer a book of longer and more narrative stories about a bunch of kids around the world rather than strict division into categories (e.g., water, housing, expression) and stories limited to one area.
I have been reading this book to my 4 year old daughter and she is really enjoying it! The pictures are a really great way to introduce challenging topics & she really enjoys using the map at the front of the book to understand the geographical context of the children in the stories.
I would recommend this book for children quite a bit older than my daughter though - around 8-10 years. But for her age it is really great for all the photographs.
This reads more like an encyclopedia so typically we would only read a dozen or so pages at a time. While my niece and nephew (7) fully enjoy the book and often pull it out, it is a bit much for them to take in all at once. They love seeing the photos of the real kids around the world. It has been a great book to also engage them in geography lessons as they always want to look at globe or map to see exactly where the kids they are reading about live.
I like to think that this book was what started my passion with international relations and travel. I spent hours as a kid pouring over these pages, looking at the maps, imagining the conversations I would have with the children in this book. I would memorize the facts listed on the pages, memorize the stories of these children whose lives were very similar to mine. I still have this book, and it remains one of my favorites to this day.
This book is wonderful for getting elementary students to think about the world beyond their own community. The purpose of this book is to show that though children of the world lead different lives, many children have the same hopes and needs in life such as education, food, health care, shelter, play, and protection. I will read this book to my students and have an extension lesson on similar wants, needs, and rights that all children of the world have in common.
This is great for reading with my children. My son, who is seven, really was able to understand the concepts the book is presenting. He is really interested in the children and it puts a human face on what he hears and learns about how the world works.
This is one of my all time favorite books. I was just reminded how very much information is packed inside by a good friend who recently gave me a copy.