Objectives

• To realise how children's rights affect wellbeing.  
• To practise self-expression and compassion.  
• To identify and name personal strengths. 

Instructions

This exercise is accompanied by homework instructions for further work and an article intended for the guardians.

1. Read the story The Invisible Child, found in the attachments, or watch the episode The Invisible Child on YLE Areena. The attachment can be found at the bottom of the page after the exercise instructions.

2. Discuss the story:  

• Why had Ninni become invisible? 
• What made Ninni become visible again? 
• How did the inhabitants of the Moominvalley feel about the invisible Ninni? Why? 
• When Ninni became visible, how did she behave towards others? Why?  
• What are Ninni's strengths in your opinion? What is Ninni good at? 

3. Learn about children's rights. Discuss children's rights and compassion skills:

• Why is it important that the rights of all children in the world have been written down in a joint agreement?
• How can everyone help protect the rights of others through their own actions?
• How can you show respect towards another person? 
• How can you encourage others in a difficult situation? 
• How can you step into another person's shoes and understand them better? 
• How can you console others and take their feelings into account? 
• Why is it important for everyone to be allowed to be themselves? 
• How can children's rights help everyone show their strengths better? 
• How can personal strengths be used to tell others about the rights of children? 

4. Identify and describe your strengths by drawing and writing them down. You will need coloured pencils and paper. The pupils' instructions for this exercise can also be given as homework or used as support at school.

Draw an outline of your hand or a human figure on paper (A4), leaving an empty space (A3) inside the image. The outline of the hand or human figure represents the pupil themselves. Next, draw images of your strengths and things about yourself that you are proud of or satisfied with inside the outline. Strengths are qualities, abilities and skills that bring out the best in us and are good for others as well. The strengths can also be written down, depending on the pupils' skills.

You can think about your personal strengths with the help of the following questions:

• What is your favourite thing to do?
• What is your favourite hobby?
• What is your favourite subject at school?
• Which things have others complimented you for?
• What are you like?
• Which things are important to you? 

Strengths can include things such as tenacity, kindness, teamwork skills, bravery, curiosity, creativity, honesty, enthusiasm, fairness, modesty, a good self-esteem, respect for others, hopefulness, gratitude, a sense of humour, forgiveness, prudence, the joy of learning, encouragement of others, lack of prejudice, a thirst for knowledge and resourcefulness. Strengths can also be things and activities that a person likes the most or that are important to them, such as inventing games, playing football, drawing or daydreaming. 

Share your thoughts on ways that personal strengths could be used to promote the rights of children and distribute information about these rights. 

5. Place the finished pictures on display and hold an exhibition on strengths to the other groups or the guardians. Hang up the Convention on the Rights of the Child too. You can access the Convention on UNICEF's website.

6. If you want, you can continue the exercise at school or as homework: Use your drawings to write or tell stories that talk about your strengths. The stories can be about any daily, current or fantasy event or tale.