One of our Group Leaders, Kay, created a lesson plan to help your students explore what Human Rights means to them. Kay is a Middle School Spanish World Cultures Teacher from Colorado. She first traveled with EF to Costa Rica in 2009 and has been leading student groups every Summer since.
It is designed around the video embedded below, which features high school students from around the world discussing what human rights mean to them. Kay’s lesson encourages your students to join the conversation. (Keep reading after the video for the detailed lesson plan.)
Grade level: This lesson was created for my middle school World Cultures students in 6th grade, but you could use it or adapt it for your high school World Language, Social Studies, and/or Language Arts classes as it is pretty open-ended.
Objective: Using quotes and a short video, have students put their personal spin on the question “What do human rights mean to you?”
Step 1: Choose a quote
Here are some powerful quotes about human rights from three of our great world leaders. Really think carefully about each one before making a selection.
“Human rights are not a privilege conferred by the government. They are every human being’s entitlement by virtue of his humanity.” Mother Teresa (1910–1997) was a HUGE advocate for Human Rights.
“To deny people their human rights is to challenge their very humanity.” Nelson Mandela (1918–2013) was a South African President and activist for Human Rights.
“Peace can only last where human rights are respected, where the people are fed, and where individuals and nations are free.” Dalai Lama (1935–present ) is a religious leader of Buddhism.
Step 2: Reflect
Which quote from our world leaders did you relate to the most? Explain why.
Step 3: Watch
Watch this one-minute video from EF Tours as teenagers across the U.S. answer the question “What do human rights mean to you?”
Step 4: Add your personal spin
Put your personal spin on it and explain what human rights mean to you. Keep in mind the quote you chose and the video you watched to help you formulate your response.
Related articles
