Children’s Week

A well-known author once said ‘A person’s a person, no matter how small’. If you’re familiar with this iconic line, then you know it’s from Dr. Seuss, a famous children’s author. Diving into this quote, we realise that we are all equally human, regardless of our size. We are all people that have opportunities, rights, needs and feelings.

This week we celebrate children, the little people that help us to understand patience, empathy and kindness. Children’s Week, hosted 23 October – 31 October is an annual event celebrated in Australia to honour and acknowledge children and the their talents, skills and abilities. As restrictions begin to ease in many States and Territories, we see events and activities organised at Government and local levels to celebrate children.

The theme of Children’s Week this year is about teaching children that they have the right to choose their own friends and safely connect with others. We need to encourage children to understand that they have rights. Regardless of their gender, ethnicity, religion or background, they have choices. Wherever they are, at whatever time of day, they can safely participate in activities, and talk about issues that are important to them with people that they trust. They can choose who they want and don’t want to be friends with, and change their mind at any time without justification.

Although we have a special week dedicated to celebrating children, we all know that one week isn’t enough. Children require a lifetime of love, attention, wisdom and security.

Children don’t only require it, but they deserve it. They deserve their skills to acknowledged, their talents celebrated, and their failures recognised as life lessons. In our eyes, every single moment of our lives from the moment we laid eyes on our children, became Children’s Week.

To all our carers out there, thank you for helping children to recognise that they are worthy, that they have opportunities, that they are safe, and that that they are loved.

To find out more about Children’s Week, visit: childrensweek.org.au