Every Child a Song

Crafty Activity

We love collecting books about children's rights to recommend and share because being able to talk about this topic through the lens of picture books and novels can open up discussions and connections for tamariki and adults alike.

One of our recent favourites is the amazing Every Child a Song by Nicola Davies and Marc Martin - a beautifully illustrated picture book about the things children need to thrive and the way their rights must be protected.

The imagery of birds is used throughout the book and this formed the inspiration for a crafty activity we have included below that was done at Te Manawa Library here in Tāmaki Makaurau in September 2025 with approximately 40 children and adults.

We had a fabulous time together getting crafty for Children's Rights and it's such an easy, fun activity that we wanted to share it here too! 

The activity we did together after reading this picture book was easy and accessible for all ages. Find out more below and find the free PDF so that you can try it out too.

You need:

• Every Child a Song picture book to read together (we recommend supporting your local library and ordering it there!)
• Collage materials (this could be scrap paper that you paint/draw on, or old recycled magazine pages like we used)
• Bird outlines (included below but children could create their own on recycled cardboard)
• Glue 
• Scissors (optional, children can also tear the bits they want to use)

After reading the picture book together, we started crafting our own unique collage birds.

We laid all our materials in middle of the table and then chose our bird design before getting started. Some children cut out their bird shapes at the end, and others kept them on the A4 page.

At the end it can be special to lay all of the birds down somewhere where you can all take a gallery walk and admire their uniqueness! And then send us a photo too at Education@scnz.org.nz 

We share regular reading recommendations for families and educators who want to explore children's rights with their tamariki. You can find all of our recent suggestions below, and over here on our original Children's Rights Booklist.

Let us know if you have suggestions for other books about Children's Rights that we should share over on our Save the Children Education Facebook Page!