Working on children's rights to make them an anthem

BarcelonaOver the last few months, several educational centers in Catalonia have worked on children's rights in a very particular way: they have created a song that explains and vindicates them, and which, at the same time, has helped them participate in the contest. We have a voice, an initiative by the Catalan Ombudsman to find the anthem that, from now on, will serve to publicize and defend these rights through music. The initiative, aimed at students in the 3rd, 4th, and 5th grades of primary school in all public and subsidized schools in Catalonia, as well as esplais, casales, and listening groups in the country, sought a song in Catalan, original in lyrics and music, that was intended to be sung in a group and that dealt with children's rights in general or with a right.

By March 16, the deadline for receiving recordings, a total of forty groups—37 schools, one casal, one leisure group, and one listening group—submitted their musical creations to the competition. We have a voice"Some of these groups are especially valuable to us because they are schools with a very complex socioeconomic situation due to a large portion of the students, which makes the learning process difficult. Regarding the summer camp and recreational activities that have been presented, they also welcome and work with especially free children with the goal of providing them with Greuges.

Three finalists

After the voting period and the selection of five semi-finalists, on April 28th a jury composed of singers Aina da Silva, Xavi Noms and Berta Peñalver, and representatives of the Ombudsman's Office Aida C. Rodríguez and Eva Querol, deputy and advisor for children, respectively, gave their names to the children. The chosen ones have been We have a voice, from the Les Fontetes School in Cerdanyola del Vallès; Welcome, stand up!, from the Marta Mata School in Vilanova del Camí, and Hey, big ones!, from the Renaixença dels Hostalets School Institute in Pierola. The three finalist songs will be performed live at a grand finale gala taking place on Monday, May 12, at 6 p.m., at CosmoCaixa in Barcelona. During the event, which will be presented by the renowned musician and influencer Julen and in which the finalists will perform their song live, the name of the winning group will be revealed, whose song will ultimately become the anthem for children's rights in Catalonia.

The criteria used by the jury for the selection were regulated in the rules of the competition and were the lyrics of the song (40%), the musical proposal (40%), and the staging (20%), since participation also included the recording of a music video. All the videos can be viewed on the website Tenemosveu.sindic.cat.

"It was a very nice process, because we created the lyrics together in class. I coordinated with the tutors and, during music and language classes, we worked on it," explains Jordi Carbonell, head of studies and music teacher at the Les Fontetes School in Cerdanyola del Vallès. During the creation process We have a voice, the song with which they reached the final of the Catalan Ombudsman's competition, were able to influence these rights in the classroom and thoroughly educate the middle-grade students who participated in the contest. "We are a highly complex school, and being able to talk to students about these issues adds value. It was also very interesting to analyze whether these rights were being upheld around the world, especially in territories where poverty or war prevents children from enjoying these rights," explains Carbonell.

Carbonell, who often composes his own music in his free time, was responsible for creating the rhythms for the song with which the school entered the competition, always taking into account the students' contributions for improvement. "It was a project based on respect and constructive ideas," he says. The process also helped the students learn to create rhymes and work on reading comprehension.

Now, on May 12, they will find out if their song is chosen to become the anthem for children's rights in Catalonia. Carbonell assures that the work they have done with the students over the last few months has already made this experience worthwhile, as they have almost mastered the song and have supported the students who participated in the contest. "In fact, I don't know who is happier, the children or the faculty, that we have managed to become finalists. The reality is that, unfortunately, these students hadn't had many opportunities to feel that way," explains Carbonell. She also acknowledges that from the beginning she did very important work with all of them on preventing failure. "They are very excited, but it doesn't matter if we don't win because the work we have done has been impressive and we have had a great time." We will have to wait a few days to know the final verdict.