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Author: Rebecca Tortello

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A girl learns to jump rope at the UNICEF-supported Denham Town Basic School in the Denham Town community in the parish of Kingston and St. Andrew. Nearby, a boy holds a football. Many poor families cannot afford pre-school fees, books or uniforms, so their children do not attend school regularly. In May 2008 in Jamaica, children continue to suffer hardships wrought by a fragile economy, pervasive violence and poverty. Violence in the home, in schools and in communities continues to affect children, who comprise more than 37 per cent of the population of 2.7 million. Girls are vulnerable to sexual abuse, while boys are often the victims of assault. In 2007, more than 1,500 people were murdered (equal to more than four people a day), including an estimated 100 children. In a recent national survey, 60 per cent of 9 to 17-year-old children reported that a family member had been a victim of violence and 37 percent has a family member who had been killed. Only 28 per cent of children thought their community was safe. Gang activity has increased, with gang members enlisting children to conceal their weapons. Children’s rights to education and leisure activities have been compromised by unrelenting levels of crime, forcing school closures due to civil disturbances. UNICEF supports violence prevention, reduction and mitigation programmes and other integrated care and protection services for vulnerable children and young people, including: child-friendly safe spaces in violence-prone communities; mediation, conflict management, peace promotion and life-skills training for adolescents in inner-city communities; improved access to psychosocial services for children and families; remedial education; skills development and counselling; income-generating activities; and rehabilitation and reintegration programmes for out of school children, including those living or working on the streets. UNICEF also supports quality education and early childhood development. The latter programme also aims to improve the quality and accessibility of health services for younger children and their mothers.
Play Day JA: Games for teachers and children to try

Play Day JA: Games for teachers and children to try

Lifelong learning

By Rebecca Tortello

Play is fun, play is learning! We’ve collected some simple games schools can try tomorrow on February 5 for #PlayDayJA. These are just suggestions, and of course teachers can encourage children to create their own games together. For those who would like more information, we encourage you to download the Ministry of Education’s… Read more →←
Photograph of a Street Play JA session taking place in downtown Kingston.
Kingston streets come alive with play

Kingston streets come alive with play

Lifelong learning

By Rebecca Tortello

Some of the streets in downtown Kingston are coming alive with the sounds of happy children and smiling parents. Welcome to Street Play JA, a pilot initiative by UNICEF, implemented by partner our Fight for Peace, which aims to counter a lack of play spaces for children and foster greater community understanding of the power of play. … Read more →←
Play Day taking hold in Jamaica

Play Day taking hold in Jamaica

Lifelong learning

By Rebecca Tortello

Play is a movement. Not only that it encourages Jamaican boys and girls to exercise their body and minds – but there is a growing awareness among adults of its importance for child development, and that they can join in too! Like a game of classroom telephone that UNICEF was invited to play with first grade students at Half Way Tree… Read more →←
X Marks the Spot: No child should die going to and from school

X Marks the Spot: No child should die going to and from school

Safety and justice

By Rebecca Tortello

Oneil Williams was just six years-old when he was killed while crossing the road on his way home from school in St. Ann. The last his father Devon saw of his son was a small hand waving goodbye. What compounded this tragedy was that the school Oneil was attending, Brown’s Town Primary School, was chosen by his conscientious father so… Read more →←
There is an “I can” in every Jamaican! 

There is an “I can” in every Jamaican! 

Lifelong learning

By Rebecca Tortello

Jamaica launches special needs curriculum After 11 years of trying, Jamaica has finally moved a step further to leaving no child behind in our schools – thanks to the launch of a new special needs curriculum. The Curriculum for Students with Moderate to Profound Intellectual Learning Disabilities, the development of which UNICEF… Read more →←
World’s Largest Lesson 2017: uniting children to change their world

World’s Largest Lesson 2017: uniting children to change their world

Lifelong learning

By Rebecca Tortello

One of the biggest lessons we can teach our children in life is how to protect the future of our planet. That’s why UNICEF supports the World’s Largest Lesson (WLL), being observed by schools in Jamaica beginning on Tuesday, September 19. Annually the lesson is held with the aim of introducing students to the Sustainable Development… Read more →←
jamaica back to school eve for life unicef
Five simple steps to a strong back to school

Five simple steps to a strong back to school

Lifelong learning

By Rebecca Tortello

And before we know it the summer will be over and for many children the dreaded month of September will begin and they will be back to school – the carefree days of summer vacation now a distant memory! Meanwhile for parents there is rush to prepare: sorting out uniforms, book lists and other school materials. These can be costly, but… Read more →←
mosquitos zika chikv clean up day
Children can be leaders in the fight to rid Jamaica of mosquitoes

Children can be leaders in the fight to rid Jamaica of mosquitoes

Health promotion

By Rebecca Tortello

Children vulnerable to mosquitos Mosquitos simply refuse to leave us in Jamaica alone. During rainy season, between June and November, is of course their favourite time to breed. Come September and back-to-school, many children will find themselves in classrooms, some poorly ventilated, which make them even more vulnerable. It is… Read more →←
jamaica summer slide holidays parenting
Summer slide: 10 ways to help your children avoid falling behind

Summer slide: 10 ways to help your children avoid falling behind

Lifelong learning

By Rebecca Tortello

As parents, summer holidays can seem long for one reason: finding something productive for our children to do. It is actually more important than we think. The summer slide is not a piece of playground equipment. It is the sad reality that many children lose on gains made largely in literacy and numeracy during the school year when… Read more →←
jamaica play day unicef
Why #PlayDayJA matters to Jamaican children – and parents too!

Why #PlayDayJA matters to Jamaican children – and parents too!

Lifelong learning

By Rebecca Tortello

As an educator, and perhaps most of all as a mother, I’ve come to appreciate how much play means to the development of our children. In fact it’s something they teach us: joining in with them we can experience their learning firsthand and build a bigger, stronger bond. Play is at the heart of the Child Friendly Schools movement.… Read more →←
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Education Specialist

Social protection

Achieving national action to reduce child poverty: strengthen public investment; data collection and reporting on child rights, particularly on disabilities.

Safety and justice

Working to end violence in every sphere of a child’s life: prevention; legislation; barriers and bottlenecks; capacity building; and partnerships/innovation.

Lifelong learning

Improving education for disadvantaged children: access to quality education; safe schools; early childhood development; student-centred learning; and data collection.

Health promotion

Boosting health outcomes for infants and adolescents: access to quality services; prenatal and postnatal care; HIV/AIDS; teen pregnancy; and vulnerable groups.
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