This Issue:

Table of Contents

Cover Story

Cover Story - Spanish Version

Mini-Lesson

Comprehension Quiz

Teacher's Guide and Worksheets

Kids Are People Too!

He doesn't have a driver's license, but Craig Kielburger, 16, sure has drive! His strong belief that he can make life better for children drives him far from the comforts of his home in Toronto, Canada, and into slums and sweatshops across the globe, where kids as young as 2 years old are forced to work. Craig is on a crusade against child labor and is determined to get other kids to join the fight.

"Who can better represent children than children?" asks Craig, the founder of Free the Children, a human-rights organization run by kids. He formed Free the Children when he was 12, after reading an article about a former child slave in Pakistan who was killed for speaking out against abusive child labor. Now Craig meets with world leaders to speak for those who have no voice: the world's 250 million child laborers.

Thousands of members throughout the world, between the ages of 8 and 18, have helped Craig raise nearly $1 million for his projects. These include programs to house and educate freed child laborers in India. Now Craig has written Free the Children, a book about his crusade. Some money from book sales will be used to provide poor families with materials that will help them earn money, so their kids can go to school instead of work. He hopes his tales of kids burdened with dangerous work will inspire more kids to get involved. "Youth should have a voice at all levels of government," says Craig. "If young people don't believe in and challenge themselves, no one will."

If you'd like to lend a helping hand, write to Free the Children at 12 East 48th Street, New York, NY, 10017, or check out www.freethechildren.org.

Next: Top 5 Girl Scout Cookies