Thousands of primary schoolchildren return to classrooms in Northern Ireland this morning to face a revised curriculum with a new emphasis on human rights.
The move is supported by Amnesty International, which is making available to teachers on both sides of the Border classroom material which it hopes will help underpin a new human rights culture.
The Council for the Curriculum, Examinations and Assessment, the body which advises on what is taught in schools in the North, has revised its curriculum and this will be introduced this term.
According to the Partnership Management Board, which implements the curriculum, pupils will be encouraged to make connections in their learning and see the relevance in what they are studying.
Amnesty's "Lift-Off Initiative", which has been piloted extensively since 2001, encourages children to explore human rights and responsibilities and what they might mean to their lives. It is a long-term programme and aims to provide an understanding of human rights, and equip people with the skills to articulate their rights and communicate this knowledge to others.
The organisation says: "The whole-school approach to human rights education involves establishing the atmosphere for human rights within a school - looking at qualities such as accessibility, transparency, respect, tolerance and valuing the contribution of each individual.
"It aims to establish human rights as a way of life by incorporating human rights education across the curriculum and through encouraging active participation."
The initiative involves "interlinking" between schools to facilitate a range of activities and the sharing of resources and experiences between schools within a close geographical area and across the Border.