CHILDREN’S ORGANIZATIONS

CHILDREN’S ORGANIZATIONS, voluntary mass associations of children and adults, characterized by the social orientation of their work, democratic style of relations and pedagogical impact on the members of the organization. C.o. perform social and political (protection of children’s rights, their interests, honour and dignity), social and educational (purposeful introduction of teenagers into society, involvement in creative practice of adults; civil formation of a child’s personality), and other functions.

In Bashkortostan, the first C.o. arose in the early 20th century. In May, 1923, a pioneer group was created at the 1st Raion City Committee of the Union of Youth in Ufa. Pioneer organizing the Republic was part of the All Union Lenin Pioneer Organization, which was under the leadership of All Union Leninist Young Communists League. Pioneer groups participated in communist subbotniks (clean up days) and helped members of the Komsomol in the elimination of illiteracy and children’s homelessness. Between July and August 1924, the first groups for kids — Octyabrata — were established under the pioneer groups. In 1935, a Children’s excursion and tourist station was organized in the Republic. During the Great Patriotic War, the Timur movement became widespread. In the summer of 1956, the pioneers of the Republic joined the All Union expedition to study their native land, which resulted in the opening of many school museums. Since the middle 1970s, the red trackers movement became widespread. Its activists gathered information about military formations from Bashkortostan. Since the 1990s, the RB has such C.o. as Pioneers of Bashkortostan, various children’s clubs, art centers, stations of young technicians, etc.