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Each spring, students from dozens of middle schools in the St. Louis area convene at the Creve Coeur Government Center to take on the roles of delegates from member countries of the United Nations.  They prepare from October through March, aided by a Fall workshop with over 500 students as well as two classroom visits during the winter.  The issues that consistently grab their attention are generally related to human rights: child labor, women's rights, protecting the environment, universal access to education, and health care.  Their resolutions are carefully crafted with considerable assistance from very capable classroom teachers.  They learn to anticipate the likely comments, questions, and amendments related to their resolutions and how they will respond to each.  The agenda of the spring session generally includes six resolutions, so they need to learn how to allocate sufficient time to address all issues.  It is a pleasant surprise every spring to see how prepared and skilled middle school students are at addressing important global issues.