How many Children (under 10 yrs of age) are there in the world? - if
possibly can you divide them up by continent? - also preferably (not
neccessary) is their poverty and health levels

I can't answer your question exactly, but there are statistics for
world populations, including Percentage Under Age 15. (Not 10) You
might simply estimate population under 10 by taking two thirds of the
under 15 number.

The full statistics can be found in:
http://www.prb.org/pdf05/05WorldDataSheet_Eng.pdf

Here are some sample numbers for you:

World Population = 6,477 Million (mid-2005)
29% are Under 15 = 1,878 Million
ESTIMATE: 1,252 Million Under Age 10.

For Africa       = 906 Million
42% are Under 15 = 381 Million

For U.S.A.       = 297 Million
21% are Under 15 =  62 Million

The full statistics report contains detail by Country (e.g. Sudan),
Geographic Area (e.g. North Africa) and Continent. Example of reported
statistics are: Gross National Income Per Person, Percentage Living On
Less Than $2 Per Day, Percentage With Access To Improved Water, and
Energy Usage Per Capita. With such statistics you should be able to
approximate the statistics you need.

Good luck!

Thank you! very much - its a good place to start my research.