Education for

Sustainable Development
and Citizenship in
Kids Can!
1 | Why is Education for Sustainable Development and Citizenship (ESDC) important
for today’s pupils?
Our world today is an ever-changing, ever-connected place: pupils’ lives are connected not only to
their own communities and countries, but to communities around the world. We all have an important
role to play in protecting the Earth, its resources, and each other. For our pupils to become true global
citizens, they need to understand their rights and responsibilities as members of a diverse global
community. As educators, we can equip them with the knowledge, skills and attitudes they need to
make a positive difference in their own lives and those of others.

2 | What does Education for Sustainable Development and Citizenship involve?

ESDC helps pupils become engaged global citizens. It ties classroom practice to Global Citizenship
Education theory, incorporates an inclusive approach to language learning and references the
Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), which are a United Nations initiative.

Macmillan Education’s Advancing Futures Programme plays a key role in our commitment to quality
education by providing enriching and meaningful content for all learners. Pupils are encouraged to see
themselves as valued members of local and global communities. They learn to think critically about
how their actions affect the world around them, from caring for the environment to recognising the
value of individual differences. As a result, pupils develop an appreciation for both cultural diversity and
common humanity.

GLOBAL CITIZENSHIP
FRAMEWORK

TOPICS RELATED
TO THE SDGS

DIVERSITY, EQUITY,
AND INCLUSION
IN ELT

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3 | How does Kids Can! incorporate the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)?
The 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) were adopted by the United Nations in 2015 as a
universal call to action, with targeted goals to meet by 2030. The SDGs are based on the five pillars
of people, the planet, prosperity, peace and partnerships.

The list below shows how Kids Can! incorporates topics related to one or more SDGs.

GOAL 4: QUALITY
EDUCATION
Macmillan Education’s Advancing Futures Programme responds directly to Goal 4: Quality
Education and, in particular, Target 4.7, which addresses education for sustainable development,
global citizenship and appreciation of cultural diversity. Quality Education is at the heart of
Macmillan’s ELT materials and inspires us to make all of our content meaningful, accessible
and impactful.
Though Goal 4 is embedded in the approach to all of our materials, a wide variety of content
related to other SDGs is also included in reading and listening texts, projects and interactive
classroom activities. This content provides pupils with the foundation to understand our world
and its citizens and, where appropriate, encourages the pupils to engage critically with the
issues outlined in the SDGs.

GOAL 2: ZERO
HUNGER GOAL 3: GOOD HEALTH
AND WELL-BEING
PB 6, U7: Water-saving device to TB 1, U4: Exercise and sport
combat drought PB 1, U6: Food and drink
PB 2, U4: Staying healthy
PB 3, U1: Yoga

GOAL 5: GENDER
EQUALITY
TB 3, U1: Exercise
PB 4; AB 4, U1: Staying healthy
PB 1, U5: Equality of boys and girls TB 4, U5: Staying healthy
PB 3, U3: Gender equality in jobs PB 5, U1: Adventure sports
TB 5, U5: Female role models
PB6, U4: Household roles
PB6, Festivals: Admired and respected
women

GOAL 6: CLEAN WATER

AND SANITATION
PB 3, U6: Water usage
PB 5, U2: Cleaning a polluted pond

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GOAL 7: AFFORDABLE
AND CLEAN ENERGY GOAL 8: DECENT WORK
AND ECONOMIC GROWTH
PB 6, U6 Clean energy TB 6, U5: Work-related issues and
challenges

GOAL 9: INDUSTRY, INNOVATION

AND INFRUSTRUCTURE GOAL 10: REDUCED
INEQUALITIES
TB 5, U6: Being innovative PB 2, U5: Making a camp inclusive
AB 4, U5: A sports champion with a
disability
TB6, U1: Making hobbies accessible
to all

GOAL 11: SUSTAINABLE CITIES

AND COMMUNITIES
PB 2, U6: Transport
PB 3, U6: Rubbish and water pollution
PB 4, U3: Public transport
TB 4, U3: Making communities safe
AB 4; TB 4, U6: Rewilding communities
PB 4, Festivals: Protecting the environment
PB 5, U3: Environmental campaigner Wangari
PB 5, U3: Preserving green spaces
PB 5, U3: Community gardens
RESPONSIBLE
PB 5, U4: Safe neighbourhoods
TB 6, U3: Making cities sustainable and accessible
PB 6, U3: Neighbourhood proposal
GOAL 12: CONSUMPTION
AND PRODUCTION
PB 1, Festival: Earth Day and recycling
TB 2, U2: Recycling and reusing
materials
TB 2, U3: Recycling and reusing
materials
TB 3, U4: Food waste
AB 3, U6: Recycling
AB 4, U4: Upcycling clothes
PB 4; TB 4, U4: Recycling clothes and
materials
PB 5, U3: Community gardens
PB 5, U7: Sustainable tourism

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GOAL 13: CLIMATE
ACTION GOAL 15: LIFE
ON LAND
TB 5, U7: Climate action and tourism TB 3, U2: Endangered animals
TB 6, U2: How to stop climate change TB 4, U6: Importance of protecting
forests
PB 5, U2: Endangered animals
TB 5, U3: Preventing deforestation

GOAL 14:AFFORDABLE
LIFE
ENERGY
AND CLEAN
BELOW WATER
PB 3, U6: Taking care of the environment
PB 3, U6: Rubbish and water pollution
TB 4, U2: Endangered animals
PB 5, U2: Endangered animals
PB 6, Festivals: Protecting oceans

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4 | What is the Macmillan Global Citizenship Framework
The Global Citizenship Framework was developed by experts in Global Citizenship Education and ELT.
It is our guideline for the development of meaningful and engaging ESDC content in our materials. This
framework is used by authors and editors when creating new content.

The framework includes a variety of meaningful and age-appropriate learning outcomes in the areas of
Global Knowledge, Global Attitudes & Action and Global Skills.

5 | How does Kids Can! incorporate the Global Citizenship Framework?

In Kids Can!, pupils will engage with content that develops the following learning outcomes:

GLOBAL SKILLS
GLOBAL ATTITUDES & ACTION DEVELOP CREATIVITY,
GLOBAL KNOWLEDGE
ARE WHAT YOU DO TO PUT YOUR COLLABORATION AND
IS THE INFORMATION YOU NEED
KNOWLEDGE AND SKILLS COMMUNICATION, WHICH ARE
TO NAVIGATE THE WORLD.
INTO ACTION. NECESSARY SKILLS FOR GLOBAL
CITIZENSHIP.

■ Recognise that personal ■ Behave in a considerate ■ Participate in oral and

behaviour can have a positive and respectful way in the written communication
impact on others. community. activities.
■ Identify distinguishing ■ Take positive action in the ■ Perform a task that
features of a variety of global community. contributes to a group
cultures. activity.
■ Recognise the difference
■ Recognise different between action and ■ Participate in a creative
perspectives from a varietyof outcome and classify task.
global cultures. these as positive or ■ Demonstrate the ability to
negative.
■ Engage with ideas about summarise information.
healthy living through ■ Compare and contrast ■ Identify a problem and
exercise. own opinion with others.
provide a solution.
■ Engage with ideas about ■ Distinguish a stereotype ■ Show reflective thinking
healthy living through diet. from a description.
in the carrying out of a
■ Identify and contrast opposing task.
opinions on an issue,
including their own.
■ Engage with profiles of global
citizens.
■ Recognise and compare
different identities.
■ Recognise the difference
between action and outcome
and classify these as positive
or negative.

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6 | How can I use Kids Can! to teach Global Citizenship?
Use the Global Citizenship Framework Map to see detailed information about how the content in
Kids Can! maps to the Macmillan Education GCE Framework. You can pick up on these themes as
you progress through the units in the Pupil’s and Activity Books, using the Teacher’s Book for extra
ideas and support.

7 | How does ESDC incorporate Diversity, Equity and Inclusion?

At Macmillan Education, we are committed to creating content that represents the diversity of the
world. We recognise the impact that our published materials can have on pupils’ understanding
of the world and their place within it. We believe that all pupils should see themselves and their
communities reflected in the materials they use in class.

As part of our Advancing Futures Programme, Macmillan Education has developed Diversity, Equity
and Inclusion (DEI) guidelines for authors and editors. These guidelines ensure that our materials
promote equity and inclusion and represent diversity in meaningful, respectful and authentic ways.
These principles are reflected in the stories we tell, the characters we create, and the realities we
represent in artwork and photos.

8 | How else can I use Macmillan Education’s Advancing Futures Programme

in my classroom?
The Advancing Futures Programme provides you with all the tools you might need to help your
pupils understand their rights and responsibilities as members of a diverse global community. In the
Kids Can! Teacher Resource Centre, you can find supplementary materials to support Education for
Sustainable Development and Citizenship in your classroom, including ESDC lessons that focus on
GCE, SDGs, and DEI.

You can also find these lessons and much more on our teacher resource site, [Link]

For further information about any of our ESDC materials, please visit [Link]
to contact us.

ISBN 978-1-380-05365-7
Text, design and illustration © Macmillan Education Limited 2022
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic,
mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without the prior written permission of the publishers.
Illustrations by Jesus Ismael Vazquez Sanchez p. 3, 4.
Cover video still by Makematic
The authors and publishers would like to thank the following for permission to reproduce their photographs:
Digital Vision/ Blend Images/Ariel Skelley p. 2(a); Getty Images/Ariel Skelley p. 2(b), Getty Images/kali9 p. 2(c); Shutterstock/Qvasimodo art p. 8.

© Macmillan Education Limited 2022 7

At Macmillan Education, we believe that quality education is the most effective way to create a
community of global citizens and achieve sustainable development. In this, we share the vision of the
United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO):

“EDUCATION
CAN, AND MUST,
CONTRIBUTE TO
A NEW VISION OF
SUSTAINABLE GLOBAL
DEVELOPMENT.”
(UNESCO, 2015)

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