How to teach students to be global citizens

Jeanne Perrett
Children working together outdoors picking up litter
Reading time: 4.5 minutes

As teachers, we?all?want our?students to?work toward making the world a better place. Through focusing on?global citizenship,?this drive to change the world is something we can help foster every day in the classroom.?In this post, we’ll explore how.

What are global citizens?

?A global citizen is someone who knows that they are part of a worldwide community. They understand that there are people who have completely different lifestyles, appearances, cultures and routines but with whom we share common values and responsibilities. Global citizenship encourages tolerance and understanding, and learning about it helps children become open-minded adults.??

In a primary English classroom, helping students become aware of themselves as citizens of the world will introduce them to a global way of thinking. We can do this while also helping them become familiar with, and proficient in, English.??

How can we introduce the concept?

Before?students put themselves in a global context, they should get to know themselves as individuals. But they should also get to know themselves as people who?are part of?their immediate communities.??

In the classroom, this can be done by encouraging students to think about something personal, such as their likes and dislikes. We can then encourage students to look a little further: What kinds of homes do they see in their communities? What makes a house a home to them? What about people working in their communities — what important jobs do they do, and how do they make an impact??

For language teachers,?the idea is to?combine vocabulary and grammar structures with a slowly widening view of our world.?Simply by introducing the concept?that we are part of a worldwide community?can?take the children out of their own experiences and help them start to consider others.

Tips and activities

Social media makes it possible?for?teachers to contact each other across borders and to collaborate between their schools. Something simple, like organizing a class video call for students after lunchtime and encouraging students in different countries to discuss what they ate in English,?can?help learners become more globally aware.?

Get in touch and learn about how 蜜桃app can help your language teaching

How can we teach students to be proactive?

Once students know something, they can progress to putting their knowledge into action. Teachers can foster this?by encouraging good habits –?a simple example is?how we?teach?very young?children to throw their litter in a bin. As they grow older, we can?‘unpack’ these habits. That is,?we can help?children?look deeper into why?they're so important.?Using the example of litter again,?this?could mean?making students aware about how their civic responsibility has a real environmental impact.?

Let’s look at how we can?go from knowing to doing, in simple stages, with a range of topics?that are common in the?language?classroom:?

Food

  • Ask students to think about what they like and dislike.?
  • Ask students to name foods that are good for us and what we should eat more of.?
  • Teach about school lunches in other countries.?
  • Teach about dishes eaten on special occasions around the world.?
  • Have?a?food festival?or ‘munch day’ where students make snacks from around the world.

Buildings

  • Ask students to talk about their own homes.?
  • Teach about types of homes in other countries.?
  • Discuss eco-architecture – such as solar panels, living walls, wind turbines on roofs, and local materials that might be used in building processes.??
  • Venture outside as a class to plant?potted?flowers and improve the school yard or make a container to collect rainwater for the school garden.?

Jobs

  • Teach about the jobs people do at school – such as cleaning, cooking, or driving.?
  • Think about jobs within?the community?and why they are necessary.?
  • Think about what skills each child and their parents have and how these skills are needed for different jobs.?
  • Have a skill-sharing day where?students?teach?each other?something new.??
  • Host?a?‘kids take over day’?where students?get to?do an important job?at?school (such as?cleaning the classrooms?or?serving lunch).?

Technology

  • Discuss the different types of technology used at home and school.?
  • Think about how to use this technology responsibly.??
  • Talk about different households?and find out?how and when?tablets, laptops and phones are used. For example, who is allowed to watch videos while eating??Who can read on their tablet in bed??
  • Make your own set of technology rules for the classroom and discuss why they’re important.?

Holidays

  • Ask students what they like to do on holiday.
  • Teach about how to stay safe at the ocean or in the countryside.
  • Talk about other countries students have travelled to or would like to travel to and learn about interesting landmarks in those countries.
  • Discuss eco-tourism efforts and why they are important.
  • Have a?‘Let’s go to?[name of a city or country)?day.’?Make posters about famous sights, learn some phrases of the language spoken there?and?have students?imagine?they?have gone abroad for the day.

Sharing the message?

The United Nations?has set out a collection of?17?global goals, called the??(SDGs), which aim to create a better future by 2030. They address issues like gender equality, hunger and poverty and can be an excellent resource for teachers to use in the classroom when discussing how global citizenship can help to improve our world. ?

Teachers can encourage students to spread the message about?SDGs in?various?ways. For example, students can:??

  • Give speeches?– at school or in the local community.?
  • Begin a fundraising?campaign.?
  • Write letters to politicians.

Teaching students to be global citizens may sound like a big task. However, through weaving these ideas through language lessons, teachers have the opportunity to plant an important seed in students. Because who knows, they may really grow up to change the world.?

About Rise and Shine

Rise and Shine?is a 7-level story-based primary course that combines language learning with global citizenship. It is built on the?Global Scale of English, which helps students to understand exactly what they are learning and why.

The course?inspires learners to become?confident explorers?– they learn English and aim to become responsible global citizens. The series is also designed for use in inclusive and mixed-ability classrooms and supports every learner to achieve and shine.

Learn more about Rise and Shine

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  • A Parent reading to his two children from a book with all three of them laying on the floor

    How can teachers encourage parents to get kids reading at home?

    By Donatella Fitzgerald MBE

    “Sharing a story with your child is one of the most incredible things you can do for them.” – .

    Research shows that getting kids reading at home can increase their reading ability at school – and improve their overall well-being. Parents and guardians can make a big difference. But how can teachers encourage parents to get their children to read more at home? We explore some strategies you can use.

    Tell parents about the benefits

    Reading can give children a break from technology-centered activities. It can help them to relax and unwind; reading a book can make children laugh and feel happier! Through hearing stories, children are also exposed to a rich and broad vocabulary.

    “It is important for teachers to establish contact with parents as much as possible and give very clear guidelines on the benefits of reading, and how they can create a reading routine and help their children read at home,” says Kasia Janitz-De La Rue, Product Development Director at 蜜桃app.

    So, encourage parents to find time for a reading routine. Just before bedtime is a great time, as .

    Give parents practical ideas for reading strategies

    Encourage parents to read with and not to their child. It doesn’t matter how long they set aside to read – just 10 minutes of quality reading time can make a big difference.

    Here are a few tips concrete reading tips for teachers to share with parents:

    • Ask children lots of questions while reading.
    • Use encouragement and praise to keep children engaged. Saying things like “what fantastic ideas” or “you thought so carefully about that, what might happen now?"?will keep their minds working.
    • Use their past experiences to talk about what’s being read. Things like “have you learnt about…at school?” or “do you remember when we watched…and found out about…?” are good conversation starters.
    • Tune in and listen to children, and be curious about their interests. “I didn’t know you knew so much about…” or “I love reading stories about…with you,” are good phrases to keep in mind.

    It’s also a great idea to share online resources with parents. You can also suggest that parents look up read-aloud YouTube videos featuring authors, teachers or librarians reading their favorite stories. This way, children can watch and listen as often as they like.

    Recommend graded readers

    Graded readers are books that use language in line with a child‘s learning level. They can help children build confidence, and help slowly expose them to authentic reading levels.

    Encourage parents to identify what genre their child is interested in and show them the readers available. Each time parents see their children move up a level, they’re sure to see their children’s love for reading grow.

    Suggest before, during, and after reading activities

    Before reading

    Parents can take turns with their children to predict what the story is about – or what will happen next. Here is an activity teachers may suggest they try:

    “Start with the cover of the book and the blurb on the back cover. Reveal the cover slowly to ask the child what they can see. Ask them to guess what is on the cover. Once they have seen the cover, ask them questions about the images on the cover – who, what, why, where and how?”

    While reading

    Remind parents to focus on their children’s reading comprehension by using strategies like prediction, questioning, clarifying, and summarising. Teachers can ask parents to:

    • check ideas and understanding as the child reads: ‘So, you think that….’ ‘Did you expect…to happen?’ ‘Why do you think that happened?’
    • use the pictures in the book to help with comprehension
    • describe what is happening and talk about the characters.

    After reading

    Don’t forget: parents can continue to explore the book’s topic once reading time is done! A few ideas to share with parents include:

    • organising a puppet show for family members and siblings after making puppets of the characters in the book
    • having children draw a picture of their favorite character or their favorite page in the story
    • encouraging children to express their opinion on the book.