SDG activities for kids
Simple ideas for home or class, from age 6. Each takes 15 to 30 minutes, needs almost no materials and ends with one question to talk about.
SDG 1 · No Poverty
Give each child an imaginary €20 for a family's food for a day, then €5. What goes on each list? What gets left out?
Talk about it: Is it fair that some families must choose between food and shoes?
Story for this Goal: The Tree Woman
SDG 2 · Zero Hunger
For one day, note every bit of food left on plates at home or in the canteen. Sort it: could it have been saved, shared or composted?
Talk about it: Where could this food have gone instead of the bin?
Story for this Goal: The Banker to the Poor
SDG 3 · Good Health and Well-being
Make a chart with three daily habits (water, moving for an hour, sleep) and tick them for a week. Talk about which was hardest.
Talk about it: Why is it easier to stay healthy when everyone has a doctor nearby?
Story for this Goal: The House of Hope
SDG 4 · Quality Education
Each child picks a skill they know (a knot, a game rule, a word in another language) and teaches it to a younger child or a grandparent in five minutes.
Talk about it: What do you need to be able to learn: a book, a teacher, a quiet place?
Story for this Goal: The Children's House
SDG 5 · Gender Equality
List the jobs at home (cooking, washing, fixing, shopping) and who usually does each one. Then plan a fairer week together.
Talk about it: Is any job only for girls or only for boys?
Story for this Goal: Isabel's Bright Ideas
SDG 6 · Clean Water and Sanitation
Estimate the water your family uses in a day: a shower is about 50 litres, a toilet flush 6 to 9. Then find one way to use less.
Talk about it: What would change in your day if water came from a well an hour away?
Story for this Goal: The Water Man
SDG 7 · Affordable and Clean Energy
Walk around the home or classroom with a checklist: lights left on, chargers plugged in, standby lights. Agree on three switch-off rules.
Talk about it: Where does the electricity in your home come from?
Story for this Goal: A Furrowed Brow
SDG 8 · Decent Work and Economic Growth
Children ask a relative or neighbour three questions about their job: what they do, what makes it a good job, what they would change.
Talk about it: What makes a job fair: the pay, the hours, being safe, being respected?
Story for this Goal: His Mother's Gaze
SDG 9 · Industry, Innovation and Infrastructure
With paper, tape and straws, build a bridge between two books that holds as many coins as possible. Test, improve, test again.
Talk about it: Which invention near your home makes life easier for everyone?
Story for this Goal: The Maths Game
SDG 10 · Reduced Inequalities
Run a short race where some children start further back or carry a bag. Then talk about how it felt and how to make the race fair.
Talk about it: Who in your town might find it harder to take part, and why?
Story for this Goal: The Sower of Dreams
SDG 11 · Sustainable Cities and Communities
Draw a map of the street around your home or school. Mark what works (a bench, a tree, a crossing) and what is missing.
Talk about it: What one thing would make your street better for everyone?
Story for this Goal: The Dog that Said Woof
SDG 12 · Responsible Consumption and Production
For one week, before buying or asking for anything new, ask three questions: do I need it, can I borrow it, can I fix what I have?
Talk about it: Where do your clothes go when you stop wearing them?
Story for this Goal: A Chicken Thigh
SDG 13 · Climate Action
Keep a two-week diary of temperature, rain and wind, then ask a grandparent what the same month was like when they were young.
Talk about it: What could your class or family do this month to help the climate?
Story for this Goal: His Name is Murphy!
SDG 14 · Life Below Water
Fill a clear bottle with water and small bits of clean plastic waste. Shake it and watch: which bits float, which sink, which break into smaller pieces?
Talk about it: How could this plastic reach the sea from your home?
Story for this Goal: Glasses to Another World
SDG 15 · Life on Land
Mark one square metre of a park, garden or school yard with string and count every living thing you can find in ten minutes, with an adult.
Talk about it: What would happen to these creatures if the ground were covered with concrete?
Story for this Goal: Exodus
SDG 16 · Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions
Together, write five rules for the class or family that everyone agrees with, and decide what happens when a rule is broken.
Talk about it: Why is it important that rules are the same for everyone?
Story for this Goal: The Torch of Peace
SDG 17 · Partnerships for the Goals
Pick one of the 16 activities above and do it together with another class, family or a local group. Share what each side brought.
Talk about it: What can we do together that none of us could do alone?
Story for this Goal: A Huge Problem
Each Goal also has a picture book, a one-minute mission video, trivia questions and a chapter of the adventure game for ages 9 to 17. Goal 1 is free to try without an account.
See the Story LibraryThey work from age 6. Younger children need more help from an adult; older children can lead the activity themselves or adapt it.
No. Most activities need paper, a pen, string or things you already have at home or in class.
Yes. Each activity fits a 15 to 30 minute slot and can open a lesson on that Goal. Teachers also find full lesson plans on the Eco Heroes teachers page.
They are 17 goals agreed by all UN member states in 2015 to end poverty, protect the planet and improve lives by 2030.
