I strongly recommend these manuals because they contain exceptionally high-quality, interactive exercises that have been extensively tested and proven effective in practice.

Compass and Compasito are flagship educational resources of the Council of Europe and are available in almost all Council of Europe languages.

There is no better tool for introducing human rights education: they offer engaging, learner-centred activities that make human rights tangible, relevant and accessible for different age groups. My favourite activities for younger children are: Sailing to a new land, Rabbit Rights, and Take a small step forward.

I recommend Stories that Move, a free educational platform developed by the Anne Frank House and its partners. Its online toolbox offers five learning paths with video interviews, worksheets and educators’ guides on identity, diversity, discrimination, media and taking action.

What I particularly value is its use of storytelling. At Wisamar, we work extensively with this method because personal stories make complex social issues accessible and relatable. Young people’s experiences introduce different perspectives and encourage learners to reflect on their own assumptions and discuss prejudice, belonging and inequality.

The materials combine online and offline activities and can be used in civics, history, ethics, social sciences and language teaching. They are available in nine languages.

The European Citizens’ Initiative is an important instrument of democratic participation. It enables citizens to bring their concerns to the European level. However, many young people are still unaware of this opportunity for civic participation.

A great way to introduce young people to it is through the educational toolkit “EU Democracy in Action”, designed for upper secondary education. Its four sequential modules and accompanying teacher support materials allow students to explore the ECI in a practical and engaging way.

By the end of the course, students understand the purpose and functioning of the ECI, its importance for democracy in the European Union and how it can influence decisions affecting their lives. Students who complete the toolkit can also receive a certificate.

I recommend Partecipiamo!, a practical educational toolkit focused on student participation and democratic engagement at school. Developed through an experimental process involving schools in Milan, it offers teachers a structured pathway to help students understand participation, explore different ways of getting involved and experiment with participatory activities in the classroom.

Rather than approaching democracy only theoretically, the toolkit encourages students to experience participation directly through activities and discussions. The materials are available in Italian and can be adapted to different classroom contexts and age groups.

I also recommend the Generazioni Connesse Educational Kit, which provides practical classroom materials on digital citizenship, including digital identity, privacy, online relationships, cyberbullying and responsible use of digital technologies.

Its hands-on materials can be integrated directly into classroom work and provide a useful basis for exploring critical thinking and responsible participation in digital environments.

I strongly recommend this resource because it combines concise background information on Digital Citizenship Education with practical teaching activities for the classroom. It helps students reflect on how values are embedded in technology and how European values can be strengthened in the digital sphere.

The material makes clear that digital freedom requires informed and autonomous choices, while digital justice also means addressing unequal access, algorithmic bias, surveillance and the commercial use of personal data. I particularly value its practical, cross-curricular approach and its focus on critical reflection.

This collection of educational materials for socio-ecological transformation has accompanied me from the beginning of my work with groups until today. It covers a wide range of topics in critical, self-reflective, transformational and empowering citizenship education.

What I like most is that the materials are made by education practitioners, tested in the field and continuously updated. When I use one of these methods in a workshop, I often receive good feedback because they are fun, creative and original while allowing participants to gain deep insight into a topic.

You can search for a method that suits your needs using the filter option. The tools are available in German, English and Spanish.