Plan a Wellbeing Event

Overview

Students investigate how a school event can promote mental health, connection and supportive friendships. They view short, teacher-selected videos about planning events and asking “Are you OK?”, then work in small online groups to design a safe, inclusive R U OK? Day activity for their school community.

Learning intentions

Students will:

• identify features of an effective health-promotion event
• plan an activity that encourages connection and supportive friendships
• use trusted resources and protective behaviours when responding to a friend who may need help
• consider safety, inclusion, accessibility and wellbeing when planning an event

Success criteria

• I can explain the purpose and target audience of our event.
• I can contribute practical ideas for an activity, materials, roles and timing.
• I can include a safe response to someone who may not be OK.
• I can give and use respectful feedback to improve a plan.

Curriculum links

• Plan and implement strategies using health resources to enhance health, safety, relationships and wellbeing.
• Refine protective behaviours and evaluate community resources for seeking help for themselves and others.
• Investigate how media and influential people impact health-related attitudes, decisions and behaviours.
• Analyse emotional responses and devise strategies to self-manage emotions and support others.

Lesson structure (35 minutes)

1. 0–4 min · Welcome and safe learning agreement. Teacher opens with the hook and learning intentions and explains that students may discuss ideas without sharing personal experiences; if a concern arises, they should speak privately with a trusted adult rather than trying to manage it alone. Students respond in the Canvas chat or poll: “What helps people feel connected at school?”

2. 4–10 min · Video and event-planning focus. Teacher plays two brief, captioned, age-appropriate video extracts embedded in the event-planning and R U OK? video slides: one about planning a successful event and one modelling a respectful check-in. Pause to ask: “Who is the event for?”, “What makes an activity safe and welcoming?” and “What could you say if a friend says they are not OK?” Students record three useful ideas on the event-planning worksheet.

3. 10–15 min · Teach the planning framework. Teacher models the planning sequence on the planning framework slide: purpose, audience, activity, people and roles, resources, timing, promotion, safety and evaluation. Emphasise that asking “Are you OK?” means listening without judgement, not promising secrecy, and connecting a person with a trusted adult or appropriate support. Students suggest one possible event idea and identify its intended positive impact.

4. 15–25 min · Group event design. Teacher places students in five breakout groups of four and displays the group challenge and planning prompts. Each group completes the main sections of the group event-planning page for a realistic school-based activity, such as a lunchtime connection station, kindness message wall, walking-and-talking activity or music and games space. Students assign roles and include one inclusion adjustment, one safety strategy, and a clear pathway to adult help.

5. 25–31 min · Present and peer review. Teacher brings students back together; each group gives a 45-second pitch using its plan. Classmates use the peer assessment template to rate clarity, wellbeing impact, inclusiveness and practicality, then provide one specific strength and one improvement. Teacher prompts constructive language: “This would work well because…” and “You could make it safer or more inclusive by…”

6. 31–35 min · Review and exit response. Teacher uses the plenary and help-seeking slides to revisit the learning intentions and remind students of the school counsellor, wellbeing staff, trusted adults and emergency support procedures. Students submit the final questions on the individual reflection and exit ticket: “One feature of a successful event is…”, “One way our plan supports wellbeing is…”, and “If I were worried about a friend, I could contact…”

Resources

• Canvas LMS lesson page and breakout rooms
• the R U OK? Day planning and wellbeing slide deck
• the event-planning worksheet
• the peer assessment template
• Two short, captioned, teacher-selected videos embedded in the slide deck
• Timer and Canvas poll or chat
• School wellbeing and help-seeking information
• Device, headphones and reliable internet access

Assessment

• Check chat or poll responses for students’ understanding of connection, safe participation and help-seeking.
• Review group worksheets for a clear purpose, target audience, practical roles, inclusion and safety strategies.
• Use the peer assessment and exit ticket to assess whether students can explain how their event promotes wellbeing and identify an appropriate trusted support.

Differentiation

• Provide sentence starters on the worksheet, such as “Our event aims to…”, “Students can participate by…” and “If someone needs help, we will…”.
• Offer a choice of event ideas and allow students to contribute through speaking, typing, drawing or organising information.
• Provide captions, transcripts, replay options and teacher notes for students with hearing, language or processing needs; pre-teach terms such as audience, inclusion, promotion and evaluation.
• Extend confident groups by asking them to create a simple promotional message and explain how they would measure the event’s impact without collecting private mental health information.
• Remind students not to disclose personal or identifying information in the chat. Follow the school’s wellbeing and mandatory-reporting procedures if a student raises a concern.