Context

Year Level: Year 0-1
Subject: Religious Education
Duration: 30 minutes
Class Size: 20 students
Unit: One Family, Many Faces
Lesson Number: 18 of 20
Lesson Title: Celebrating Our Global Family
Lesson Description:
Students will collaboratively plan a celebration that showcases the diversity of their classroom community. Families will be invited to share food, stories, and traditions, highlighting the many faces of their global family.

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Curriculum Links

New Zealand Curriculum Refresh – Religious Education

• Learning Area: Religious Education (Year 0-1 context) – Focus on understanding self and others, appreciating diversity of beliefs and practices.
• Key Competencies:
  • Relating to others: sharing ideas and listening respectfully to others' experiences and cultures.
  • Participating and contributing: working together to plan and organise an event.
  • Managing self: taking responsibility for tasks in a group setting.
• Values:
  • Respect, Diversity, Manaakitanga (showing care and hospitality).
• Achievement Objectives:
  • Recognise themselves and others as learners and members of diverse communities (adapted for Year 0-1).
  • Identify and celebrate similarities and differences among people in their class and community.
  • Express simple ideas about families and cultural traditions respectfully.

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Learning Intentions and Success Criteria

WALT (We Are Learning To)

• WALT plan a celebration that values and respects the diverse cultures and families in our class.
• WALT share stories or traditions from our families.
• WALT invite and welcome others to our celebration with kindness (manaakitanga).

Success Criteria

• I can share something special about my family or culture.
• I can listen and learn about my classmates’ families and backgrounds.
• I can help prepare for a class celebration by choosing something to share or helping organise.
• I show kindness and respect to everyone during our celebration.

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Lesson Plan

Time	Activity	Resources	Teaching Points & Notes
0-5 mins	Gather & Discuss	Circle time space, class globe or world map, photos of students’ families from previous lessons	Welcome students warmly. Introduce the idea of a class celebration to share our many cultures. Use globe/map to show where families might come from. Ask children to share simply what they think a celebration is. Encourage wonder and respect. Make connections to their own experiences.
5-15 mins	Planning our Celebration	Large chart paper/whiteboard, colourful markers, simple pictures/icons for types of food, music, stories	As a class, list ideas for the celebration: foods to bring, stories or songs to share, decorations. Use visuals for non-readers. Encourage children to volunteer ideas about their families’ special things. Introduce roles like ‘storyteller’, ‘food helper’, ‘greeter’. Keep language simple and inclusive. Scaffold turn-taking and sharing.
15-25 mins	Making Invitations & Role Practice	Paper, crayons, stickers for invitations; role-play props e.g. hats, pretend phones	Together, create simple invitations to send to families (with teacher support). Invite students to practise welcoming words and gestures in pairs, emphasising kindness (manaakitanga). Role-play might include greeting visitors, offering food, sharing a story. Keep it playful and supportive.
25-30 mins	Reflection and Closing Circle	Circle time space	Ask students how they feel about sharing their family’s culture. Highlight success criteria met during the planning. Reinforce the invitation to families and the excitement of sharing at the celebration. Close with a collective waiata or song about friendship and family.

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Assessment and Monitoring

• Formative Assessment:

  • Observe student participation in planning and sharing ideas, noting their ability to respect others’ contributions (relating to others).
  • Check for understanding through verbal responses and engagement with role-play.
  • Use a simple thumbs-up/thumbs-down or smiley face chart for students to self-assess if they feel ready and excited for the celebration.

• Teacher Notes:

  • Provide scaffolding during discussion with sentence starters, e.g., “My family celebrates…”, “We like to eat…”.
  • Show respect for all cultural stories shared; gently guide students to be listeners as well as sharers.
  • Consider children who may feel shy or whose cultural background is less visible—include every child in a meaningful way.

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Differentiation and Inclusion

• Use visual supports throughout to help all learners access the lesson ideas.
• Include bilingual resources or simple phrases in te reo Māori or other languages represented in class, to reflect the local cultural context.
• Be mindful of different family structures and experiences; ensure all children feel included as part of "our global family."
• For students with speech delays or ELLs (English language learners), encourage alternate forms of sharing like drawings or actions.

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Links to The New Zealand Curriculum Refresh Guidance

• Emphasis on participating and contributing through collaborative event planning.
• Use of oral language development as students tell about their families and cultures in simple terms (foundational for English literacy, supported by Te Mātaiaho resources).
• Integration of values such as respect and diversity as outlined in the curriculum principles and values section.
• Encourages relating to others competency through listening and sharing in a respectful group setting .

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Summary

This 30-minute lesson encourages students to collaboratively plan a celebration that honours the diversity within their classroom, linking closely to the New Zealand Curriculum Refresh and the key competencies of Religious Education. It balances active participation, cultural respect, and foundational oral language skills suitable for Year 0-1 learners, promoting a sense of belonging and global family awareness in a delightful, manageable way.