Communication and Listening

Overview

In this third lesson of Mahitahi and Wellbeing, students practise communication and active listening skills that support respectful relationships. They apply these skills to low-risk, everyday scenarios without needing to disclose personal experiences.

Learning intentions

• WALT use an I-statement or clear request.
• WALT listen without interrupting and allow wait time.
• WALT check understanding by paraphrasing and asking open questions.
• WALT respond with empathy while respecting consent and boundaries.

Success criteria

• I can use an I-statement or clear request.
• I can listen without interrupting and use appropriate non-verbal communication.
• I can paraphrase what someone has said and ask an open question.
• I can respond with empathy and respect another person’s boundaries.

Curriculum links

• Health and PE — Relationships / Self and others: respectful relationships, empathy and communication.
• Health and PE — Self-care: self-awareness and resilience during adolescent changes and relationships.
• Health and PE — Health Education: cultural awareness, empathy and respectful communication.
• Key competencies: relating to others; managing self; participating and contributing.

Lesson structure (60 minutes)

1. 0–7 min · Welcome and hook. Display the question “What makes someone feel heard?” using the opening question slide. Invite silent thinking, then pair discussion; establish that students may pass, observe, or use an alternative communication method. Explain that examples will be fictional and no one is expected to share real relationship issues.

2. 7–17 min · Model listening. Use the helpful and unhelpful listening slides to model a short conversation twice: first with interruptions, distracted body language and assumptions, then with wait time, attention and a respectful response. Students identify what they noticed, including verbal and non-verbal communication. Clarify whakarongo (listen), kōrero (talk/conversation), whakamana (affirm/enable), empathy, perspective, consent and boundaries.

3. 17–25 min · Teach and rehearse. Model the communication tools on the communication tools slides: “I feel… when… I need/would like…”, clear requests, paraphrasing (“What I’m hearing is…”), and open questions beginning with “what”, “how” or “could”. Distribute the communication practice sheet. Students privately complete two sentence stems and rehearse them with a partner, using a visual timer and predictable turn-taking.

4. 25–43 min · Triad practice. Place students in triads with rotating speaker, listener and observer roles. Provide fictional scenario cards, such as planning a game, welcoming a new student, or resolving a shared task. The speaker presents the situation, the listener paraphrases and asks one open question, and the speaker responds; the observer records one “noticed” strength and one “wonder” or next step on the worksheet. After each round, students swap roles. Remind students that consent includes being able to pause or decline a role-play.

5. 43–52 min · Non-verbal challenge. Show the non-verbal communication challenge slide. In pairs, students communicate a simple message such as “I need more time” or “I agree” using a chosen mode: gesture, drawing, written words, communication cards, AAC, or speech. Partners check meaning rather than guessing, then discuss how culture, disability, neurodiversity and personal preference can affect communication. Offer opt-out observation roles and interpreter support where needed.

6. 52–60 min · Debrief and exit reflection. Lead the prompts on the debrief and exit slides: “Whose voices may be heard easily in a group?” and “Who might be overlooked, and what could make participation fairer?” Students complete the worksheet confidence scale from 1–5 and select one skill to practise this week. Invite a few general observations, not personal disclosures, and collect worksheets.

Resources

• the Communication and Listening slide deck
• the communication practice sheet
• Scenario cards: planning a game, welcoming a new student, resolving a shared task
• Listening checklist
• Sentence stems and open-question prompts
• Visual timer
• Visual communication cards
• AAC and other communication supports
• Whiteboard and markers

Assessment

• During modelling and triads, listen for paraphrasing, wait time, respectful questioning, empathy and appropriate boundary language.
• Use observer “noticed/wonder” feedback to assess whether students can identify effective communication behaviours.
• Review the confidence scale and chosen practice skill as an exit check; note students needing further rehearsal or support in the next lesson.

Differentiation

• Provide sentence stems, vocabulary with simple explanations, worked examples, visual prompts and rehearsal time before role-play.
• Use predictable turn-taking, a visible timer, written instructions and small, supportive triads; allow students to observe, scribe, draw, use AAC or communicate without speech.
• EAL learners may plan responses in their first language, use bilingual support, or select from open-question cards. Provide interpreter access where required.
• Do not require disclosure of real relationship issues. Offer fictional scenarios, a pass option and a quiet space for students who find role-play or non-verbal tasks uncomfortable.
• Extend confident students by asking them to adapt their communication for a different perspective, check consent before continuing, and explain how power or group dynamics may affect whose voice is heard.