Community Projects

Overview

This lesson helps Year 12 students identify a local community well-being need and brainstorm realistic projects they could lead or co-lead. It builds directly toward the internal action requirement of AS91237 by moving from needs awareness to planned, workable project ideas.

Learning intentions

• Students will identify a local community issue affecting people’s well-being using a socio-ecological lens (individual, interpersonal, community).
• Students will brainstorm project ideas and sort them by relevance, feasibility, and potential impact.
• Students will begin drafting SMART goals for a community engagement project.
• Students will reflect on how leadership and connection skills can support well-being for others.

Success criteria

• I can name a specific well-being issue in our local area and explain why it matters.
• I can generate multiple project ideas and justify which one is most workable.
• I can write SMART goal statements linked to improving well-being.
• I can describe who would be involved and how we would measure success.

Curriculum links

• AS91237 — Take action to enhance an aspect of people’s well-being within the school or wider community (issue identification, workable SMART plan, implementation evaluation).
• AS91235 — Analyse an adolescent health issue by connecting influences, consequences, and health-enhancing strategies (used here to strengthen reasoning behind project ideas).
• Hauora and health promotion themes from Health Education: focus on improving well-being, not just raising awareness.

Lesson structure (50 minutes)

1. 0–5 min · Settling hook. Teacher displays three short community “need” prompts (e.g., youth connection, food insecurity support pathways, safer spaces at school/community). Students quick-write: “What might be affected in people’s well-being, and who might be impacted?”

2. 5–12 min · Mini-teach: community well-being. Teacher explains that a strong community engagement project starts with identifying an issue that affects well-being, then planning actions that are SMART and evidence-focused. Students annotate a class example (teacher models): issue → people affected → likely consequences → possible strategies.

3. 12–22 min · Needs scan (small groups). Students form groups of 3–4. Each group selects one locally relevant well-being theme from a provided list (teacher can adapt to local context and avoid sensitive topics). Groups complete a socio-ecological organiser:

• Individual (skills, knowledge, coping)
• Interpersonal (relationships, belonging, support)
• Community (access, services, environment, cultural safety) Students record: the issue statement in clear, specific language and why it matters.

4. 22–33 min · Brainstorm project possibilities. Teacher introduces “Project idea menu” categories:

• Connection and belonging (peer support, mentoring, community events)
• Food and nutrition support pathways (after-school hamper collection, cooking workshops with local partners)
• Physical safety and inclusion (buddy systems for safe routes, training, information sessions)
• Mental well-being support (resource sharing, activity days, wellbeing campaigns) Students brainstorm 6–8 project ideas per group, then shortlist the top 2 using quick filters: Who benefits? What can students realistically lead? What resources/partners are needed?

5. 33–42 min · SMART goal draft. Teacher demonstrates turning the chosen project into SMART goals:

• Specific: what action will happen
• Measurable: what evidence will show change (attendance numbers, participation counts, surveys, checklists)
• Achievable: student capacity and time scale
• Relevant: linked to the well-being issue
• Time-bound: start/finish dates and milestones Students draft one SMART goal and one supporting action step (e.g., “Run one community connection event in term 3 with partner X, aiming for at least 30 participant sign-ups, measured by sign-in data and a short anonymous feedback form by event end.”)

6. 42–48 min · Gallery walk and feedback. Groups post their issue statement + top project idea + SMART goal on the wall. Students do a gallery walk using two feedback prompts:

• “This could improve well-being because…”
• “One way to make it more workable is…” Each group collects at least two suggestions.

7. 48–50 min · Exit reflection. Individually, students complete an exit slip:

• Issue we’re focusing on:
• Our SMART goal:
• Evidence we could collect:
• One connection/leadership skill we will use:

Resources

• Project idea menu cards (teacher-prepared)
• Socio-ecological organiser template (print or digital)
• SMART goal sentence starters (print or digital)
• Wall/poster paper and markers
• Anonymous quick feedback form template (optional for rehearsal)
• Exit slip template

Assessment

• Formative: teacher circulates during needs scan and brainstorming to check students can clearly link issue → well-being consequences → possible strategies.
• Formative: review SMART goal drafts for specificity, measurability, achievability, relevance, and time boundaries.
• Summative preparation check: exit slips confirm each student can articulate an issue statement, a SMART goal, and what evidence could show impact (supporting AS91237 planning criteria).

Differentiation

• Support: provide sentence starters for the issue statement and SMART goals; offer a partially completed socio-ecological organiser for students who need it.
• Support for EAL: allow key words instead of full paragraphs in early planning, then require full sentences only in the SMART goal and exit slip.
• Extension: challenge groups to justify their project choice using a simple “influences → consequences → strategies” chain (strengthening AS91235-type reasoning).
• Inclusion: allow students to choose roles within groups (timekeeper, recorder, evidence designer) so leadership and connection skills are visible in different ways.