Growing Good Whānau

Health Lesson Plan – Year 5

Unit Title: Playground Rights Exploration
Lesson: 1 of 5
Lesson Title: Introduction to Playground Rights
Time: 60 minutes
Class size: 25 students
Curriculum Area: Health and Physical Education – Level 3, Strand D: Healthy Communities and Environments
Christian Worldview Integration: Recognising each other as taonga (treasures), created in the image of God, worthy of dignity, care, and respect during times of play.

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WALT (We Are Learning To)

• Understand what “rights” mean in the context of playground play.
• Recognise that all children have the right to feel safe, included, and respected during play.
• Begin to explore how God calls us to care for one another in every space, including the playground.

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Success Criteria

Students will be able to:

• Clearly explain what “rights” on the playground may look like.
• Share one example of how they can respect others’ rights during playtime.
• Work collaboratively and contribute to group discussions.
• Begin using Te Reo Māori to describe feelings and rights (e.g. tika, manaakitanga, haumaru).

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Resources

• Large sheets of butchers’ paper
• Markers, coloured pencils
• Printed dyslexia-friendly reading strips on rights (OpenDyslexic font)
• Playground Rights Image cards
• Bible verse poster: “So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you.” – Matthew 7:12
• Classroom values poster (including manaakitanga and aroha)

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Key Vocabulary

• Rights
• Responsibilities
• Respect
• Safe / Haumaru
• Kindness / Aroha
• Inclusion / Kotahitanga

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Lesson Sequence (60 minutes total)

1. Karakia and Welcome – 5 minutes

Begin with a karakia timatanga (opening prayer), focusing on God’s desire for peace, fairness and care among tamariki. Welcome students and share the day's WALT.

Karakia example:
E te Atua, whakarongo mai ki ā mātou karakia. Awhinatia mātou ki te kitea he ara tika e noho tahi ai mātou i te pai me te aroha i te papa tākaro. Āmine.

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2. Circle Time: What Are Rights? – 10 minutes

Purpose: Build shared understanding of “rights”.

• Sit in a circle and use a talking stick (use a taonga or soft ball). Ask:
  ❓ “What do you think the word ‘rights’ means?”
  ❓ “Why might we have rights on the playground?”
  🟡 Use a simple metaphor, e.g. “Rights are like a kete we carry. They keep us safe, happy and strong.”
• Use sentence starters to guide students who need extra help:
  • “A right is when I can…”
  • “I feel safe when…”

Differentiation Strategy:
Use illustrated “rights” cards with dyslexia-friendly font and symbols for ESOL and neurodiverse learners (e.g. an image of a child sitting with a friend = inclusion).

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3. Read-Aloud: "Tīma Tākaro – Our Playground Whānau" – 10 minutes

Resource: Create a short, teacher-written narrative or reader about a group of diverse tamariki playing on the playground and noticing how things feel when people do/don’t respect their rights.

Include characters with different needs (e.g. a wheelchair user, a shy child, a very active child).

Extension opportunity: Advanced readers can read dialogue aloud with expression and reflect on the consequences of positive and negative actions.

Guiding Questions:
🟤 “How did the characters show respect?”
🟤 “What rights were protected or ignored?”
🟤 "What would Jesus say about how we treat each other on the playground?"

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4. Group Jigsaw Activity: Mapping Our Rights – 20 minutes

Purpose: Collaboratively identify and map out key playground rights.

Instructions:

• Divide class into five groups of five students.
• Each group gets:
  • Butchers’ paper
  • Markers
  • A “Playground Right” from a set (e.g. Right to feel safe / Right to be included / Right to speak up / Right to be yourself / Right to play fair).
• Groups draw images, write examples, and translate key words into Te Reo Māori.
• Use sentence scaffolds displayed on the board:
  • “A right we have is…”
  • “We can protect this right by…”

Supports for Diverse Learners:

• Provide visual cues for neurodiverse learners.
• Use peer support: One student reads while another draws.
• Supply native language picture cards for ELL students as needed.

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5. Whole-Class Hui: Share Our Rights Posters – 10 minutes

Groups present their posters to the class. While presenting, groups must:

• Say the right in English & Te Reo Māori (e.g. "Right to be safe – Te tika kia haumaru ai.")
• Share one scenario when this right is important.

Celebrate how each group showed manaakitanga (care) and kotahitanga (unity). Connect this time to God’s design for respectful community.

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6. Closing Reflection and Connection to Scripture – 5 minutes

• Refer to the Bible poster: “Do to others what you would have them do to you” – Matthew 7:12.
• Ask:
  • “How did we treat others like we would like to be treated today?”
  • “How does God feel when we respect each other’s rights?”
• Close with a short prayer of thanks.

“E te Atua, he taonga mātou katoa. Āwhinatia mātou ki te manaaki i ō mātou hoa, i te papa tākaro me ngā wā katoa. Āmine.”

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Differentiation & Support Strategies

• Dyslexia Support: Use OpenDyslexic font for all printed resources
• ESOL Learners: Use visuals and bilingual labels
• Neurodiverse Learners: Choice in expression (e.g., drawing vs speaking) and access to peer or teacher support
• Christian Worldview: Highlight how God’s love and justice inspire our treatment of others, even at play

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Extension Activities

• 🤔 Deep Thinkers Journal Prompt: “What would a playground with no kindness or rights feel like? What would you do about it?”
• 🎭 Roleplay Option: Create short skits where characters demonstrate rights being upheld or ignored. Encourage student-led scenarios.
• 🧠 Challenge Words: Explore more Te Reo Māori terms like whakarongo (listen), whakaute (respect), and tautoko (support).

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Te Ao Māori Integration

• Use Te Reo Māori consistently throughout the lesson, including greetings, key vocabulary, and karakia.
• Embed whanaungatanga, manaakitanga, and kotahitanga concepts in discussions about community and play.
• Encourage tamariki to see themselves as guardians (kaitiaki) of the playground environment.

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This lesson helps build a strong foundation in values-based health education through the lens of both the NZ Curriculum and a Christian worldview — integrating manaakitanga, whanaungatanga, and God's call to love our neighbours.