Overview

This series of 11 lessons is designed for Year 1 students in New Zealand Catholic schools to explore and grow their relationship with God. The lessons are tightly aligned with the New Zealand Curriculum Refresh and Catholic Education values, emphasising the idea of the relationship with God as a taonga (treasure), integrating age-appropriate skills, concepts, and key competencies.

Each lesson is 17 minutes long, suitable for a Year 1 class of 20 students, with activity timing considering young children's attention spans. Language and activities are dyslexia-friendly, and differentiation strategies ensure all learners can engage meaningfully.

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Curriculum References

• Religious Education Learning Objective: Notice and describe different ways we can grow our relationship with God
• Key Competencies:
  • Managing self — participating confidently and independently
  • Relating to others — sharing and communicating ideas
  • Participating and contributing — engaging in shared stories and prayer
• Values: Respect (Manaakitanga), Wonder and Joy (Ngākau)
• Principles: Inclusivity, Cultural Responsiveness, and Treaty of Waitangi commitment (e.g., respecting the Māori concept of taonga)
• Alignment: Based on teacher's instructions with focus on:
  • Talking and listening to God (prayer, song, silence)
  • Recognising God’s names and images (Father, Shepherd, Creator)
  • Exploring Catholic story and why relationship with God is important.

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Lesson Plan Summary for 11 Days

Each lesson begins with WALT (We Are Learning To) and states clear Success Criteria (SC)
Dyslexia-friendly reading and visual cues incorporated.
Differentiation: manipulatives, visual aids, peer support
Extension: Story sequencing, reflective Q&A

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Day 1: Wondering about God

WALT: Notice where we see and hear God
SC:

• I can say where I see God at school and home
• I can listen and share about God’s presence
  Activities:
• Storytime with a simple picture book showing God in nature and family
• Group circle: children share where they see or hear God
  Differentiation: Use picture cards for prompt; non-verbal children use drawing
  Extension: Draw a 'God sighting' at home

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Day 2: Talking to God — Prayer

WALT: Describe how we can talk to God through prayer
SC:

• I can name ways people pray
• I can practise a simple class prayer
  Activities:
• Model a simple prayer (e.g., “Thank you God for...”)
• Children practise with a partner
• Create ‘prayer hands’ craft to take home
  Differentiation: Use prayer sentence starters
  Extension: Write own short thank-you prayer

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Day 3: Listening to God — Silence and Stories

WALT: Notice that listening to God can be quiet and through stories
SC:

• I can be still and listen quietly
• I can tell a favourite Bible story
  Activities:
• Guided quiet time with calming music (1 minute silence focusing on "God’s voice")
• Read a short Bible story (e.g., The Good Shepherd) with pictures
• Children retell story in pairs
  Differentiation: Use a story map visual
  Extension: Act out the story roles in small groups

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Day 4: Names & Images of God (Part 1)

WALT: Recognise some names of God
SC:

• I can say names like Father, Creator
• I can match pictures to names
  Activities:
• Picture/name matching game (Father, Shepherd, Creator)
• Sing a simple song about God's names (repetitive and melodic)
  Differentiation: Extra picture support for ELLs and students with reading challenges
  Extension: Create a God-names collage

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Day 5: Names & Images of God (Part 2)

WALT: Recognise images of God (Shepherd, Light)
SC:

• I can describe images of God from stories
• I can draw one image and explain it
  Activities:
• Story read with images: Jesus as the Shepherd
• Art activity: draw and colour an image of God
  Differentiation: Provide stencils or tracing for drawing
  Extension: Share why they like one image

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Day 6: Growing Relationship — Love

WALT: Understand showing love helps grow relationship with God
SC:

• I can name ways to show love at school or home
• I can share about love as God’s gift
  Activities:
• Role-play showing kindness and love
• Sharing circle: how do we show love to God and others?
  Differentiation: Use social stories for examples
  Extension: Write/draw a ‘love’ message

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Day 7: Growing Relationship — Prayer and Song

WALT: Describe how singing and praying help us talk to God
SC:

• I can sing a prayer song with the class
• I can say why singing helps me talk to God
  Activities:
• Learn and sing a simple Catholic prayer song
• Discuss feelings when singing and praying
  Differentiation: Use movement with song (clapping/stomping)
  Extension: Make up own prayer song lines in pairs

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Day 8: Growing Relationship — Listening and Silence

WALT: Describe how silence helps us listen to God
SC:

• I can practise being quiet to listen
• I can share what I noticed when listening quietly
  Activities:
• Mindful breathing and silence exercise
• Draw or talk about what God might be saying
  Differentiation: Use soft tactile objects for tactile focus
  Extension: Create a ‘listening to God’ calm corner in class

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Day 9: Wondering about Our Catholic Story

WALT: Share a wondering about a Catholic story
SC:

• I can say a question I have about God or our story
• I can tell why it’s important to me
  Activities:
• Reflective circle with question prompts (e.g., “I wonder...” or “Why does God...”)
• Share stories or moments they remember about God
  Differentiation: Provide sentence starters and visuals
  Extension: Record or draw a wonder question to share

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Day 10: Our Relationship as a Taonga

WALT: Understand why our relationship with God is a special taonga
SC:

• I can say what taonga means
• I can say why my relationship with God is special
  Activities:
• Show real or picture taonga (treasures) and relate to God’s relationship
• Children describe their ‘God taonga’ (what makes it precious)
  Differentiation: Use concrete examples for taonga
  Extension: Create a ‘God Taonga’ box with drawings or writings

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Day 11: Celebration and Reflection

WALT: Celebrate how we can grow our relationship with God
SC:

• I can talk about different ways to grow my relationship with God
• I can share my favourite part of our learning
  Activities:
• Class sharing circle: children share their favourite way to talk or listen to God
• Group prayer/song celebration
• Display children’s artworks and writings from previous lessons
  Differentiation: Use peer support for sharing
  Extension: Invite families to see children’s ‘God Taonga’ work

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Differentiation Summary

• Visual supports: pictures, story maps, name/image cards
• Sentence stems and structured language prompts
• Peer pairing and small groups for social learners
• Manipulatives and arts-based tasks for kinesthetic learners
• Use of audio versions or read-aloud for students with reading difficulties
• Small group reteach or extension for advanced learners

Dyslexia-Friendly Reading Strategies

• Clear, simple fonts (e.g., OpenDyslexic if possible) on handouts
• High contrast colours and uncluttered layout
• Large images to support text
• Repeated oral reading and discussion
• Break content into small, manageable segments

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This 11-day plan aligns with the New Zealand Curriculum’s principles of inclusion, student engagement, and cultural responsiveness alongside Catholic values and aims, teaching students to appreciate and grow their special relationship with God in accessible, student-friendly ways .