Kia Kaha Toolkit

Overview

In this lesson, students build a “Courage Toolkit” to support resilience when they feel fear, stress, or uncertainty during camp challenges (e.g., heights activities, kayaking, and homesickness). They practise recognising stress responses, reframing thoughts, and choosing helpful strategies that include respectful help-seeking.

Learning intentions

• WALT notice how stress responses can show up in thoughts, feelings, body sensations, and behaviours.
• WALT use challenge-based thinking to reframe fear into doable next steps (small, specific actions).
• WALT practise self-regulation strategies for anxiety and uncertainty during camp activities.
• WALT identify who they can seek support from and how to ask for help respectfully.

Success criteria

• I can name at least 3 signs of a stress response and what they might be telling me.
• I can use a courage script to reframe “I can’t” into a plan for the next step.
• I can choose one calming strategy and one boundary/support strategy that fits the moment.
• I can write a help-seeking message that sounds respectful and specific.

Curriculum links

• Health and PE — Health Education / Self-care: learning to understand stress responses and manage them by reframing thoughts, setting boundaries, and maintaining supportive relationships.
• Health and PE — Health Education / Self-care: resilience includes feeling stuck for a time, needing support, or taking time to recover before moving forward.
• Health and PE — Health Education: developing strategies such as emotional regulation, self-awareness, planning, and help-seeking to manage change.

Lesson structure (45 minutes)

1. 0–5 min · Whakataukī focus. Teacher writes: “Kia kaha, kia māia, kia manawanui” and asks: “What would ‘brave’ look like when you feel scared?” Students turn-and-talk, then share one idea in a whole-class round.

2. 5–12 min · Stress response radar. Teacher introduces a simple “Radar” chart (Thoughts / Body / Feelings / Actions) and gives examples: tight chest, fast heartbeat, “I’ll mess up,” avoidance, needing to ask to stop. Students work in pairs to complete a mini scenario (“Camp challenge is coming up—what might your radar show?”) and contribute answers to the class chart.

3. 12–20 min · Direct teach: courage vs fear. Teacher explains: stress responses are normal reactions to challenge; courage doesn’t mean ‘no fear’, it means choosing helpful steps while fear is present. Students identify one common camp fear (heights, kayaking, new group, sleeping away) and place it in their notebook as the focus for later practice.

4. 20–28 min · Toolkit build: challenge-based thinking. Teacher models a “Next-Step Reframe” using three prompts:

• “What is the scary thought?”
• “What is the evidence I can do a next step?”
• “What is one small action for the next 30 seconds?” Students choose one of their fears and complete the reframe template, writing one next step they could do on camp (e.g., “Hold the rope with my feet planted,” “Ask the instructor to explain one time,” “Do one breath and listen.”).

5. 28–36 min · Self-regulation practise: 3-step calm. Teacher leads a short, respectful routine (counted breathing or grounding):

• Stop (notice “my radar is on”)
• Breathe/ground (feet on floor, slow breaths)
• Choose (state the plan: “I can do the next step” or “I will ask for help”) Students practise silently, then circle which strategy they would use for heights anxiety vs homesickness/uncertainty.

6. 36–42 min · Help-seeking: how to ask. Teacher teaches a simple help-seeking script: “I’m noticing… I need help with… Could we…?” and reminds students to be specific, respectful, and to use the right person (buddy, instructor, kaiako/counsellor). Students write one help message for a camp moment (e.g., “I’m getting shaky on the platform and can’t focus. I need a quick check-in before I go.”).

7. 42–45 min · Exit ticket. Teacher asks students to submit: one line each—(1) my courage reframe sentence, (2) my chosen next-step action, (3) who I would ask for help. Students complete the exit ticket quietly.

Resources

• Courage Toolkit template (one per student: Radar + Next-Step Reframe + 3-step calm + Help script)
• Scenario cards with common camp fears (heights, kayaking, trying new activities, homesickness)
• Whiteboard/markers
• Timer for practise routine
• Student notebooks or printed workbook pages
• Reflection slips for exit ticket
• Optional: calm-grounding visual (e.g., “Feet, breaths, plan” poster)

Assessment

• Formative: teacher circulates during the Radar and reframe activities, listening for accurate identification of stress signs and realistic next steps.
• Formative: students’ help-seeking messages are checked for respectfulness and specificity (who + what + request).
• Exit ticket: confirms each student can complete a reframe, select a calming strategy, and name an appropriate support person.

Differentiation

• Support: provide sentence starters for the reframe (“My scary thought is…”, “A small next step I can try is…”) and help script (“I’m noticing…, so I need help with…”).
• Support: allow students to choose from pre-made camp scenarios or draw a quick symbol for their fear if writing is challenging.
• Extension: for students ready to go further, ask them to add a “what if” plan (“If my fear gets louder, I will…”), including a boundary (e.g., taking a break and re-joining with support).
• SEN/EAL: offer a word bank (fear, body, thoughts, breathe, ground, next step, help) and model one example before release to pairs.

Extension (optional)

• Skip.