Mental Health Matters

Overview

This is lesson 14 of 28 in Building Hauora: Goal Setting & Wellbeing. Students develop age-appropriate mental health awareness by exploring what mental health means, recognising signs that someone may need support, and identifying practical coping strategies and trusted sources of help. The lesson builds on previous learning about hauora, personal strengths and goal setting without requiring students to disclose private experiences.

Learning intentions

Students will:

• understand that mental health is part of overall hauora and can change over time
• distinguish between everyday stress, low mood and situations requiring additional support
• identify healthy coping strategies and trusted people or services
• practise using respectful, non-judgemental language when discussing mental health.

Success criteria

• I can explain how mental health connects with taha tinana, taha hinengaro, taha whānau and taha wairua.
• I can identify signs that a person may need support, without diagnosing them.
• I can choose appropriate coping strategies for different situations.
• I can name at least two trusted support options and explain how to seek help.

Curriculum links

• Hauora: understanding the dimensions of wellbeing and how they influence one another.
• Mental health and wellbeing: exploring factors that support wellbeing, resilience and help-seeking.
• Health promotion: evaluating choices, relationships and environments that contribute to wellbeing.
• Key competencies: managing self, relating to others, participating and contributing, and thinking.

Lesson structure (60 minutes)

1. 0–5 min · Safe start and hook. Teacher welcomes students, displays the learning intentions using the opening and learning-intentions slides, and establishes discussion expectations: pass is allowed, no personal stories are required, listen respectfully, avoid labels, and speak to an adult if worried about safety. Students anonymously rate their current energy or mood from 1–5 on fingers or a private note; they do not need to share the reason.

2. 5–15 min · What is mental health? Teacher uses the hauora and mental-health teaching slides to explain that mental health includes thoughts, feelings, behaviours, relationships and the ability to respond to life’s challenges. Emphasise that everyone has mental health, it exists on a continuum, and changes do not automatically mean illness. Students complete the first section of the mental-health awareness worksheet, matching examples to taha hinengaro, taha tinana, taha whānau and taha wairua, then compare answers with a partner.

3. 15–27 min · Recognising signs and needs. Teacher presents three fictional, age-appropriate scenarios from the scenario discussion slides: a student feeling nervous before an assessment, a student withdrawing from friends and losing interest in activities for several weeks, and a student expressing that they do not feel safe. Clarify that students are not diagnosing anyone; they are noticing changes and considering support. In groups of three, students use the worksheet to sort each scenario into: “self-care may help”, “talk with a trusted person”, or “get immediate adult help”. Groups justify one choice using respectful language.

4. 27–40 min · Coping strategies carousel. Teacher introduces a balanced range of strategies on the coping-strategies slides: slow breathing, movement, sleep routines, music or creative activity, grounding through the senses, breaking a task into steps, connecting with others, and taking a safe break. Explain that coping strategies support wellbeing but are not a replacement for professional help when someone is unsafe or struggling significantly. Pairs complete the worksheet table by selecting suitable strategies for four fictional situations, including exam stress, conflict with a friend, feeling isolated and being overwhelmed by commitments. Students identify one strategy they could try in an ordinary low-risk situation.

5. 40–51 min · Help-seeking map. Teacher uses the support-network slides to discuss a help-seeking pathway: notice a concern, tell a trusted person, keep asking if the first person cannot help, and seek urgent adult support when someone may be unsafe. Include school-based options such as a form teacher, dean, counsellor, nurse or pastoral staff, alongside whānau and health professionals. Students complete the final worksheet section by listing two trusted support options available to them and writing a sentence starter: “I have noticed…, and I need…”. They may use a fictional person instead of naming anyone.

6. 51–57 min · Rehearsal and safety check. Teacher displays the role-play prompts on the help-seeking rehearsal slides. In pairs, students practise either asking for help or responding supportively: “Thanks for telling me. You do not have to handle this alone. Let’s find a trusted adult.” Remind students not to promise secrecy where safety is involved. Invite volunteers to share effective phrases; students may pass.

7. 57–60 min · Exit reflection. Teacher returns to the plenary slide and asks students to complete the worksheet exit ticket: one idea they learned, one coping strategy, and one support option. Students hand in the worksheet privately. Teacher remains available after class for any student who indicates a current concern.

Resources

• the Mental Health Matters slide deck
• the mental-health awareness worksheet
• Board or display screen
• Pens or pencils
• Private mood-rating slips or scrap paper
• Clearly communicated school wellbeing referral process

Assessment

• Listen to group explanations during scenario sorting for accurate understanding of support levels and non-judgemental language.
• Check worksheet responses for connections between hauora, coping strategies and help-seeking; address misconceptions during the lesson.
• Use the exit ticket to identify students who need clarification or a private follow-up. Follow school safeguarding procedures immediately if a student indicates they or someone else may be unsafe.

Differentiation

• Provide a word bank and sentence starters such as “A change I notice is…” and “A trusted person could…”. Read scenarios aloud and allow students to respond using keywords, diagrams or speech-to-text.
• Avoid requiring disclosure, eye contact or role-play for students who may find the topic distressing; offer an observer, written-response or fictional-character option.
• Pair students strategically and pre-teach terms such as stress, support, coping, wellbeing and trusted adult. Check understanding privately with EAL learners.
• Extend confident students by asking them to explain why a strategy may help, identify when it may be insufficient, and suggest how a school environment could promote mental wellbeing.