Our Taha Tinana Plan

Overview

Lesson 4 of 4 in Nourishing Taha Tinana. Students review how food and hydration support taha tinana, then create one achievable action plan and identify people who can support them. Emphasise that hauora is about caring for the whole person, not being “perfect”.

Learning intentions

• WALT explain how everyday food and drink choices can support taha tinana.
• WALT choose one realistic healthy eating or hydration goal.
• WALT identify people and strategies that can help us reach our goal.
• WALT reflect on how small choices contribute to hauora.

Success criteria

• I can describe one way food or water helps my body.
• I can make one small, achievable action plan.
• I can name a support person and explain how they could help.
• I can listen respectfully to another person’s plan.

Curriculum links

• Healthy communities and environments: understanding how choices and actions influence personal wellbeing.
• Personal health and physical development: developing strategies for maintaining and enhancing taha tinana.
• Mental health: setting a positive, achievable goal and identifying support.
• Key competencies: managing self, relating to others, and participating and contributing.

Lesson structure (30 minutes)

1. 0–4 minutes – Reconnect with our learning

Open with the hook and learning intention slides. Ask: “What helps our bodies feel ready to learn, play and rest?” Invite pairs to recall one idea from the unit about nourishing food or hydration. Take several responses and acknowledge that whānau and cultures may have different foods and routines.

2. 4–9 minutes – Review healthy choices

Use the review slides to revisit simple messages: eat a variety of foods, include foods that help our bodies grow and have energy, and drink water regularly. Show the Nutrition Choices Picture Cards and invite students to choose one card that represents a helpful everyday choice. Avoid labelling foods as “good” or “bad”; discuss “everyday” and “sometimes” choices in a respectful way.

3. 9–13 minutes – Model a small goal

Display the example on the action-plan example slide: “At school, I will drink water at morning tea on three days this week.” Think aloud about why this is achievable, when it will happen, and who could help. Contrast it with a goal that is too broad, such as “I will always eat perfectly”. Explain that a goal can focus on food or hydration and should suit the student’s circumstances.

4. 13–21 minutes – Create an action plan

Distribute the Taha Tinana action-plan worksheet. Students complete one goal using the prompts: “My small goal is…”, “I will do it when…”, “This may help my body by…”, and “A person who can support me is…”. They may draw or write. Circulate and help students make goals specific and realistic, such as choosing water with lunch, adding a fruit or vegetable to a meal, or trying a nourishing breakfast option. Do not require students to disclose private family food circumstances.

5. 21–26 minutes – Share and strengthen plans

In pairs, students share only what they feel comfortable sharing. Partners respond with: “I like how your goal is small because…” and “One way someone could support you is…”. Use the respectful sharing prompts to reinforce listening, taking turns and not judging another person’s food or whānau practices.

6. 26–30 minutes – Hauora reflection and close

Return to the reflection and closing slides. Ask students to complete the final reflection on their worksheet: “One small choice can help my hauora because…” Invite three or four volunteers to share. Remind students that taha tinana connects with taha hinengaro, taha whānau and taha wairua: caring for the body can support feelings, relationships and a sense of balance. Collect worksheets for assessment, or allow students to take them home if appropriate.

Resources

• the Nourishing Taha Tinana lesson deck
• the Taha Tinana action-plan worksheet
• the Nutrition Choices Picture Cards
• Pencils, crayons and writing paper
• Whiteboard and marker
• Optional timer for pair sharing
• A private alternative task for students who do not wish to share personal food routines

Assessment

• Listen during review and discussion for accurate, age-appropriate explanations of how food or water supports taha tinana.
• Check each worksheet for one achievable goal, a planned time or situation, and a suitable support person or strategy.
• Observe whether students listen respectfully, take turns and avoid judging others’ food choices or circumstances.

Differentiation

• Support learners by scribing ideas, offering picture choices, and providing sentence starters: “I will…”, “This helps me…”, and “ can support me by…”.
• Allow students to draw their goal, dictate it to an adult, or choose from a small number of teacher-suggested food and hydration goals.
• For EAL learners, pre-teach key words such as body, water, energy, goal and support; use gestures, visuals and home-language discussion where possible.
• Extend learners by asking them to add a reminder, explain how their goal could support another dimension of hauora, or suggest how the class could encourage one another.