Understanding Wellbeing

Year 11 | Health | 60 minutes | 25 Students

Curriculum Alignment

Learning Area: Health and Physical Education
Phase: 5 (Years 11-13)
Critical Focus: Navigating pathways and developing agency to help shape the future
Key Competencies:
- Participating and Contributing: Engage respectfully and collaboratively with peers.
- Thinking: Critically examine concepts of health, wellbeing, and fitness.
- Using Language, Symbols, and Texts: Effectively communicate scientific and health information.
Achievement Objectives (Health & Physical Education):
- Understand and explain the concepts of health, wellbeing, and fitness as interconnected aspects of a healthy lifestyle.
- Collaborate and communicate to develop resources that support understanding of nutrition and wellbeing.
New Zealand Curriculum Link:
This lesson addresses the "Personal Health and Physical Development" strand, focusing on Students understanding factors that influence wellbeing including physical, mental, and social health .

Learning Objectives

By the end of the lesson, students will:

Explain the difference between health, wellbeing, and fitness using class definitions.
Collaborate effectively to create a nutrient poster that includes benefits of their assigned nutrient and food sources.
Present their poster, ensuring each group member actively participates in preparation and presentation.

Success Criteria

Objective	Success Criteria
Understand difference of health, wellbeing, fitness	Can verbally explain and distinguish these terms with examples.
Nutrient knowledge	Can list benefits and food sources of assigned nutrient accurately.
Collaboration and presentation	All group members contribute equally to poster and presentation; clear communication to class.

Resources Needed

WHO definition and unit definitions (printed or displayed)
Nutrient info sheets (protein, carbohydrates, fats, vitamins, minerals, water)
Large poster paper, markers, coloured pencils
Presentation timer
Technology for displaying classroom timer (optional)

Lesson Plan Breakdown

Time	Activity	Details
0-5 mins	Introduction	Read aloud definitions of health, wellbeing, and fitness (WHO & unit notes). Clarify any questions.
5-15 mins	Engagement Activity 1: Health, Wellbeing, and Fitness Sort	Students work in pairs to sort provided statements/examples into categories: Health, Wellbeing (Physical, Mental, Social), Fitness. Discuss as a class after.
15-25 mins	Engagement Activity 2: Charades Relay – Health & Wellbeing Edition	In small groups, students act out different aspects of health, wellbeing, and fitness (e.g., “social wellbeing”, “mental fitness”) for the rest of the class to guess.
25-40 mins	Group Collaboration – Nutrient Poster Creation	Groups assigned one nutrient. Use info sheets and creativity to make a visually engaging poster including: benefits, food sources. Encourage balanced workload.
40-55 mins	Presentations	Each group presents their poster; all students must speak. Provide feedback focusing on knowledge and collaboration.
55-60 mins	Wrap-up & Reflection	Recap key definitions and nutrient importance. Students reflect briefly in a exit ticket: What is the difference between health and wellbeing? Which nutrient is your favourite and why?

Detailed Activity Descriptions

Introduction (0-5 mins)

Read the formal definitions clearly and slowly:

Health: "A state of complete physical, mental, and social wellbeing, not just the absence of illness." (WHO)
Wellbeing: Being well in physical, mental, and social aspects of life (explained with examples).
Fitness: The ability to meet the physical and mental demands of daily life.

These come from official curriculum resources and WHO definitions .

Engagement Activity 1: Health, Wellbeing, and Fitness Sort (5-15 mins)

Instructions:
Each pair receives a mixed set of statements and scenarios (e.g., “Feeling stressed”, “Running a marathon”, “Spending time with friends”, “Eating a healthy meal”).
They categorize them under: Health, Physical Wellbeing, Mental Wellbeing, Social Wellbeing, Fitness.
Purpose: To deepen understanding by applying definitions.
Teacher’s role: Circulate, prompt thinking, encourage justification of choices.

Engagement Activity 2: Charades Relay – Health and Wellbeing Edition (15-25 mins)

Split the class into small groups of 4-5.
Each student acts out an assigned health, wellbeing, or fitness term without speaking.
Other groups guess, encouraging peer learning and reinforcing key vocabulary with a fun and active break.
Example terms: “Physical wellbeing”, “Social wellbeing”, “Mental fitness”, “Being ill”, “Eating balanced food”.

Group Collaboration: Nutrient Poster Creation (25-40 mins)

Divide class into 5 groups, assign nutrients: Protein, Carbohydrates, Fats, Vitamins, Minerals & Water.
Provide fact sheets with definitions, benefits, and common NZ foods for each nutrient.
Each group creates a clear, colourful poster detailing:
- What the nutrient is
- Benefits to health and fitness
- Food sources
Teacher monitors to ensure equal participation, offers scaffold prompts if needed.

Presentation (40-55 mins)

3-5 minutes per group presenting their poster to the class.
Emphasise that each member must present part of their poster.
Teacher uses a checklist to observe: knowledge accuracy, clarity, and equitable participation.
Peers provide positive feedback.

Wrap-up and Reflection (55-60 mins)

Quick class recap of definitions.
Students complete an exit ticket:
- Explain in one sentence the difference between health and wellbeing.
- Which nutrient do you think is most important and why?
Collect exit tickets to inform next lesson planning.

Assessment

Informal formative assessment through group work and presentations focused on understanding and effective collaboration.
Teacher observation notes on student verbal explanations and collaboration during activities.
Success criteria used as a rubric for participation and comprehension.

Additional Notes

Activities specifically scaffold conceptual understanding with both cognitive and kinaesthetic learning approaches appropriate for Year 11.
Collaborative poster work aligns with NZC refreshed emphasis on key competencies, especially Participating and Contributing.
Charades and sorting activities provide engagement and active learning breaks, boosting focus and retention.
The nutrient poster directly addresses the teacher’s provided assessment criteria and success criteria.
Definitions and concepts derive directly from New Zealand Curriculum refreshed Health and Physical Education strand and WHO’s health definition .

If you would like, I can also generate worksheet templates or rubrics for use alongside this lesson!

Teaching Instructions