We Belong Together

Overview

This 60-minute lesson for Year 2 students explores the theme "We Belong to Each Other" within the New Zealand Religious Education context. Students will understand key messages:

• We help people belong by being kind and welcoming
• Everyone matters
• Our actions show love
• We can include others

Activities are designed to be engaging, age-appropriate, and sacred, culminating with a collaborative closing task with Year 5 soul friends to deepen community connections.

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Curriculum Links

New Zealand Curriculum Alignment:

• Learning Area: Religious Education (adapted from Health and The Arts for values and community)
• Key Competencies:
  • Relating to Others – interacting, sharing ideas, cooperating
  • Participating and Contributing – including others, respecting diversity
  • Managing Self – recognizing responsibility in actions
• Values:
  • Manaakitanga (care and respect)
  • Whanaungatanga (kinship and belonging)
• Relevant Curriculum Principles: The curriculum recognises the importance of inclusion, respect for diversity, and a child’s identity and culture【8:9,11†New Zealand Curriculum.html】

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Learning Objectives

By the end of this lesson, students will:

1. Understand that kindness and welcoming behaviour help everyone feel they belong.
2. Demonstrate ways to include others in activities and group settings.
3. Recognise that everyone matters and that actions can show love and care.
4. Collaborate with older students (Year 5) to create a shared representation of belonging.

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Lesson Structure (60 minutes)

1. Introduction (10 minutes)

• Gather as a class circle
• Teacher explains the key message simply: “We belong when we are kind and welcome each other. Everyone matters here.”
• Use storytelling or a short, sacred narrative illustrating kindness and inclusion (e.g., a whakatauki - Māori proverb about caring for others).
• Learning Talk: Invite students to share a time when someone made them feel welcome.

Curriculum Focus: Developing oral language skills and relating to others

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2. Activity 1: Kindness Chain (15 minutes)

Goal: Visualise how our actions help others belong.

• Each student decorates a paper chain link (provide coloured paper strips). On each link, the student draws or dictates a simple act of kindness (e.g. smiling, helping a friend).
• Teacher writes the child’s words if needed (supports language skills).
• Links are then joined to make a large "Kindness Chain" displayed in the classroom, symbolising how everyone’s actions connect to help us all belong.

Curriculum Links:

• Emphasises participating and contributing competency.
• Use of illustrative language, sequencing, and classification of ideas supports literacy development within their level

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3. Activity 2: Role-play Welcoming (15 minutes)

Goal: Practice welcoming new people kindly.

• In small groups, students are given scenarios where a new student or visitor comes to class.
• Groups act out welcoming behaviours, such as greeting, inviting to join in play, or sharing toys.
• Afterwards, groups share what they did and how it made the newcomer feel.

Curriculum Links:

• Builds on the relating to others competency through interactive play and collaboration.
• Reinforces values of manaakitanga (care and hospitality) and respect

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4. Closing Activity: Soul Friends Collaborative Art (15 minutes)

Goal: Create a shared artwork celebrating belonging with Year 5 soul friends.

• Year 2 students pair with Year 5 "Soul Friends."
• Together, they create a large mural or poster titled “We Belong to Each Other” using symbols, drawings, and words about kindness, welcoming, and love.
• Display the mural in a shared space to remind everyone of the key message.

Curriculum Links:

• Encourages participating and contributing through inter-age collaboration.
• Supports identity and belonging, and incorporates creativity from The Arts learning area adapted for Religious Education theme

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Assessment

• Formative assessment through observation of student participation in discussions and activities.
• Assess demonstration of understanding via their contributions in the Kindness Chain and role-play reflections.
• The collaborative art serves as evidence of collective comprehension and valuing of belonging.

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Resources Needed

• Coloured paper strips for kindness chain
• Markers, crayons, pencils
• Large mural paper for closing artwork
• Story or whakatauki about kindness/inclusion
• Prepared role-play scenarios

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Teacher Notes

• Use clear, inclusive language; provide support prompt sentences for students needing language scaffolding.
• Encourage respectful listening and turn-taking during sharing.
• Reinforce the sacredness of belonging and care, highlighting how the classroom is a special community.

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This lesson plan honours the New Zealand Curriculum’s emphasis on cultural values, key competencies, and inclusive learning environments by threading kindness, belonging, and love into an accessible, interactive format for Year 2 students and strengthens school community ties through the Soul Friends collaboration .