Whakatōhea Leadership

Overview

This 45-minute lesson is the first in an eight-lesson unit titled "🌿 Kaiārahi Journey: Camp Ready." It focuses on awakening the leader within each student by developing self-awareness and identity through recognising personal strengths. Students will explore their feelings about leadership, belonging, and camp-related experiences while building positive relationships. The lesson uses the Te Whare Tapa Whā model as a foundation to strengthen identity and confidence for the upcoming camp.

Curriculum Alignment

• Learning Area: Health and Physical Education (HPE)
• Level: Year 8 (Phase 3)
• Strands:
• Healthy Communities and Environments
• Relationships with Other People
• Achievement Objectives:
• Understand and express personal identity, wellbeing, and self-awareness.
• Develop capability to identify and express feelings.
• Demonstrate respect and sensitivity towards diverse identities and perspectives.
• Key Competencies:
• Managing Self (self-awareness, self-regulation)
• Relating to Others (empathy, building relationships)
• Participating and Contributing (positive engagement and leadership)
• Values:
• Respect, Diversity, Integrity, and Community
• Cultural Foundations and Connections:
• Te Whare Tapa Whā model underpinning hauora (well-being) — taha tinana (physical), taha wairua (spiritual), taha whānau (family/social), taha hinengaro (mental/emotional)
• Whakataukī: Ko au ko koe, ko koe ko au — interconnectedness of identity

Learning Outcomes

By the end of the lesson, students will be able to:

1. Identify and name personal strengths related to leadership and belonging.
2. Recognise and express feelings about leadership, new social experiences, and being away from whānau.
3. Understand the importance of interconnectedness (ko au ko koe, ko koe ko au) in forming identity and positive relationships.
4. Demonstrate respectful communication and empathy using Te Whare Tapa Whā principles.
5. Build confidence in themselves as emerging leaders ready for the camp experience.

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Lesson Structure

Preparation:

• Class size: 35 students
• Materials: Whiteboard/flipchart, markers, sticky notes, printed Te Whare Tapa Whā model diagram, reflection journals or booklets, sente cards with feelings words, leadership word bank, speaker or device for audio/visuals

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1. Welcome and Whakawhanaungatanga (10 minutes)

• Objective: Build connection and set tone for positive relationships.
• Begin with a heartfelt greeting incorporating te reo Māori to acknowledge local iwi (Whakatōhea).
• Facilitated circle time:
• Each student briefly shares their name and one word that describes how they feel about the upcoming camp or leadership.
• Teacher captures common feelings and words on a whiteboard.
• Introduce the whakataukī: Ko au ko koe, ko koe ko au — discuss briefly with students what this might mean about connection and identity.

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2. Exploring Identity Through Te Whare Tapa Whā (10 minutes)

• Objective: Introduce holistic wellbeing as key to leadership and belonging.
• Present the Te Whare Tapa Whā diagram:
• Explain the four dimensions: taha tinana, taha wairua, taha whānau, and taha hinengaro.
• Guide students to reflect quickly (pair-share) on which part they feel strongest in and why.
• Ask students to identify one personal strength that supports them becoming a good leader or being confident at camp.
• Encourage use of vocabulary from the leadership word bank and feelings cards.

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3. Recognising and Naming Emotions (10 minutes)

• Objective: Develop emotional literacy connected to leadership and camp.
• Brief discussion about different emotions linked to leadership or being away from whānau (e.g., excited, nervous, proud, anxious).
• Students use sticky notes to write down how they feel about:
• Being a leader on camp
• Meeting new people
• Being away from whānau
• Stick the notes on a ‘Feelings Wall’ under categories: leadership, belonging, camp.
• Facilitate a compassionate group discussion acknowledging the range of feelings and reinforcing that all feelings are valid.

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4. Strengths-Based Leadership Activity (10 minutes)

• Objective: Affirm personal strengths and leadership identity.
• In small groups of 4-5, students share one strength they've recognised in themselves that will help on camp.
• Using sentence stems on the board:
• “One strength I have as a leader is...”
• “I feel confident about... because...”
• Teacher circulates, prompting deeper thinking and positive language about effort and perseverance (e.g., "I can develop this by...").
• Groups share one inspiring strength or reflection with the whole class.

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5. Reflection and Goal Setting (5 minutes)

• Objective: Consolidate learning and set personal wellbeing goals for camp.
• Students write in their reflection journals:
• One new thing they learned about themselves today.
• One feeling they want to manage better during camp.
• One personal goal connected to leadership or wellbeing.
• Invite a few volunteers to share their reflections aloud if they wish.

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Assessment & Follow-Up

• Formative assessment through observation of discussions, participation, and reflection journal entries.
• Use students’ self-assessed feelings and leadership strengths as baseline data to revisit in subsequent lessons.
• Teacher notes students’ use of emotional and leadership vocabulary, respectful interaction, and understanding of identity concepts.
• This initial lesson sets a platform for deepening self-awareness, emotional regulation, and leadership skills across the unit.

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Teaching and Learning Tips

• Use inclusive language and scaffolding to ensure all students, including those with English as an additional language, can access emotional vocabulary and concepts.
• Build on prior knowledge and personal experiences relevant to camp and leadership.
• Encourage peer support and respect, modelling empathy and connection throughout.
• Incorporate Māori perspectives authentically and respectfully with local iwi narratives where possible.

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This lesson plan encourages year 8 students to start their camp journey grounded in strong identity, emotional literacy, and community connection — all crucial for growing as confident leaders and respectful participants according to the New Zealand Curriculum's Health and Physical Education objectives, values and key competencies.