Sleep and Wellbeing

Overview

This is lesson 5 of 9 in the unit “Navigating Independence and Wellbeing”. Students explore how sleep affects health, mood and learning, then use guided reflection to review their own sleep routines and practise practical strategies to improve sleep quality.

Learning intentions

Students will:

• explain why sufficient good-quality sleep is important for health and learning
• describe how lack of sleep can affect mood and ability to concentrate
• identify factors that may reduce sleep quality (including screen use before bed)
• practise planning small, realistic changes to improve their sleep routine using guided reflection

Success criteria

Students can:

• tell you two reasons sleep matters for their wellbeing and learning
• describe one effect of poor sleep on mood or school performance
• name at least two practical steps to improve sleep quality (e.g. screen-free time, phone out of bedroom)
• complete a personal sleep action plan with a specific “next step” they can try tonight or this week

Curriculum links

• UK NC Relationships, sex and health education — Secondary health and wellbeing curriculum content / Health protection and prevention, and understanding the healthcare system: importance of sufficient good-quality sleep; screen-free time before bed; removing phones from the bedroom; effects of lack of sleep on weight, mood and ability to learn
• UK NC Relationships, sex and health education — Secondary health and wellbeing curriculum content / Mental wellbeing: critically evaluate which activities contribute to overall wellbeing (applied to sleep and bedtime routines)

Lesson structure (60 minutes)

1. 0–5 min · Emotional check-in + routine

• Teacher uses a consistent “Mood Thermometer” (0–10) with quick language supports and asks one question: “How is your sleep been this week?”
• Students mark their number on the sheet or whiteboard and share with a partner using sentence stems: “This week my sleep is… because…”

2. 5–12 min · Retrieval practice (quick quiz)

• Teacher displays 5 short prompts from previous lessons in the unit (e.g. wellbeing factors, coping strategies) and adds 2 sleep-related starters (no heavy teaching yet).
• Students complete a fast “thumbs” vote or mini-quiz in pairs, then teacher checks answers and corrects misconceptions briefly.

3. 12–22 min · Direct teaching: Why sleep matters

• Teacher introduces clear, accurate points: sufficient good-quality sleep supports health; lack of sleep can affect weight, mood and ability to learn; sleep also supports emotional regulation.
• Students follow along with a simple “Cause → Effect” note-catcher (teacher models first): “Not enough sleep → mood / learning / health gets harder.”

4. 22–32 min · Focus teaching: Screens, phones, and bedtime

• Teacher explains the importance of screen-free time before bed and removing phones from the bedroom, using age-appropriate examples (not naming specific apps).
• Students complete a “Healthy Choice Sort” (teacher-provided cards): match behaviours to “supports sleep” vs “may disturb sleep”, then justify one choice using a stem: “I think it helps because…”

5. 32–44 min · Guided reflection (trauma-informed, scaffolded)

• Teacher provides a worksheet with three reflection prompts and sentence starters. Students choose to answer using a “traffic light” scale if writing is difficult.
• “What helps me sleep?”
• “What gets in the way?”
• “What is one change I can manage?”
• Students work quietly first (2–3 minutes), then share in small groups of 3 using structured turn-taking.

6. 44–54 min · Personal sleep action plan

• Teacher models how to turn ideas into a specific plan (goal + time + support). Example: “For the next 3 nights, I will put my phone on charge in the hallway at 9:30pm.”
• Students write one actionable step using the template: “Next step (when + what): ___ / Support I can use: ___ / If it goes wrong, I will: ___”.

7. 54–60 min · Low-stakes assessment + exit ticket

• Teacher collects an exit ticket that checks understanding and practical application.
• Students complete: “One reason sleep matters is… / One strategy I will try is…” and hand in anonymously if preferred.

Resources

• Mood Thermometer slips/sheets with simple scale
• Note-catcher “Cause → Effect” worksheet
• Healthy Choice Sort cards (sleep-support vs may-disturb sleep)
• Guided reflection worksheet with sentence stems and traffic-light options
• Personal sleep action plan template
• Exit ticket slips (or Google Classroom form if used)

Assessment

• Formative checks during Healthy Choice Sort justifications (teacher circulates, uses prompts)
• Review of the cause–effect note-catcher for key misconceptions (e.g. “sleep doesn’t matter”)
• Exit ticket: verifies students can state a reason sleep matters and name a practical strategy

Differentiation

• Provide sentence stems, word banks (sleep, mood, learn, screen-free, phone out), and a traffic-light option instead of extended writing
• Use paired talk before individual writing; offer TA-led small-group support for students with low literacy
• Offer an alternative action-plan format (circle the correct time and choose from strategy icons) for learners who struggle with spelling
• Extension: students evaluate which one activity best supports their wellbeing and justify with “because…” using evidence from their reflection