Teacher instructions

Work through this resource material in the following sequence:

15 minutes

Tune in: What is wellness?

30 minutes

Find out: Wellness videos

30 minutes

Take action: Inclusive activity ideas

Tune in: what is wellness?

Step 1. Write the word ‘wellness’ on the board. Invite students to make suggestions about what the word means and write them around the word.

Step 2. Group together any similar words or descriptions and circle any that the students identify as most important.

Work as a class to write a definition of the word ‘wellness’ as a full sentence.

Literacy: Give students time to write their own definition of ‘wellness’ in a single concise sentence, before sharing as a class to create a single definition.

Step 3. Show students the four wellness areas identified by the Sydney Swans Good Reels program:

Moving our bodies
Making healthy and safe choices
Learning through movement
Positive interactions with others

Step 4. On a blank piece of paper, have students individually write the word ‘Wellness’ in the centre and draw a circle around it. Divide the page into four and write each of the wellness areas in a different quadrant.

From here, students can create their own mindmaps that dive into more detail about each wellness area and what it might look like in practice. For example, positive interactions with others could include kindness, listening, patience, and sharing, whereas making safe and healthy choices might include good food choices, walking away from a fight, or assessing danger.

Learning support: Have students work in small groups where each group focuses on just one of the wellness areas. During discussion, link their ideas to the other areas to build their understanding of wellness as a whole.

Step 5. Have students or groups share their mindmaps with another student or group and compare similarities and differences.

Extension opportunity: Are there any aspects of wellness that sit under more than one area of wellness? Are there any you thought of that don’t belong to any of the areas listed? Might you create a new category?

Step 6. Students can now attempt to rewrite the class definition of wellness based on what they have uncovered. They can do this individually, in groups or as a whole class.

Find out: wellness activities

Step 1. Play this video:

Inclusiveness For Kids | How to Be Inclusive to Others | Kid Tips for Inclusion - The Mr Saad Show (youtu.be/wDdv1l9GHRk)

After watching, invite the students to turn to a partner and share a story about when they or someone else has shown inclusiveness.

Explain that being inclusive is more than just being kind. Sometimes it means taking practical measures (as in deliberately doing something or changing how something is done) in order to ensure that everyone can participate fully.

Sometimes people will have barriers that mean participating might be more difficult for them, but there are things we can do to help.

Step 2. Move students to an open space where they can see the screen (or move your tables and chairs out of the way).

Step 3. Invite students to face the screen and follow along with the following video:

Drill Library - Newtown Swans Junior AFL (youtube.com/watch?v=D8Y7OlHVWXE)

Step 4. Invite students to sit or lie down and participate in the following mindfulness exercise:

Heartbeat: A Mindfulness Exercise to Calm Your Emotions - The Partnership in Education (youtube.com/watch?v=3iUf73v92lI)

Step 5. After the two videos, have students sit in a circle and chat about their experiences. What did they enjoy, what didn’t work for them? Did they notice any barriers to participation?

Hot tip: You could conduct this as a ‘rose and thorn’ exercise where each student shares one rose (a good thing) and one thorn (a bad thing).

Step 6. Move through the Good Reels Character Slide Deck with the following characters:

Charlie - I use a wheelchair to get around
Tanishka - I am Hindu and vegetarian
Ashton - I get overwhelmed easily by too much noise
Yukako - I am learning English
Jed - I have spina bifida and use leg braces
Ailish - I have ADHD
Tanishka - I’m allergic to grass and pollen, and I am Muslim.
Will - I get anxious about being left out or bullied

As you read about each character’s situation, discuss as a class whether this character would have been able to fully take part in the workout and mindfulness activities. What might they have been unable to do? What might they have been unable to understand? What might have helped them?

Take action: inclusive activity ideas

Step 1. Explain to students that they will now get to see some examples of inclusive activities. The AFL has adapted Aussie Rules for blind people, a Muslim soccer player gets some help from the opposition, and YouTuber Goodtimeswithscar talks about getting his first off-road wheelchair.

Step 2. Show students this AFL website about AFL Blind, reading about the sport. AFL Blind (play.afl/play/disability-inclusion/afl-blind/) Then play the video:

What is AFL blind? Why footy is so important for Bridget | AFL - AFL (youtu.be/ibzO-xytqBw)

What adaptations does AFL Blind have to support people?

Step 3. Show this video of women playing soccer.

Fair Play: A Player's Hijab Slips Off and This Is How Their Rivals React! - beIN SPORTS USA (youtube.com/watch?v=Ad5yqfRHMow)

What happened in the video?

Why are some of the players wearing headscarves? What do they mean? (Some of the players in the video are Muslim and wearing a headscarf called a hijab. Muslim women use the hijab to cover their hair to be modest, much like we cover parts of our body with clothes to be modest.)

How would you feel if your shorts fell down while playing soccer?

How would you feel if your opposing teammates helped you cover up?

Step 4. Play this video of Youtuber Goodtimeswithscar unpacking and using his first off-road wheelchair.

Life-Changing Experience On The NotAWheelchair! (electric off road wheelchair) - GoodTimesWithScar (youtube.com/watch?v=sfim5htXx14)

What are some things Scar uses or talks about that helps him?
How did Scar feel at the start of the video?
How did Scar feel at the end of the video?
How did you feel at the end of the video?

Step 5. Stick up, or spread around the Good Reels Character Ideas Sheets.

Divide students into eight groups and place each group at one of the Ideas Sheets. At each Ideas Sheet, students should write down ideas for wellness activities that this person could participate in without being left out or uncomfortable. They could also describe how different activities might be adapted to ensure they can participate.

You could let the students move around the room at their own pace, or you could divide the class into 8 groups for rotations around the 8 character sheets. Allow around 10-15 minutes for this activity.

Step 6. As a class, look over each of the Ideas Sheets and identify common threads or notice patterns or differences for each need.

Step 7. Explain to students that next lesson, they will work together as a class to design their own inclusive workout or mindfulness activity that they will turn into a video. They can think about ideas to bring along to the next lesson.

Differentiated learning

Opportunities for differentiation have been included throughout this lesson.

Good Reels for Good Feels - Inclusive Wellness Activities

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