What the lesson is about
This is part of a six-week plan on health and well-being, covering nutrition, exercise, self-care and emotional awareness. It is aimed at low-ability primary pupils with special needs, although it can be adapted for other age groups and ability levels.
Aims: pupils will:
- recognise and compare the main external parts of the body;
- recognise the similarities and differences between themselves and others;
- know to treat others sensitively;
- know how to make simple choices to improve their health and well-being.
Preparation
You will need a copy of the Transporters DVD, designed to help children with autism recognise emotions.
Getting started
Play the first episode of Transporters and have pupils complete the quiz at the end of the episode. Provide them with pictures of faces showing different expressions, such as smiling, frowning and crying, and give them a list of emotions, such as happy, cross and sad.
Tell pupils to match the emotion to the picture. Encourage them to come up with sentences using words describing emotions. You should then ask your class to write about their own emotions. Can they remember a time when they felt happy? What happened to make them feel that way? Can they remember feeling sad? What had upset them?
Move on to ask pupils if they can remember someone else being happy or sad. Can they think of a time when their own behaviour had made someone feel happy or sad?
Show the children a picture of the human body. Get them to identify the main body parts. What does each part do? Ask them to research the main internal organs to find out where they are and what they do, then ask them to label them on a picture of the body.
Taking it further
Discuss how different activities can affect our bodies. What happens to our heartbeat when we run? When do we start to sweat? When do we feel hot?
Ask pupils if they can think of a time when emotion has an effect on our body. What happens if we feel embarrassed or excited?
Get the children to compile a list of things we need to be healthy, such as food, water, sleep, activity and shelter. What happens if we do not get enough food or water? What happens if we do not get enough exercise? Ask them what they could do to improve their health and well-being.
Where to find it
The full six-week plan, with links to learning objectives, was originally uploaded by dinx67 and can be found at www.tes.co.ukhealthy-lifestyle.
