Dictionary of Emotions
This activity supports children through a variety of mediums to connect and explore as they build their emotional literacy in the creation of a dictionary of emotions. This unit of work was created by Claire Coleman, Katy Pérez, and Amanda Wallace. View Lesson PLan
Read MoreThe Home Within Me
This activity offers opportunities for children to rediscover their sense of place by connecting to self and community. This lesson offers a simple sharing circle to incorporate into daily practice to support children to rebuild their sense of place in response to losing their home/community due to natural disaster. There are options for how to…
Read MoreTwo Stars and a Wish
This dance work is a way for students to express their thinking about having been in isolation. This is a physical way of thinking about the good and possibly hard things about having been in isolation. While this lesson plan was initially created and used for returning to education post COVID-19 lockdowns, it can be…
Read MoreThe Emperor and the Magic Goose
A drama about loneliness and togetherness This drama takes as its starting point the traditional Red Lantern Festival, held in Auckland since 2000, and cancelled in 2020 because of Coronavirus, both in Auckland and throughout China. The drama uses a traditional Chinese folk tale of the Festival’s origins, to explore: 1. Loneliness, what it makes…
Read MoreSuperpower Poetry Fun
Seeing ourselves as powerful again after a crisis is an important part of imagining our way out of the trauma of the experience. This poetry unit starts by recognising we all have a ‘why’. Knowing it is key to our wellbeing. This set of writing processes helps students figure out their ‘why’ in a creative,…
Read MoreRegulating Robot
A drama about social rules, morals and creativity This drama gives students the opportunity to explore the necessity for social regulation, the risks and consequences of both making and breaking rules, and the relationship between rules and regulations on the one hand, and creativity and freedom on the other. It also explores how the impact…
Read MoreSettling Stones
Children will be introduced to a practice of settling themselves through selecting a stone with their teacher who guides them on how to take care of a special item. This activity is offering you the opportunity to set a daily ritual with your children to help them settle. This ritual can be particularly helpful when…
Read MoreNavigating the Waves
This activity offers a space where students can contemplate emotional and physical responses to help navigate the circumstances they are experiencing. They do this while creating imagery that encourages them to identify what will help them cultivate a sense of resilience and self regulation as they move forward. Students will create a collage (collaborative or…
Read MoreMatariki for Tamariki
In this activity, the teacher provides provocations to prompt the children’s curiosity in exploring the influence of Matariki within their lives. This experience would ideally be offered after Matariki and the seven other stars have been introduced to the children, and is more suitable for a small group of maybe six children (maximum) at a…
Read MoreAlone together
Students return to school after a crisis with different experiences. Dance can help students share their stories while seemingly focusing on something else. This dance work helps students focus on their own time away from school in the crisis and see that others will have experienced similar and different things. This unit of work was…
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