Design Your Well-being Space

mengshi wang

Tier 1

Lesson Plan

Design Your Well-being Space

Students will understand how embodied cognition and Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs relate to their personal well-being. They will design a personal learning/living environment that supports their psychological states and motivation, with a focus on simple, visual, and accessible language for low English fluency learners.

Understanding how our environment affects us can empower students to create spaces that help them feel safe, learn better, and be happier. This lesson teaches practical skills for self-care and mindful design.

Audience

7th Grade Students (including those with low English fluency)

Time

40 minutes

Approach

Interactive discussion, visual examples, and a hands-on design activity.

Materials

Whiteboard or projector, Design Your Well-being Space Slides, Environment Design Worksheet, and Drawing materials (paper, colored pencils/markers)

Prep

Teacher Preparation

15 minutes

Review the Design Your Well-being Space Slides and practice pronunciation of key terms for students with low English fluency.
Print or prepare to display the Environment Design Worksheet.
Gather drawing materials (paper, colored pencils/markers) for each student.
Consider having visual aids or real-life examples of well-designed spaces (e.g., pictures of a cozy reading nook, a quiet study area, a vibrant creative space).

Step 1

Warm-up: How Does Your Space Feel? (5 minutes)

5 minutes

Display the first slide of Design Your Well-being Space Slides.
Ask students (using simple language and visuals): "Think about a place where you feel happy. What does it look like? What do you feel there?" (e.g., bedroom, park, library).
Encourage students to share one word or a simple phrase. Write down their ideas on the board, associating words with simple drawings if helpful for English language learners.

Step 2

Introduction to Embodied Cognition and Maslow's Hierarchy (10 minutes)

10 minutes

Use slides 2-4 of Design Your Well-being Space Slides to introduce the concepts.
Embodied Cognition: Explain simply: "Our bodies and where we are change how we think and feel." Give a simple example: "If you sit up straight, you might feel more ready to learn." (Show accompanying visual on slide).
Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs: Introduce the pyramid visually on slide. Explain each level with simple terms and relatable examples for a 7th grader:
- Bottom (Physiological): Food, water, sleep (body needs)
- Second (Safety): Feeling safe, no worries (safe home, school)
- Middle (Love/Belonging): Friends, family (feeling loved)
- Fourth (Esteem): Feeling good about yourself, being proud (doing well in school)
- Top (Self-Actualization): Being your best self, learning new things (reaching goals)
Emphasize that the lower needs must be met first for the higher ones to be achievable. Use gestures and clear, slow speech.

Step 3

Connect Environment to Well-being (5 minutes)

5 minutes

Use slide 5 of Design Your Well-being Space Slides.
Ask: "How can your room or classroom help you with these needs?" (e.g., a quiet corner for safety, a comfy chair for rest, pictures of friends for belonging).
Guide a brief discussion, linking student ideas to Maslow's levels. Provide sentence starters for English language learners: "My room helps me feel safe because..."

Step 4

Activity: Design Your Well-being Space (15 minutes)

15 minutes

Distribute the Environment Design Worksheet and drawing materials.
Explain the activity using slides 6-7 of Design Your Well-being Space Slides:
- "You will design a space – it can be a room, a corner, or even a imaginary place. This space should help you feel good and meet your needs."
- "Think about Maslow's Needs: How can your design help you feel safe, loved, proud, and help you learn?"
- Encourage drawings, simple labels, and colors. For low English fluency students, emphasize drawing and labeling with single words or simple phrases they know. Provide sentence frames on the worksheet.
Circulate, offering support and asking guiding questions: "What colors make you feel calm?" "Where would you put your books for learning?"

Step 5

Share & Reflect (5 minutes)

5 minutes

Invite a few volunteers to briefly share their designs. Focus on what makes their space supportive of their well-being and how it addresses a need from Maslow's Hierarchy.
Conclude with: "Remember, you can make your spaces help you feel your best! Even small changes can make a big difference." Prompt students to consider one small thing they can do to improve a space at home or school, using a Cool Down.

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Slide Deck

Your Space, Your Feelings!

How does your room, or any place, make you feel?

Welcome students and introduce the topic. Keep language simple and inviting. Use gestures to reinforce meaning.

Your Body, Your Mind!

Our bodies and where we are can change how we think and feel.

Example: If you sit up straight, you might feel more ready to learn!
Think: How does being in a messy room make you feel compared to a clean one?

Explain 'Embodied Cognition' simply. Use an action and then ask how it feels. For example, have students slump and ask how they feel, then have them sit up straight and ask again.

Maslow's Needs Pyramid

What do we need to feel good and grow?

Physiological Needs: Food, water, sleep, air (Body needs to live)
Safety Needs: Feeling safe, not scared (A safe home, safe school)
Love/Belonging Needs: Friends, family, feeling part of a group (Feeling loved and connected)
Esteem Needs: Feeling proud, feeling good about yourself (Achieving goals, being respected)
Self-Actualization Needs: Being your best self, learning, creating (Reaching your full potential)

Introduce Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs. Use the pyramid visual. Explain each level with simple terms and concrete examples. Point to the image as you explain.

Building Blocks of Well-being

You need the bottom needs first to get to the top!

Think: Can you focus on learning if you are very hungry or scared?

Emphasize that the lower needs are foundational. You can't focus on higher needs if basic needs aren't met.

Your Space Helps Your Needs!

How can your room or classroom help you with Maslow's Needs?

Physiological: A quiet place to rest?
Safety: A door that locks? A cozy blanket?
Love/Belonging: Pictures of friends? A shared space?
Esteem: A place to show your awards? A tidy desk for good work?
Self-Actualization: Books? Art supplies? A calm study area?

Connect the concepts. Ask students for ideas on how a room can help with each need. Write their ideas on the board.

Design Your Dream Space!

Now it's your turn to design!

Design a space (a room, a corner, an imaginary place).
This space should help you feel good and meet your needs.
Think about colors, objects, and how it helps with Maslow's Needs.

Explain the activity clearly. Show a blank worksheet or a simple example. Emphasize drawing and simple labels for all students, especially those with low English fluency.

What to Include in Your Design:

Draw your space.
Label parts of your space (use simple words).
Use colors that make you feel good.
Think: How does your design help you feel safe, loved, proud, or help you learn and grow? (Connect to Maslow's needs)

Provide clear instructions and reminders for the design task. Circulate to help students.

Worksheet

Design Your Well-being Space!

Your Goal: Draw a space that helps you feel good and supports your needs. This can be your room, a study corner, or even an imaginary place!

1. My Space:

Draw your well-being space here! Use colors and add details.

2. Label Your Design (use simple words):

What is this space? (e.g., Bedroom, Study Corner, Happy Place)
What colors did you use? Why?
What objects are in your space? (e.g., Book, Lamp, Pillow, Plant)

3. How Does Your Space Help You?

Connect your design to Maslow's Needs. (Circle or write the need your space helps with)

Physiological (Body Needs: food, water, sleep): How does your space help your body?

My space helps me (rest / eat / feel comfortable) because...
Safety (Feeling Safe): How does your space make you feel safe?

My space makes me feel safe because...
Love/Belonging (Friends, Family): How does your space show you are loved or connected?

My space helps me feel (loved / connected) because...
Esteem (Feeling Proud): How does your space help you feel good about yourself?

My space helps me feel proud because...
Self-Actualization (Being Your Best): How does your space help you learn or grow?

My space helps me (learn / grow) because...

Cool Down

Cool Down: My Well-being Action

Think about one small thing you can do to make a space at home or school feel better for you, based on what we learned today. This small change can help you feel more comfortable, safe, or ready to learn!

What is one small change you can make to a space to help your well-being?

Which Maslow's Need does this change help you with? (Circle one or write the word)

Physiological (Body needs)
Safety (Feeling safe)
Love/Belonging (Friends, Family)
Esteem (Feeling proud)
Self-Actualization (Being your best)