Session Activity Guide

This guide provides detailed instructions to support each session in the Wellness Warriors series. It includes step-by-step directions, materials needed, and tips to ensure interactive and engaging activities for your 8th-grade students exploring health and wellness.

Session 1: Introduction to Wellness

Objectives:

• Introduce the concept of wellness from various perspectives
• Gauge students’ current understanding of health
• Establish a supportive discussion environment

Materials:

• Whiteboard/Smartboard
• Markers
• Reflective exit ticket templates

Instructions:

1. Warm-Up Activity: Ask students to write down words they associate with "wellness." Collect responses on the board.
2. Course Overview: Present the overall objectives and topics of the course using the Wellness Warriors Slide Deck.
3. Group Discussion: Organize students into small groups to discuss what wellness means to them. Encourage them to share personal definitions and examples.
   
   
   
4. Exit Ticket: Have each student complete an exit ticket stating one new thing they hope to learn about wellness.
   
   
   
   
   
   

Teacher Tips:

• Circulate the room during group discussions to facilitate deeper conversations.
• Use the responses from the exit ticket to tailor upcoming sessions.

Session 2: Physical Health & Nutrition

Objectives:

• Introduce principles of physical health and balanced nutrition
• Engage students in hands-on planning of a balanced meal
• Foster collaborative learning through group presentations

Materials:

• Nutrition templates for meal planning
• Markers, poster papers
• Access to Wellness Warriors Slide Deck for visual guidance

Instructions:

1. Discussion and Introduction: Begin with a brief overview of physical health and nutrition, explaining why balanced nutrition is essential.
2. Hands-On Activity: Distribute meal planning templates and challenge students to design a balanced meal.
   
   
   
3. Group Activity: Have students work in small groups to create a short presentation on one key nutrition topic.
   
   
   
   
   
   
4. Wrap-Up Q&A Session: Conclude with an interactive question and answer session to clarify key concepts.

Teacher Tips:

• Use real-life examples to illustrate the benefits of balanced nutrition.
• Encourage creativity in the group presentations.

Session 3: Mental Well-Being

Objectives:

• Explore the importance of mental health and common stress triggers
• Introduce mindfulness and relaxation techniques
• Encourage reflective journaling on personal mental well-being strategies

Materials:

• Journals or paper for each student
• Soft background music (optional) for guided relaxation
• Wellness Warriors Slide Deck

Instructions:

1. Engagement Discussion: Start with an open discussion about mental well-being and ask students to share things that help them feel relaxed or happy.
   
   
   
2. Mindfulness Exercise: Lead a brief mindfulness or guided relaxation session. Keep the session calm and quiet, allowing students to experience the method firsthand.
3. Group Discussion: After the exercise, split students into small groups to talk about practical ways to reduce stress.
   
   
   
   
   
   
4. Journaling Activity: Ask each student to write for 5-10 minutes about a personal strategy they can adopt to improve their mental well-being.
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   

Teacher Tips:

• Ensure that the classroom environment is quiet and non-judgmental during the mindfulness exercise.
• Encourage respectful sharing during group discussions.

Session 4: Stress Management

Objectives:

• Revisit strategies learned for managing stress
• Provide practical experience through role-play activities
• Foster a collaborative environment to share personal stress management techniques

Materials:

• Scenario cards for role play (create cards with various stress-related situations)
• Whiteboard/flip chart for listing strategies
• Wellness Warriors Slide Deck

Instructions:

1. Review Session 3: Briefly recap mindfulness and stress-reduction techniques covered previously.
2. Role-Play Activity: In pairs or small groups, distribute scenario cards. Allow students to practice role-playing everyday stress situations and discuss alternative responses and solutions.
   
   
   
3. Small Group Discussions: Following the role-playing, ask groups to share their experiences and brainstorm additional stress management strategies.
   
   
   
   
   
   
4. Summarize Key Takeaways: List the most effective techniques on a whiteboard and discuss why these strategies work.

Teacher Tips:

• Facilitate role-plays by demonstrating a sample scenario if needed.
• Ensure every student participates and feels supported during discussion.

Session 5: Bringing It All Together

Objectives:

• Integrate and review all topics from the previous sessions
• Collaboratively create a mini-campaign to promote healthy habits
• Reflect on personal learning and future wellness goals

Materials:

• Materials for group projects (poster boards, markers, digital tools if available)
• Wellness Warriors Slide Deck

Instructions:

1. Recap: Start with a group discussion recapping key lessons from physical health, mental well-being, nutrition, and stress management.
   
   
   
2. Group Project: Divide the class into small groups. Task each group with creating a mini-campaign that promotes healthy habits in school. They can design posters, digital presentations, or skits.
3. Presentations: Allow each group to present their campaign. Encourage critiques and highlight strengths during the feedback process.
   
   
   
   
   
   
4. Reflective Discussion: Close the session by inviting students to share personal takeaways and set future wellness goals.
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   

Teacher Tips:

• Encourage creativity in the campaign design.
• Use guiding questions during the reflective discussion to help students connect lessons to personal growth.

This guide is designed to be adaptable. Feel free to modify any activities to better suit your class dynamics and student needs. Enjoy your journey as Wellness Warriors!