Wellness Leaders: Building Our Health Foundations ✨ cross-curricular
Teacher: TeacherAI | Grade: 5 | Subject: Reading/ELA, Health Education | Duration: 45 minutes
📝 Description: Students read about wellness dimensions and create leadership action plans showing how healthy leaders care for themselves completely.
Standards
- 5.RI.1 (Quote accurately from a text when explaining what the text says explicitly and when drawing inferences from the text)
- 5.RI.2 (Determine two or more main ideas of a text and explain how they are supported by key details; summarize the text)
- HE.5.1.1 (List examples of the physical, social, emotional, and intellectual dimensions of health)
- HE.5.1.2 (Describe benefits of practicing health-promoting behaviors)
Learning Objectives
Students will be able to:
- Identify and explain the four dimensions of wellness using text evidence
- Quote specific examples from texts that show how leaders maintain their health
- Create a personal wellness plan that addresses all four health dimensions
- Analyze connections between self-care practices and effective leadership qualities
Supplies Needed
- Tablets or Chromebooks
- White paper
- Colored pencils
- Chart paper
- Fine-tip markers
Lesson Structure
Opening (5 minutes)
Begin with a quick movement activity: "Show me what a tired leader looks like... now show me an energized leader!" Have students demonstrate the difference physically. Ask: "What do you think makes the difference between these two leaders?"
Main Activity (35 minutes)
Step-by-step instructions:
- (8 minutes) Introduce the Four Wellness Dimensions using the provided text. Read aloud together, having students highlight key terms: physical, emotional, social, and intellectual health. Model finding text evidence for each dimension.
- (10 minutes) Students work in pairs using tablets to research one assigned famous leader (options: Michelle Obama, Nelson Mandela, Malala Yousafzai, or local community leaders). They must find specific examples of how their leader practices self-care in each wellness dimension.
- (8 minutes) Pairs create a "Leader Wellness Profile" on chart paper, drawing their leader in the center and adding quotes/evidence around them showing their wellness practices in each dimension. Use colored pencils to color-code each dimension.
- (6 minutes) Quick gallery walk where pairs present their leader's wellness practices, focusing on one powerful quote that shows their self-care approach.
- (3 minutes) Individual reflection: Students complete the "My Leadership Wellness Plan" handout, setting one specific goal for each wellness dimension that would help them become better leaders.
Closing (5 minutes)
Students form a circle and share one wellness goal from their plan that they're most excited to try. Connect back to opening: "How will taking care of yourself in these ways make you a stronger leader?"
Quick Check: "Name two wellness dimensions and give an example of how leaders care for each one. How does self-care connect to leadership?"
Formative Assessment
During the lesson, look for:
- Students correctly identifying and categorizing wellness practices into the four dimensions
- Use of specific quotes and text evidence when discussing leader examples
- Personal wellness plans that show understanding of how self-care supports leadership
Differentiation Strategies
Support for Struggling Students:
- Provide pre-selected leader profiles with highlighted wellness examples
- Offer sentence frames: "This leader cares for their [dimension] health by..."
- Partner struggling readers with stronger readers during research
Challenge for Advanced Learners:
- Research additional leaders and compare their wellness approaches
- Create a presentation about how wellness practices change across different leadership roles
- Develop interview questions they would ask leaders about their self-care routines
ELL/ELD Support:
- Provide visual vocabulary cards for wellness dimension terms
- Use graphic organizers with pictures and simple sentence starters
- Allow students to include examples from leaders in their home countries
Printable Materials
Four Dimensions of True Wellness
What does it mean to be truly healthy? Many people think health is just about exercise and eating vegetables. But real wellness—the kind that helps leaders stay strong and make good decisions—has four important parts.
Physical Health: This includes exercise, eating nutritious foods, getting enough sleep, and taking care of your body. Leaders like Serena Williams show physical health by training regularly and fueling their bodies properly.
Emotional Health: This means understanding your feelings, managing stress, and staying positive even when things get tough. Leaders practice emotional health by taking time to relax, talking about their feelings, and finding healthy ways to handle pressure.
Social Health: This involves building good relationships, communicating well with others, and being part of a community. Strong leaders surround themselves with supportive friends and family, and they work to help others feel included.
Intellectual Health: This means keeping your mind active by learning new things, being curious, and thinking critically about problems. Leaders read books, ask questions, and never stop growing their knowledge.
When leaders take care of all four dimensions, they have the energy, focus, and strength needed to help others and make positive changes in the world.
My Leadership Wellness Plan
| Wellness Dimension | My Current Practice | My Leadership Goal | How This Helps My Leadership |
|---|---|---|---|
| Physical Health | |||
| Emotional Health | |||
| Social Health | |||
| Intellectual Health |