Considerations for Lesson Planning
Location: Classroom
Strand: Healthy Living
Topic: Human Development and Sexual Health
Students:
- Students who are non-binary; one prefers they/them pronouns and the other student is not bound to any specific pronoun
- Consideration: Foster a supportive, affirming, and safer learning environment for students who are non-binary.
- A student from a refugee camp in Iran and new to Canada
- Consideration: Incorporate strategies to support the student from a refugee camp in Iran and is new to Canada.
- Students from multiple religions, including Christianity, Hinduism, and Islam
- Consideration: Incorporate strategies to support the students from multiple religions, including Christianity, Hinduism, and Islam.
Supports: Access to 2SLGBTQIA+ resources
Lesson: Reflecting on Relationships
Lesson Overview
Through small group discussion and analysis of relationship scenarios, students explore the benefits, risks, and drawbacks of relationships of different degrees of intimacy. Students apply their understanding of skills needed to make safe and healthy decisions about sexual activity.
Overall and Specific Expectations
D1: D1.4; D2: D2.2, D2.3; D3: D3.3
Learning Goals
- We are learning to identify the attraction and benefit of being in a healthy relationship.
- We are learning to identify and demonstrate an understanding of benefits, risks, and drawbacks of relationships involving different degrees of intimacy.
- We are learning to demonstrate an understanding of skills needed in order to make safe and healthy decisions about sexual activity.
Materials
- Access to a document (for example, chart paper and markers, online interactive tool)
- Teacher Resource: Recordable Anecdotal Recording Chart
Assessment for Learning
Use the Teacher Resource: Recordable Anecdotal Recording Chart to observe students' conversations during whole and small group discussions to provide verbal and written feedback of students on their understanding of benefits, risks, and drawbacks of being involved in relationships of different degrees of intimacy to make safe and healthy decisions about sexual activity
Minds On
Share the learning goals with the class and co-construct success criteria with students. Consider posting the success criteria in the learning space for reference throughout the lesson.
Review classroom expectations to ensure all students feel safe enough to share their thoughts and opinions throughout the lesson.
Set up a Parking Lot (consult Teaching Strategy Descriptions) in the classroom.
Label each corner of the room with one of the following statements: Strongly Agree, Agree, Strongly Disagree, and Disagree.
Explain to students that they will listen to the following statements about relationships and sexual activity and then quietly make their way to a corner of the room that coincides with their stance on the topic.
- “Being in a romantic relationship is necessary for happiness.”
- “Intimacy always means physical contact.”
- “People should be in romantic relationships by a certain age.”
- “If you are in a romantic relationship, it means you are ready to participate in sexual activity.”
- “If you are in a romantic relationship, you do not need to ask for consent.”
Post the statements as visual prompts on chart paper, a whiteboard, or a digital screen for students to reference and read them aloud. Consider having them translated for students who are learning English.
Let students know that if they are uncertain about their stance on a statement, they can go to the middle of the classroom. Consider student needs such as sharing ideas with peers or aloud in front of the class, physical needs, or language barriers.
Provide students with sufficient time to think about their stance and whether they strongly agree, agree, strongly disagree, or disagree about the given statement. Have them then move to the appropriate corner or middle of the room if they are unsure.
Have students turn and talk to others that are in their corner to discuss their thinking and share opinions.
If comfortable, have the groups of students in the corners share their thoughts. Circulate throughout the corners of the room to monitor and assist students as needed to ensure all students are supported and feel a sense of safety.
At the end of the activity, emphasize to students that the decision to be sexually active or to be in a romantic relationship is a personal choice that everyone gets to make for themselves. No one should feel pressured to engage in sexual activity or be in a romantic relationship.
Action
Divide students into small groups of three to four, considering intentional groupings based on needs and relationships.
Provide the class with the following scenarios that illustrate relationships with different degrees of intimacy:
- Scenario 1: Alex and Arun have been friends for years. Lately, Arun has been stressed about school and has been cancelling plans. Alex checks in, asking if Arun needs space or wants to talk. Arun appreciates this and shares that school has been overwhelming. Alex listens, encourages Arun, and suggests they take a walk together to de-stress.
- Scenario 2: Sam and Chris have been dating for a few months. Chris often tells Sam how to dress and criticizes their style. Sam doesn’t like it but doesn’t want to upset Chris, so they start dressing differently. When Sam brings it up, Chris says, “I just want you to look better.”
- Scenario 3: Anika and Jamie are dating. Anika often demands Jamie’s phone password and gets angry if Jamie doesn’t reply to messages right away. One day, Jamie finds out Anika has been reading their private messages without permission. When Jamie confronts Anika, Anika says, “If you loved me, you wouldn’t keep secrets.”
- Scenario 4: A group of friends, including Fatima, are at a party. Someone offers Fatima a drink, but she says no. Her friend Mia laughs and says, “Come on, everyone’s doing it. Don’t be boring!” Fatima feels uncomfortable but doesn’t want to seem uncool.
- Scenario 5: Aaliyah and Marcus have been dating for a few months. Aaliyah tells Marcus that she wants to wait before becoming sexually active. Marcus replies, “I completely respect that. It’s important that we’re both comfortable.”
- Scenario 6: Devin and Zoe are kissing when Zoe says, “I don’t want to go any further.” Devin rolls his eyes and says, “Come on, we’re already here. You can’t just stop now.”
- Scenario 7: Ethan and Rita are in a relationship and want to learn about different contraception options before making any decisions. They research online and talk to a nurse at a community clinic.
Have the groups choose and analyze one of the scenarios to identify the benefit, risk, or drawback of being involved in this type of relationship. Ensure groups each have a different scenario. Groups decide if the relationship can be categorized as healthy or unhealthy and why.
Circulate throughout the groups and provide support as needed.
After groups have had sufficient time to analyze their scenario, use a whole group discussion to have groups share their scenario with the class along with the benefits, risks, or drawbacks they identified, and their reasoning for characterizing the relationship as healthy or unhealthy. Record student responses for students to reference during the consolidation.
Student responses to the scenarios may include:
- Scenario 1: “Healthy. This is a supportive friendship where Alex respects Arun’s feelings, checks in with concern, and offers a positive way to cope with stress.”
- Scenario 2: “Unhealthy. Chris is controlling Sam’s appearance, which makes Sam uncomfortable. Even though this may not be physically harmful, it is a sign of emotional manipulation and lack of respect.”
- Scenario 3: “Unhealthy. Anika violates Jamie’s privacy and uses manipulation to justify controlling behaviour. This is emotionally abusive and a sign of an unhealthy power dynamic.”
- Scenario 4: “Unhealthy. Mia pressures Fatima to drink, making her feel uncomfortable. While it’s not outright harmful, peer pressure can lead to risky decision-making.”
- Scenario 5: “Healthy. Marcus respects Aaliyah’s boundaries and prioritizes mutual comfort in their relationship.”
- Scenario 6: “Unhealthy. Devin ignores Zoe’s withdrawal of consent, which is coercive and unacceptable. This behaviour can escalate into sexual violence.”
- Scenario 7: “Healthy. Ethan and Rita take responsibility for their health by seeking reliable information before making a decision about contraception.”
Summarize the group discussion by highlighting key characteristics and benefits of being in a healthy relationship.
Consolidation
Using an Elbow Partner strategy (consult Teaching Strategy Descriptions), have students identify skills (for example, self-awareness, communication, assertiveness, refusal skills) and individual needs to help them make safe and healthy decisions about sexual activity (for example, being aware of factors that influence their decisions, setting their personal boundaries, being able to communicate with their partner, being assertive about their decisions, respecting themselves and others, and an individual’s right to consent).
Have students choose one of the scenarios that their classmates characterized as unhealthy and revise it to a healthy interaction to demonstrate their understanding of the skills needed to make safe and healthy decisions about sexual activity.
CRRP Strategies Embedded in the Lesson
Components of this lesson are designed to foster a supportive, affirming, and safer learning environment for the students who are non-binary.
- References to names and pronouns in the statements and scenarios in the Minds On activity are intentionally gender neutral to decentre heterosexual relationships and cis-gendered identities to normalize a vast diversity of identities and relationships.
- Small and large group discussions and student reflections emphasize critical reflection, encouraging students to explore and share their identities, experiences, and perspectives and how these facets of their identity contribute to an inclusive and affirming environment.
Components of this lesson are designed to incorporate strategies to support the student from a refugee camp in Iran and is new to Canada.
- The Four Corners activity and scenario analysis provide opportunities for the student to make connections to their background and ensure that western norms are one of many perspectives shared.
- Culturally diverse names are incorporated for the student to feel more connected to their lived experience and the learning.
- Student voice and choice provides the student with an entry point into conversations they may be hesitant to engage in, based on unfamiliarity of topics related to sexual activity and romantic relationships or religious and cultural norms.
Components of this lesson are designed to incorporate strategies to support students from multiple religions, including Christianity, Hinduism, and Islam.
- Discussions and reflections encourage students to make connections to the diversity of social identities by exploring perspectives informed by various religious and cultural norms.
- Instructional strategies such as Four Corners and Elbow Partner are incorporated to support students in making connections to their background and culture and honouring the various influences that may inform how students understand sexual activity and relationships.
- Intentional grouping of students based on needs and relationships are incorporated to support students from diverse religious backgrounds to engage in conversations based on religious and cultural norms.
