Upper Grades Health and Wellness Class Overview
2022-23 Tamarack Waldorf School
Teachers Kim Bair and Eliza Klunk
The primary objectives for the 2022/23 Health and Wellness class is to offer students an avenue to develop self-awareness, relationship capacity, and community building within the components of teen resilience, Cyber Civics, restorative practice circles as class meetings, mindfulness, and sexual health. There will be a strong focus on defining, setting, and articulating boundaries while classes come together as a supportive whole twice a week. The students will establish a rotating schedule of Cyber Civics, a monthly class meeting, mindfulness, classroom and school community building activities, and the Health and Wellness curriculum.
Health and Wellness
In the upper grades (Grades 5-8), the students will work with the Lessons on Teen Resilience and Sexual Health curriculum written by Heidi J. Sproull, Licensed Master of Social Work and Certified Sex Therapist. There are two components to this curriculum, the Teen Resilience Focus and the Sexual Health Focus. These lessons use multiple modalities, including role play, group discussion, small group problem solving, and group game/improv style activities.
In fifth grade, lessons consist of only 4 to 5 hours spaced throughout the school year. First lessons will strive to create a comfortable and safe environment to engage in challenging conversations, establish relationships with self-introductions and “getting to know you” games, and begin our discussions about friendship and building a healthy community. After establishing the trusting foundation, students will build their knowledge about the causes and effects of puberty with hands-on demonstrations and learn terminology. Discussions about puberty from a biological, developmental, and personal perspective will begin with presentations of the material and then confidential opportunities will be provided so all students may have their questions answered. Additional topics include setting and respecting boundaries, physical and emotional changes expected during puberty, and using the correct language for the changes. The year will conclude with students learning what boundaries are and improving their ability to set them. Interspersed fun games and activities throughout the lessons will aim to strengthen our relationships with peers and teachers.
In sixth grade, the Lessons on Teen Resilience and Sexual Health curriculum will focus on their growing awareness of the greater world and the trepidation and excitement that they may be feeling about getting older continuing to work with their emotional awareness and empathetic development. Lessons will include awareness of gender differences, sexuality and consent in all interactions.
Lessons consist of about 8-10 hours spaced throughout the school year. Students will review the puberty lessons from last year, and build their knowledge about navigating peer relationships and crushes, and relationships with adults.
Exercises will support them to realize that they are not the only one feeling certain ways about changing moods, needs, and worries. Further topics that students will learn include what consent is and how it is different from compliance and/or coercion, bystander intervention, and addressing more questions regarding puberty changes. Students will be invited to develop their own behavioral classroom agreements based on respect and compassion. Restorative practices will be demonstrated such as the “Pathway to Peace” and the concept of “othering” will be brought to the students to consider as they create the agreements.
Interspersed fun games and activities throughout the lessons will aim to strengthen our relationships with peers and teachers. The year will conclude by defining sexuality and sexual orientation with the students thus aiming to normalize the process and experience of discovering and acknowledging sexual attraction and the desire for romantic attention depending on an individuals maturation process reemphasizing having respect and compassion for all classmates regardless of where they are in their own awareness.
The seventh grade Teen Resilience portion of the curriculum, the focus is on navigating feelings, decision making and teen challenges. The students will be engaged as older middle school students from a place of increased expectation of growing self awareness. We will define and discuss “othering,” bias, prejudice, and “-isms.” Students will work with sexual slang to increase correct word usage and review and expand on the work that was done previously around consent and focusing on navigating sexual feelings.
The Sexual Health portion of the curriculum focuses on sex for reproduction, reproductive anatomy, gestation and birth. Students will identify the major reproductive organs on male and female bodies and learn their functions, learn the basics of heterosexual sex for reproduction, discuss the process and changes that occur during gestation and pregnancy, learn birth basics including labor and delivery, and discuss variations or challenges to pregnancy and birth.
In the eighth grade Teen Resilience portion of the curriculum, the focus is on adapting to the responsibilities of being a teen, growing freedoms, and wider awareness of the world. We will renew and reinforce teen resilience lessons from the previous year and build upon these concepts. Students will deepen their understanding of consent, consent focused language, and challenges to consent. They will discuss values as they relate to personal behavioral choices, family and friend relationships and sexual choices. Students will discuss mental health awareness and challenges that adolescents are likely to face in others or within themselves. An awareness will be brought to alcohol and drug use and abuse, and we will discuss choices and boundaries regarding substances. There will also be a focus on preparing for the transition to high school!
The Sexual Health portion of the curriculum focuses on talking about sexual choices, birth control, and sexually transmitted infections. We will support student discernment regarding sexual values and mixed messaging that they receive. Students will learn, discuss, and develop some familiarity with/comfort about usual methods of pregnancy prevention/birth control. Students will differentiate between barrier methods of birth control, hormonal methods of birth control, surgical methods of birth control and behavioral methods of birth control. Students will learn about bacterial, viral, and parasitic sexually transmitted infections and diseases. We will discuss and model verbal assertiveness and consent focused language strategies for working with birth control and preventing the spread of STD/STI.
Cyber Civics
Each lesson contains learning activities that call on critical thinking, ethical discussion and decision making through hands-on projects, problem solving, and role-play, all surrounding the topic of "digital citizenship" (the norms of appropriate and responsible behavior with regard to technology use).
Fifth grade topics include thinking ethically online, social media norms, and digital reputations.
Sixth grade topics include cyberbullying, hate speech, online privacy, searching the web, reading a results page, algorithms, plagiarism, and balancing offline and online life.
Seventh grade topics include learning balance, online safety, searching the web, personal information, copyright/public domain/fair use and how to use Wikipedia.
Eighth grade topics include living in a participatory culture, critical thinking, misinformation, stereotypes and media representation, visual literacy, sexting, digital leadership, and research skills.
Parents and Caregivers who want to know more may read Raising Humans in a Digital World: Helping Kids Build a Healthy Relationship with Technology written by Diana Graber, the founder of Cyber Civics. The book aims to help parents know what digital skills their children need most and it is packed with research and interviews of over 30 digital experts.
Class Meetings
At the minimum, a class meeting will be held every month. Guidelines will be agreed upon regarding taking turns to talk, listening and speaking from the heart, respecting confidentiality, and ensuring everyone has an opportunity to share. By implementing these restorative communication practices, we will create a safe, non-judgemental place for students to be able to trust and be supportive of one another. Students will be invited to submit topics for discussion and to share stories about their experiences.
When conflicts arise, a collaborative and inclusive restorative justice will be practiced putting right, wrongs or harms. Our goal will be to build, maintain, and repair relationships with respect, responsibility, and reintegration. These connection circles help us respond to challenging classroom situations, enhance learning, celebrate successes, create psychological safety, debrief about community/national events, and provide opportunities for students to lead.
Mindfulness plus Classroom and School Community Building
Mindfulness is defined as an awareness and acceptance of the world around us and our internal experiences. All of the components of the Health and Wellness curriculum will be instilled with Mindfulness activities including dimming the lights, lighting a candle and ringing chimes to signify that something special is about to occur. Mindful breathing exercises, methods to identify emotions, and activities to destress will all be incorporated into the lessons.
The students will be given opportunities to honor each other by being given a birthday partner to celebrate each other’s birthdays. They also will show their appreciation for family members by creating meaningful gifts throughout the seasons. Additionally, gratitude will be fostered by creating thank you cards and writing letters to peers, teachers, and classroom volunteers. Service projects to tend to the school and help younger grades will be initiated by the students.
If you would like to see the recording of the Teen Resilience and Sexual Health Curriculum presentation by Heidi Sproull please contact Dorothy.kulke@tamarackwaldorf.org for a link.
Kim Bair
Teacher, Sixth Grade Homeroom, Upper Grades History, Geography, Science, Health and Wellness, and Place Based Learning
Ms. Bair was raised in Indiana, and now lives in Eagle with her husband, Rick, two children, Rosa and Henry, dog, cat, and flock of chickens. She has over 12 years of experience as a Waldorf teacher, and has consistently developed a strong teaching foundation by being a loving authority and holding the classroom form with joy.
ELIZA KLUNK
Teacher, Seventh Grade Homeroom, Upper Grades Applied Arts and Health and Wellness
Eliza grew up in and around the Milwaukee area. She first came to Tamarack as a parent and volunteer. In addition to handwork and woodwork, she enjoys reading, baking, games, hiking, biking, and movies.