Appendix F

Parents/Caregivers as Partners

As partners in their children's well-being, parents/caregivers deserve to be informed of the objectives, philosophy, content, and approaches of the renewed Wellness 10 curriculum. Information such as the following may guide discussions or presentations during parent awareness sessions or could be included in a parent information newsletter.

Sample Newsletter

A Renewed Wellness 10 Curriculum

Saskatchewan Learning has recently provided Saskatchewan schools with a renewed Wellness 10 curriculum guide (March 2004). Wellness 10 is an integrated health education/ physical education course designed to enable students to attain and maintain optimal wellness.

The 100-hour Wellness 10 course is organized in five units that are listed below.

Unit 1: Orientation (5 hours)

• Introduction to course

Unit 2: Strands of Wellness (60 hours)

• Physical activity and fitness*
• Stress management*
• Leisure
• Healthy eating
• Relationships

Unit 3: Challenges for Wellness (5 hours)

• HIV/AIDS education

Unit 4: Supports for Personal Wellness (15 hours)

• Identification, prevention, and management of activity-related injuries

Unit 5: Supports for Local and Global Wellness (15 hours)

• Volunteering in the community

*In Wellness 10, students demonstrate increasing self-responsibility for their own wellness by designing, implementing, and evaluating at least two personal wellness action plans – one plan related to the Physical Activity and Fitness strand and one related to the Stress Management strand. These action plans may be combined into one “two-strand” action plan. It is hoped that students will carry out a third action plan. They may add Leisure, Healthy Eating, or Relationships to their two-strand action plan or they may carry out action plans in Units 4 or 5.

Assessment techniques are devised to gather information related to how well students are achieving the learning objectives of the curriculum. Data about a student’s knowledge of Wellness 10 content and his or her ability to access and evaluate health-related information may be collected through the use of presentations, individual or group assignments, role plays, interviews, surveys, and other activities. Data about a student’s ability to make decisions can be collected by using case studies, scenarios, audiotapes, matrices, or other techniques. Rubrics, checklists, and rating scales are examples of ways to collect data about a student’s ability to design and carry out an action plan.

In order to meet the objectives of the Wellness 10 curriculum, 60-75 hours of the course involve some form of physical activity. During this time, students engage in physical activities from each of the five activity areas: Alternative Environment Activities (Aquatics and Outdoor Pursuits), Individual and Dual Activities, Rhythmics and Dance, Gymnastics, Physical Fitness, and Games. The remaining 25-40 hours is spent in a regular classroom.

How Can You Support Your Son or Daughter in Wellness 10?

School is only one of the many influences in a youth’s wellness development. Parents, caregivers, and communities can contribute greatly to a young adult’s achievement and maintenance of a healthy active lifestyle.

Some examples of how you can support your son or daughter include:

• You can discuss, with your son or daughter, the topics being addressed in wellness class and model some of the wellness-enhancing strategies that are proposed.
• You can volunteer to act as a support person when your son or daughter is carrying out his or her action plan. This means playing a supporting role in the design of the action plan as well as in its implementation.
• You can suggest and/or encourage the formation of a wellness liaison committee at your son’s or daughter’s school. The structure and mandate of a liaison committee varies from one area to another depending on the number of classrooms, the size of the community, health-related programming in the community, and other factors. The committee might strive to work with the school, community, and health region to establish a comprehensive school health framework that not only features instruction but also features support services, a healthy school environment, and social supports for learners and their families.
• You can demonstrate the concept of “shared responsibility” by supporting your daughter or son, the Wellness 10 teacher, and wellness at school. Wellness is a responsibility shared among parents, schools, churches, community organizations, and social agencies.