Curriculum Overview

Wellness 10 is an integrated course of health education and physical education. It consists of five required units totaling 100 hours of instruction. An outline of Wellness 10 within the framework of K-12 health education/physical education is shown on page 3 of this information bulletin.

Aims

The aim of health education from kindergarten to grade 12 is to enable students to apply health knowledge in daily life in order to increase health-enhancing behaviours and decrease health-risking behaviours.

The aim of physical education from kindergarten to grade 12 is the development of physically educated persons.

Wellness 10 contributes to the achievement of both of these aims.

Goals

The goals of health education from kindergarten to grade 12 are to:

• acquire and evaluate health-related information
• make knowledgeable decisions to improve health
• apply decisions to improve one’s own physical, mental, and social well-being and that of peers, families, and communities.

The goals of physical education from kindergarten to grade 12 are to:

• deve lop positive attitudes toward physical activity
• promote a lifestyle oriented to overall well-being
• develop concept-based skills.

Wellness 10 supports student achievement related to all six goals.

Overview of K-12 Health Education/Physical Education

Note: To meet credit requirements for grade 12 graduation, students are required to take one health education or physical education course at the Secondary Level. Students may take Wellness 10, Physical Education 20, or Physical Education 30 to meet this health education/physical education requirement.

Outline of Wellness 10

Unit 1: Orientation (5 hours)

Unit 2: Strands of Wellness (60 hours)

Unit 3: Challenges for Wellness (5 hours)

Unit 4: Supports for Personal Wellness (15 hours)

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

* In Wellness 10, students design and carry out a minimum of two action plans – one related to Physical Activity and Fitness, and one related to Stress Management. 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.

Key Messages for Units 1-5

Unit 1: Orientation

• The purpose of this unit is to act as an orientation to Wellness 10.
• Students learn about the course, its focus on "balance", and how they will be evaluated.
• Students complete a Wellness Inventory during this unit that will be referred to again throughout the semester or year.

Unit 2: Strands of Wellness

• In this unit, 12 hours are allocated to the key understandings and skills of each of the five strands of wellness.
• Physical activity is the primary vehicle through which the key understandings and skills are practised, reinforced, and/or explored.

Unit 3: Challenges for Wellness

• Saskatchewan Learning recognizes that schools share responsibility for HIV/AIDS Education with parents, churches, community organizations, and social agencies.
• Health-related information is constantly changing. The purpose of this unit is to enable students to access and evaluate information that is currently accepted by responsible authorities, as well as information that is continually being made available to the public. The emphasis is on information regarding testing for HIV/AIDS.
• The section Background Information for the Teacher (pages 241-248 in the curriculum guide) is updated annually both in print and on Saskatchewan Learning’s web site at www.sasked. gov.sk.ca.
• Saskatchewan Learning recommends the establishment of a health education/wellness liaison committee. Some communities may already have this support in place, as the Health Education curricula for grades 1-5 and 6-9 recommend the establishment of such a committee. A liaison committee can be a beneficial support to both HIV/AIDS education and teachers. A committee made up of parents, educators, health professionals, and community members might assist in acquiring and selecting resources that meet community needs. Such committees provide a valuable link between the school and community.

Unit 4: Supports for Personal Wellness

• During this 15-hour unit, students learn how to support their own wellness (Personal sphere of wellness) and that of others (Local sphere of wellness).
• Students identify the causes, costs, and consequences of selected activity-related injuries, conditions, illnesses, and diseases and improve their ability to prevent and manage them.
• Students also learn to analyze activities to determine their potential for injury to the earth (Global sphere of wellness).

Unit 5: Supports for Local and Global Wellness

• It is a good idea to introduce this unit early in the school year or semester. This gives students time to think about where they might like to volunteer in order to enhance their own wellness as well as that of others.

See Appendix A, The Five Circles of Wellness 10 for more information about:

• the Dimensions of Wellness
• the Sphères of Wellness
• the Strands of Wellness
• the Perspectives of Wellness
• the Decision-making Process.

Together, they form the foundation of Wellness 10.