LEARNING OBJECTIVES

Understand and explain the physical and mental health benefits of body-positive exercise; identify body-positive ways to exercise; distinguish facts from myths about working out.

HEALTH ED STANDARDS

NHES 7: Demonstrate the ability to practice health-enhancing behaviors and avoid or reduce health risks.

CASEL COMPETENCY: Self-management; self-awareness

KEY VOCAB

body-positive

physique

flexibility

cardiovascular

Lesson Plan: The Love Your Body Workout

Your body is amazing! Celebrate it with these energy-boosting, mood-lifting, and most of all super-fun moves.

PREPARING TO READ

Before you read the article “The Love Your Body Workout,” ask your students the following pre-reading question:

How can I celebrate my body through exercise?

READING AND DISCUSSION

  • Have your students read the article “The Love Your Body Workout” independently; read the article out loud to them; or have students partner-read the article out loud.
  • After they’ve read the article, revisit the pre-reading question. Have their answers changed?

BUILDING COMPREHENSION AND VOCAB

Check students’ comprehension of and engagement with the story with the following assessment tools:

  • Comprehension Quiz
  • Vocab Builder

EXPANDING SEL OPPORTUNITIES

Continue the learning journey with the following writing prompt:

In GRATEFUL TO MY BODY, have students write a two- to three-page essay celebrating what their bodies can do. They should start by describing one or two times they have felt most grateful to their bodies while exercising (some ideas could be stretching and breathing before bed, busting a move at a school dance, or playing tag with cousins). Then, have them consider why these forms of exercise made them feel grateful. For example, did they get amazing sleep as a result of stretching and breathing? Did feel-good chemicals released by dancing or running around playing tag make them feel happy? Finally, have them reflect on body positivity by considering why it is especially important for teens to focus on celebrating their bodies while exercising rather than thinking about how they look.

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