🎨❤️‍🩹 Lesson 8: The Art of the Upstander

⏱️ 75 minutes 📚 Year 8 🇳🇿 NZ Curriculum: Health, The Arts

Kaitiaki Hauora: We have seen how words can harm our Taha Hinengaro. But what do we do when we see it happening? It can be scary. Often, the safest and most powerful thing we can do is not to fight, but to support. To stand up *for* someone, not just *against* someone else.

Kaitiaki Toi: Exactly! Being an 'Upstander' is an art form. It requires creativity, courage, and skill. It's about changing the atmosphere, painting over the negativity with something better. Today, we will fill your toolkit with creative strategies to protect the mana of others and strengthen our community's well-being.

Knowledge (Māramatanga)

Define the difference between a bystander (someone who watches) and an upstander (someone who acts).
Identify at least three different strategies for being an upstander online.
Understand that being an upstander is about supporting the target, not confronting the aggressor.

Skills (Pūkenga)

Analyse a scenario to determine the safest and most effective upstander strategy.
Apply different upstander tools to a variety of online situations.
Creatively design a positive intervention (a 'mana shield').

Values (Wairuatanga)

Develop a sense of collective responsibility for the well-being of the online community.
Value courage and empathy as key strengths.
Feel empowered to make a positive difference in a difficult online situation.

➡️ Whakatūwhera | To Act or Not to Act (10 minutes)

Main Activity: Anonymous Poll

Setup (5 mins): The teacher sets up a simple, anonymous poll (e.g., using a digital tool or folded paper in a box). The question is: "Have you ever seen someone being targeted by mean comments online?"
The Follow-up (5 mins): After revealing the (likely high) number of 'yes' answers, the teacher asks for a show of hands: "Without talking about any specific event, who has ever felt unsure of what to do in that situation?" This normalises the feeling of uncertainty and sets the stage for the lesson.

💡 Main Learning | The Upstander Toolkit (35 minutes)

Main Activity: Choosing Your Tools

Introducing the Toolkit (10 mins): The teacher introduces the 'Upstander Toolkit' handout. They explain the difference between a bystander and an upstander, and then walk through the four key tools: The Supporter, The Distractor, The Reporter, and The Questioner.
Scenario Workshop (20 mins): In small groups, students work through the scenarios on the handout. For each one, they must choose the best tool from the toolkit and justify their choice. "Why is distracting better than questioning here? Why is a private message the safest option?"
Group Discussion (5 mins): The teacher brings the class back together to discuss one of the scenarios. Which tools did groups choose? Why might different tools be appropriate?

Teacher Note: The key message is that there is no single "right" answer. The best tool depends on the situation and, most importantly, on what feels safest for the upstander. The goal is to de-escalate and support, not to become a new target.

🤝 Consolidation | The Mana Shield Challenge (25 minutes)

Main Activity: Creative Intervention

The Challenge (20 mins): Kaitiaki Toi issues a creative challenge: "Sometimes the best way to be an upstander is to flood the space with positivity. Your task is to design a 'mana shield'—a digital artifact you could post to support someone. This could be a GIF, a meme, a sticker, or just a positive comment." Students can sketch their ideas on paper.
Gallery Walk (5 mins): Students do a quick gallery walk to see each other's creative and supportive ideas.

Formative Assessment: The justification for choosing a tool in the scenario workshop shows their analytical skills. The 'mana shield' design demonstrates their ability to think creatively and empathetically about solutions.

🏁 Whakakapi | The Power of the Collective (5 minutes)

Main Activity: Final Thought

Kaitiaki Hauora concludes: "Remember the whakataukī. One person standing up can feel small, but a community of upstanders creates a powerful force for well-being. You don't have to be a hero. You just have to be a friend. By choosing to be an upstander, you are strengthening the Taha Hinengaro of our entire digital whānau."