Healthy Beats

3. Good Health and Well-being
Music
Grades 5-8
Flexible

Goal 3: Good Health and Well-being

You can find an introduction to Goal 3, as well as the Targets & Indicators, Objectives, and Action Planning Resources on the Goal overview page.

See Goal 3 Overview
Goal 3 icon
  • Simple instruments (based on the class and skill level, can be 100% simple percussion or even improvised instruments).
  • Audio
  • Whiteboard or large chart paper
  • Markers
  • Notebooks or Paper
  • Pens/Pencils
  • [Health Challenge Cards](https://docs.google.com/document/d/1fomgXcuLAT8jncOhaTmQ9jMhUYCkd_VP-LaJuf8xihM/edit?usp=drive_link): Slips of paper with simple health challenges to spark the beginning of a story.

Welcome students to an exciting music lesson - we're going to use the power of music and rhythm to explore the important idea of Global Goal 3: Good Health and Well-being.

  • This goal aims to make sure everyone, everwhere, has a healthy life and feels good, no matter their age. Today, we're going to focus on a super important part of staying healthy: everyone getting the care they need.
  • This means that when you're sick or hurt, you can get help from doctors and nurses, and get the medicine you need, no matter where you live or how much money your family might have.
  • It's about making sure health care is fair and available for everyone.

Talk to students about how music can make us feel strong, determined, or even help us understand big challenges. Today, we'll use sound, music, and rhythms to create musical stories that show what it's like to need help and how we can find musical ways to show solutions for a healthier world where everyone gets care!

1

Introduce the activity

Introduce the Sound and Movement Mirror to the class.
2

Demonstrate mirroring

Make a sound and a simple movement. The students will then copy or "mirror" that sound and movement exactly.
3

Continue mirroring

Then, the next person will create their own sound and movement for the class to mirror. (Or, can continue to mirror multiple sound and movement from the educator).

Explain the activity:

  • We're going to create a Care Access Chord Chart on the board/paper. We'll think about musical sounds and rhythms for different parts of a story about getting healthcare - from needing help to getting well.

Draw three large, connected bubbles or boxes on the whiteboard/paper, like a flow chart:

[Content includes detailed examples for Needing Care/Challenge Sounds, Journey to Care/Action Sounds, and Receiving Care/Solution Sounds - stored as rich_text]

Explain that music can tell powerful stories, and that the class is going to listen to a couple of songs that talk about helping others, being strong, or finding connections.
Have students notice how the music makes them feel, and how the words, sounds, and rhythm tell a story.
Play one to two age appropriate songs with themes of kindness, community, or overcoming challenges. Focus on simple positive messages.
Examples:

After the song(s), facilitate a brief discussion. Ask guiding questions like:

  • What was the main message of this song about helping or caring?
  • How did the music make you feel?
  • Did any words or sounds in the song remind you of our Chord Chart?
1

Divide into groups

Divide students into small groups (3-4 students). Provide each group with a few simple percussion instruments (or different instruments if available and appropriate for skill set), or remind them they can use body percussion/improvised instruments.
2

Explain the task

Explain that each group will create a short musical verse (about 30-45 seconds long) that tells a story about Global Goal 3, using sounds and rhythms from our Care Access Chord Chart. The verse will show: A Challenge (start with sounds from Needing Care), The Journey (show sounds from Journey to Care), and The Solution (end with sounds from Receiving Care).
3

Distribute challenge cards

Distribute Health Challenge Cards to each group (one card per group). This gives a specific challenge to start their story. They then create their own "journey" and "solution."
4

Encourage creativity

Encourage groups to think about their story, instruments/sound choices, musical elements (dynamics, tempo, rhythm), and collaboration.
5

Circulate and guide

Circulate among groups, offering guidance and encouraging creativity with guiding questions.
Have each group perform their musical piece for the class. Remind the audience to listen carefully and try to hear the story and feelings being told. Before each group performs, invite the performing group to share their intended message. After each performance, invite the audience to share in discussion. Ask guiding questions like:
  • What challenges did you hear in the first part of their music?
  • What journey did you hear in the middle?
  • What solution or positive change did you hear in the last portion?
  • What emotions did their music make you feel?
Have students reflect on their learning experience through discussion or writing. Ask guiding questions like:
1
How did making music and sounds help you understand what it means for everyone to have access to doctors and medicine?
2
What did you learn about how different sounds and rhythms can show big feelings like worry, hope, or getting well?
3
Which musical pieces today made you think or feel the most about access to healthcare for everyone, and why?
4
What does our Healthy Beats activity tell us about how we can all work together to make sure everyone has waht they need to stay healthy?
5
What's one small thing you can do in your own life today to help with healthy living or supporting others' health, perhaps inspired by the music we made or heard?
  • Consistent and and enthusiastic involvement in all phases of the lesson, including the warm-up, brainstorm, group music creation, and class discussions.
  • Understanding of the core concept of access to healthcare within Global Goal 3, as demonstrated through the sounds, rhythms, and message in the musical pieces (showing challenge/journey/solution) and the verbal contributions during discussions.
  • Originality and effort in crafting musical pieces. Look for evidence of connection to Global Goal 3.8 (does the music clearly relate to the challenge of getting care, the journey, and the solution?), and use of elements (are there attempts to use musical elements like rhythm, dynamics, sound choices, and simple vocalizations, to convey the chosen story?).
  • Ability to work effectively within the small groups, contributing ideas, respecting diverse musical choices, and collaborating cohesively to create the piece.
  • Abilikty to articulate learning and personal connections during the reflection and summary discussion.

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Exploring Global Goal 3 Through Folk Dance
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