Year 6 PSHCE & RSE

PSHE and RSE lessons in Year 6. This is Personal, Social, Health and Economic education, including mental health and wellbeing. RSE education is: Relationships education, Relationships and sex education. Lesson plans are organised around the PSHE Association's Programmes of Study Learning Opportunities, the new DfE guidance for Relationships Education and Health Education, the National Curriculum and Curriculum for excellence. PSHE education, including mental health and wellbeing lessons ensure progression in knowledge, attitudes and values, and skills – including the key skills of social and emotional learning, known to improve outcomes for children.


Autumn 1

Health and Wellbeing

1. Five ways to wellbeing project

  • Explain what the five ways to wellbeing are;
  • Describe how the five ways to wellbeing contribute to a healthy lifestyle, giving examples of how they can be implemented in people's lives.

2. I look great!

  • Understand that fame can be short-lived;
  • Recognise that photos can be changed to match society's view of perfect;
  • Identify qualities that people have, as well as their looks.

3. We have more in common than not.

  • Know that all people are unique but that we have far more in common with each other than what is different about us;
  • Consider how a bystander can respond to someone being rude, offensive or bullying someone else;
  • Demonstrate ways of offering support to someone who has been bullied .

4. What is HIV?

  • Explain how HIV affects the body’s immune system;
  • Understand that HIV is difficult to transmit;
  • Know how a person can protect themself from HIV.

5. It's a puzzle and rat park.

  • Identify strategies for keeping personal information safe online;
  • Describe safe and respectful behaviours when using communication technology.
  • Define what is meant by addiction, demonstrating an understanding that addiction is a form of behaviour;
  • Understand that all humans have basic emotional needs and explain some of the ways these needs can be met.

6. What sort of drug is......

  • Explain how drugs can be categorised into different groups depending on their medical and legal context;
  • Demonstrate an understanding that drugs can have both medical and non-medical uses;
  • Explain in simple terms some of the laws that control drugs in this country.

7. What's the risk? and Drugs: it's the law!

  • Identify risk factors in a given situation;
  • Understand and explain the outcomes of risk-taking in a given situation, including emotional risks.
  • Understand some of the basic laws in relation to drugs;
  • Explain why there are laws relating to drugs in this country.

Autumn 2

Health and Wellbeing

1. Alcohol: what is normal? Joe's story.

  • Understand the actual norms around drinking alcohol and the reasons for common misperceptions of these;
  • Describe some of the effects and risks of drinking alcohol.
  • Explain how these emotional needs impact on people's behaviour;
  • Suggest positive ways that people can get their emotional need met.
  • Understand and give examples of conflicting emotions;
  • Understand and reflect on how independence and responsibility go together.

2. What's the risk? (2) and to share or not to share?

  • Recognise what risk is;
  • Explain how a risk can be reduced;
  • Understand risks related to growing up and explain the need to be aware of these;
  • Assess a risk to help keep themselves safe.
  • Know that it is illegal to create and share sexual images of children under 18 years old;
  • Explore the risks of sharing photos and films of themselves with other people directly or online;
  • Know how to keep their information private online.

3. Is this normal? and Helpful; or inhelpful? Managing change.

  • Define the word 'puberty' giving examples of some of the physical and emotional changes associated with it;
  • Suggest strategies that would help someone who felt challenged by the changes in puberty;
  • Understand what FGM is and that it is an illegal practice in this country;
  • Know where someone could get support if they were concerned about their own or another person's safety.
  • Recognise some of the changes they have experienced and their emotional responses to those changes;
  • Suggest positive strategies for dealing with change;
  • Identify people who can support someone who is dealing with a challenging time of change.

4. Boys will be boys? Challenging gender stereotypes.

  • Define what is meant by the term stereotype;
  • Recognise how the media can sometimes reinforce gender stereotypes;
  • Recognise that people fall into a wide range of what is seen as normal;
  • Challenge stereotypical gender portrayals of people.

5. This will be your life!

  • Identify aspirational goals;
  • Describe the actions needed to set and achieve these.

6. Media manipulation

  • Define what is meant by the term stereotype;
  • Recognise how the media can sometimes reinforce gender stereotypes;
  • Challenge stereotypical gender portrayals of people.

7. Making babies.

  • Identify the changes that happen through puberty to allow sexual reproduction to occur;
  • Know a variety of ways in which the sperm can fertilise the egg to create a baby;
  • Know the legal age of consent and what it means.


Spring 1

Healthy Relationships

1. Solve the friendship problem

  • Recognise some of the challenges that arise from friendships;
  • Suggest strategies for dealing with such challenges demonstrating the need for respect and an assertive approach.

2. Working together

  • Demonstrate a collaborative approach to a task;
  • Describe and implement the skills needed to do this.

3. Let's negotiate

  • Explain what is meant by the terms 'negotiation' and 'compromise';
  • Suggest positive strategies for negotiating and compromising within a collaborative task;
  • Demonstrate positive strategies for negotiating and compromising within a collaborative task.

4. Behave yourself

  • Recognise and empathise with patterns of behaviour in peer-group dynamics;
  • Recognise basic emotional needs and understand that they change according to circumstance;
  • Suggest strategies for dealing assertively with a situation where someone under pressure may do something they feel uncomfortable about.

5. Assertiveness skills

  • List some assertive behaviours;
  • Recognise peer influence and pressure;
  • Demonstrate using some assertive behaviours, through role-play, to resist peer influence and pressure.

6. Don't force me

  • Describe ways in which people show their commitment to each other;
  • Know the ages at which a person can marry, depending on whether their parents agree;
  • Understand that everyone has the right to be free to choose who and whether to marry.

7. Acting appropriately.

  • Recognise that some types of physical contact can produce strong negative feelings;
  • Know that some inappropriate touch is also illegal.

Spring 2

Feelings and Emotions and Valuing Difference

1. Dear Ash

  • Explain the difference between a safe and an unsafe secret;
  • Identify situations where someone might need to break a confidence in order to keep someone safe.

2. Dan's day

  • Describe the consequences of reacting to others in a positive or negative way;
  • Suggest ways that people can respond more positively to others.

3. Advertising friendships!

  • Explain the difference between a friend and an acquaintance;
  • Describe qualities of a strong, positive friendship;
  • Describe the benefits of other types of relationship (e.g. neighbour, parent/carer, relative).

4. Respecting differences

Demonstrate ways of showing respect to others, using verbal and non-verbal communication.

5. OK to be different

  • Recognise that bullying and discriminatory behaviour can result from disrespect of people's differences;
  • Suggest strategies for dealing with bullying, as a bystander;
  • Describe positive attributes of their peers.


Summer 1

Rules, Rights and Responsibilities

THEME DAY Captain Coram 1-6 Children's rights in history

  • Determine some of the characteristics of Thomas Coram through studying his portrait;
  • Know some of the conditions of life of children in poverty in the 18th Century and relate these to their rights.
  • Demonstrate their understanding of the aims of Thomas Coram and his proposed Foundling Hospital.
  • Understand the role of artists and musicians in raising both the profile and funds for the Coram Foundling Hospital;
  • Have the skills to design, run and evaluate a fundraising project of their own choosing.
  • Consider and analyse images of paintings from the Foundling Museum to understand some of the aspects of life in the Foundling Hospital;
  • Use extracts from 'Hetty Feather' to understand some of the aspects of life in the Foundling Hospital;
  • Relate Hetty Feather's experiences to the rights of the child.
  • Use audio and photograph sources to understand some of the aspects of life in the Foundling Hospital in the 20th Century;
  • Demonstrate their understanding of life in the Foundling Hospital by writing a fictional diary entry.
  • Demonstrate an understanding of the work of the Thomas Coram Foundation (Coram) in the present day;
  • Determine ways in which Coram's work continues to uphold children's rights;
  • Demonstrate their knowledge and understanding of aspects of the work of his foundation from the 18th century through to the present day through writing a fictional letter to Thomas Coram.1. Our recommendations

Present information they researched on a health and wellbeing issues outlining the key issues and making suggestions for any improvements concerning those issues.

2. Two sides to every story

  • Define the terms 'fact', 'opinion', 'biased' and 'unbiased', explaining the difference between them;
  • Describe the language and techniques that make up a biased report;
  • Analyse a report also extract the facts from it.

3. Fakebook friends

  • Know the legal age (and reason behind these) for having a social media account;
  • Understand why people don’t tell the truth and often post only the good bits about themselves, online;
  • Recognise that people’s lives are much more balanced in real life, with positives and negatives.

4. Basic first aid

1. How to make a clear and efficient call to emergency services if necessary.

2. Concepts of basic first-aid, for example dealing with common injuries, including head injuries.

Summer 2

Caring for the Environment and Money

1. Project pitch

2. Community art

3. Action stations!

  • Explain what we mean by the terms voluntary, community and pressure (action) group;
  • Describe the aim, mission statement, activity and beneficiaries of a chosen voluntary, community or action group.

4. Happy shoppers

  • Explain what is meant by living in an environmentally sustainable way;
  • Suggest actions that could be taken to live in a more environmentally sustainable way.

5. What's it worth?

  • Explain some benefits of saving money;
  • Describe the different ways money can be saved, outlining the pros and cons of each method;
  • Describe the costs that go into producing an item;
  • Suggest sale prices for a variety of items, taking into account a range of factors;
  • Explain what is meant by the term interest.

6. Jobs and taxes

  • Recognise and explain that different jobs have different levels of pay and the factors that influence this;
  • Explain the different types of tax (income tax and VAT) which help to fund public services;
  • Evaluate the different public services and compare their value.