Deio’s story

Primary Resources > Health and Well-being (Wales) 8-11 | Iechyd a Lles 8-11

Summary of the film

Deio has lost his mother and is now living with his grandmother. Since his loss, Deio finds it difficult to eat foods that remind him of his mother and he reverts to eating junk food instead. Will he carry on refusing to eat his grandmother’s healthy food, or will he revert to colourful food like his mother used to make?

Teacher notes

Ideas for the classroom:

• Food detective – Teaching staff could create a large circle with the seven groups (carbohydrates, protein, vitamins, fat, minerals, fibres and water) and ask the pupils to find images of food around the classroom/in magazine and place them in the correct section eg potatoes in the ‘carbohydrates’ section to create a class collage. Pupils could also be asked to research online into which food groups belong in which category.

A new restaurant is coming to the area and they need a new menu.

Challenge 1: Pupils could devise a healthy menu by calculating various costs and record their data as an electronic table.

Challenge 2: The pupils to design a menu either by hand or digitally – the class to decide which is the best menu based on how appealing it looks!

Pupils could write an argument using persuasive language on the topic of ‘healthy food or junk food’? that outlines their arguments, the reason for their argument and a summary to finish.

Here are some useful phrases that could help pupils with this task:

In my opinion…
On one hand… on the other hand…
Research shows that…
You could argue that…
To conclude…

• Target flower – Each pupil to draw a flower like the one below, and place targets on each petal eg talking to a friend, take a picture of a happy memory, create a picture book, try something new. After completing the task, pupils to colour in the petals.

• Deio’s life – The film discusses significant changes to Deio’s life since losing his mum eg living with his grandmother and his relationship with food. Pupils could be asked to think about how Deio feels at the start of the film – fed up, unhappy living with his grandmother, sad etc.

Then, they could be asked to create images to convey what Deio could do to be happier in the form of a jigsaw eg eating healthy food, spending time with friends, listening to music and taking part in sports activities. The class could then discuss how Deio would feel after doing these – fulfilled, happy, healthy etc.

Language, literacy and communication ideas:

• Write a monologue – Pupils could be asked to write a monologue for Deio’s character using the poem as inspiration. The film outlines the changes that Deio has faced in his life and how they have affected his feelings. A task could be given to write a monologue using the following:

  • Use the first person eg I saw, I felt, I shouted
  • Rhetorical questions eg Why does Nain insist on cooking colourful food? Why can’t I stop feeling angry?
  • Use the senses – how does Deio feel? What can Deio see? What can he taste?

Or, pupils could write about a big change that has happened in their own lives and how this made them feel.

• What makes the body happy? The class could create a poem using personifications like “eat the rainbow” to show how we can make the body happy eg ‘drink the sea’, ‘feel the clouds’ etc.

Learning outcomes and curriculum notes

• Learning about the importance of healthy foods
• Understand the difference between fresh and processed food
• Recognise the importance and purpose of elements in our foods: carbohydrates, protein, vitamins, fat, minerals, fibres and water
• Content that could be triggering: Loss and grief

Area of Learning and Experience – Health and Well-being

How we process and respond to our experiences affects our mental health and emotional well-being.

Progression Step 3

• I can self-regulate my emotions in a healthy way using strategies that I have developed.

• I can see the benefits of communicating about feelings as one of a range of strategies which can help promote positive mental health and emotional well-being.

• I can ask for help when I need it from people I trust.

• I can reflect on the way that past events and experiences have affected my thoughts, feelings and actions.

Developing physical health and well-being has lifelong benefits.

Progression Step 3

• I can explain the importance of a balanced diet and nutrition and the impact my choices have on my physical health and well-being. I can plan and prepare basic, nutritious meals.

Area of Learning and Experience – Mathematics and Numeracy

Statistics represent data, probability models chance, and both informed inferences and decisions.

Progression Step 2

• I can collect and organise data to ask and answer questions in relevant situations.

Area of Learning and Experience – Expressive Arts

Creating combines skills and knowledge, drawing on the senses, inspiration and imagination.

Progression Step 2

• I can create my own designs and work collaboratively with others to develop creative ideas.

Where next?