Healthy habits
Balancing Screen Time
.png)
Introduction – Screen Time: Finding the Right Balance
In this introductory activity, children explore the connection between screen time habits and wellbeing through observation and reflection. The video features real-world examples from Iceland that highlight how taking regular breaks from screens can support both physical and mental health—by reducing stress (lower cortisol levels), improving sleep, and boosting focus and energy.
Core Skill: Scientific understanding of healthy digital behaviours
This week, we’re learning how to take control of our screen time—and why that matters!
Gavin and Jack filmed this lesson in Iceland, where they noticed something amazing: people there spend more time in the real world than online—and they’re healthier and happier because of it.
Too much screen time can make us feel tired, stressed, or even grumpy. But stepping away—even for just 15 minutes—can help our brains focus better, make us feel calm, and boost our energy.
Your challenge this week is to reduce your screen time a little each day. Try doing something else—go for a walk, draw, read, or just sit and relax. Then write in your Healthy Habits booklet how it made you feel.
At the end of the week, you’ll share your ideas with your classmates—and maybe help someone else take back control too!
Click the link to watch this week’s video with Gavin and Jack.
Important - Download Your Healthy Habits Booklet
This week, students will use a provided template to begin designing their Healthy Habits booklet. Emphasise the importance of staying within the dotted safe zone for printing. This activity blends creative expression with structured reflection, resulting in a keepsake that celebrates their learning journey.
Core Skill: Structured creativity and presentation awareness
Over the next ten weeks, this booklet is going to be all about you—your ideas, your discoveries, and your journey to becoming healthier and happier. Each week, you’ll explore something new, and you’ll add your own writing, drawings, and reflections into the pages.
We’ve given you a special template to help you stay organised. Think of it like your guidebook. You can change the colours, add your own designs, and really make it your own. Just one important thing—make sure everything stays inside the dotted line (called the safe zone). That way, if you decide to print your book or upload it to the Upschool library, none of your work will be cut off.
Every day, you’ll come back to your booklet to add something—maybe how you felt after a walk in nature, a new goal you’ve set, or a drawing that shows your progress. Over time, it’ll become a collection of your thoughts, your actions, and your growth.
By the end of the ten weeks, you’ll have a finished book that shows just how far you’ve come. You might even want to print a copy and keep it as a reminder of the healthy habits you’ve built.
Weekly Keywords
In this activity, students receive a task card with foundational vocabulary related to screen time and digital wellbeing. Their challenge is to explain each term in the simplest way possible, helping them build a strong understanding of how screen use affects the brain and body.
This exercise supports clear thinking and encourages discussion about healthy screen habits, laying the foundation for future lessons on maintaining balance, focus, and overall wellbeing in a digital world.
On the task card provided, you’ll find a list of words related to healthy screen habits. Your challenge is to explain each word in the simplest way possible.
This activity will help you understand important ideas about how screen time affects your brain, mood, and body. It’s a great way to prepare for future discussions on how to stay balanced, focused, and healthy in a digital world.
Quote of the Week – Simon Sinek
In this activity, students reflect on an inspirational quote by Simon Sinek:
Students will write down or illustrate the quote and explore its meaning, focusing on the importance of balance, real-world connection, and using screens wisely.
The activity encourages students to recognise how too much screen time can affect their relationships and wellbeing. It fosters self-awareness, empathy, and thoughtful choices—helping them build stronger connections with others and live more balanced lives both online and offline.
This week’s quote is about remembering the importance of real human connection:
“There’s nothing wrong with technology, it’s about how we use it. If you’re not careful, it can get in the way of the things that matter most.” – Simon Sinek
Write this quote into your Healthy Habits booklet, decorate it, or draw something that shows what it means to you.
Then, take a moment to think: What really matters to you? Time with family? Playing with friends? Creating something amazing?
You might want to write about a time when turning off your screen helped you enjoy something real—or talk to a friend about how they feel when they take a screen break.
Let this quote remind you: technology is a great tool—but the best parts of life happen away from screens.
Design Your Information Card – The Power of Screen Breaks
In this task, students design an information card showing how taking breaks from screens supports wellbeing. They’ll include visuals and practical tips, drawing on what they’ve learned from the video and their own daily experiences.
Encourage thoughtful design and personal reflection—what do they notice about how they feel when they step away from screens?
Core Skill: Synthesising information through visual and written communication
In this activity, your job is to make an information card about taking healthy breaks from screens—and how that helps your body and mind feel better.
Start by designing a picture that shows someone enjoying time away from a screen. It could be someone playing outside, reading a book, drawing, talking with a friend, or just relaxing. Use images or drawings that remind you of feeling calm, happy, and focused.
Next, write your own top tips or reasons why taking screen breaks is important. You can use examples from our video, like how screen breaks help reduce stress, improve focus, protect your eyes, and boost your mood.
When you're done, share your card with your class community so everyone can learn why screen breaks are so powerful. This card will go into your Healthy Habits booklet—a collection of smart advice to help you and others stay calm, balanced, and healthy
Design Your Screen Breaks Page – 8 Ways to Better Spend Your Time
In this activity, students will create a page in their booklet that highlights three simple, practical ways to take healthy breaks from screens in their daily lives. They’ll begin with your example, then brainstorm and present their own ideas using both writing and visuals.
This encourages thoughtful reflection on how screen time affects wellbeing and helps students express their ideas clearly and creatively.
Core Skill: Applying personal research and creativity to promote wellbeing through balanced screen use
In this activity, your task is to create a page in your "Healthy Habits" booklet showing 8 ways you can take healthy breaks from screens. First, look at my example, which includes ideas like going for a walk after school, doing a puzzle, reading a book, or chatting with a friend face-to-face.
Then, using your own ideas and a bit of research, design your own creative page. Think carefully about how you can share your tips clearly—use pictures, colour, and easy-to-read writing to help others understand.
Once you’ve finished, your page will be added to your Healthy Habits booklet to help others see how taking breaks from screens can boost focus, improve mood, and bring more calm into our lives.
Track Your Mood – How Does Screen Time Affect Your Emotions?
In this activity, students will track their emotions daily using a simple task card scale. After taking breaks from screens, they’ll reflect on any changes they notice in how they feel. Encourage them to connect their screen-free experiences with their emotional state and look for patterns across the week.
This supports emotional awareness, self-regulation, and helps students build healthy habits around screen use.
Core Skill: Self-monitoring and emotional reflection through experiential learning
Now that you’ve learned how screen time can affect how we feel, it’s time to track your emotions each day and see what happens when you take breaks from screens.
This week, use the task card opposite to record your screen time and how you’re feeling. After taking a break—like reading, going outside, playing, or creating—check in with yourself: Do you feel calm? Happy? Frustrated? Energetic?
Circle the emotion that matches how you feel, and write a short note about what you did and what might have influenced your mood.
By the end of the week, look back. What made you feel your best? Did time away from screens help? Let’s find out how your choices around screen time affect your emotions—one day at a time.
.png)
Spreading the Word - Weekly Community Challenge
In this activity, students will select actions from a task card to apply their knowledge of hydration in real-world contexts, focusing on helping others stay hydrated. This encourages leadership by empowering students to independently choose and carry out tasks that promote health in their community.
The emphasis on real-world application helps foster a sense of responsibility and initiative, allowing students to learn from their experiences, whether they succeed or not. This approach nurtures independence and reinforces the value of effort in encouraging others to maintain healthy hydration habits.
Choose an action from the task card and use your new knowledge to make the lives of others better by encouraging good hydration habits. It doesn’t matter which action you choose—what matters is that you share your knowledge to help others stay hydrated, healthy, and happy.
You can choose as many actions as you like from the list, such as reminding someone to carry a water bottle, encouraging a friend to drink a glass of water before meals, or setting up a "hydration reminder" challenge. And remember, it’s all about making an effort and having fun, not about getting perfect results!
.png)
Weekly Art Therapy – Screen Break Calm
This weekly art activity encourages mindfulness and relaxation as part of a healthy screen-time routine. Teachers should introduce it with enthusiasm, creating a calm, creative atmosphere that signals it’s time to unplug and unwind.
Allow children the freedom to choose where they sit—whether it’s a quiet classroom corner or even outside—and consider setting aside a regular weekly time for this screen-free creative break. This activity can also be shared with families to support mindfulness at home.
Encourage children to focus on the process rather than the finished product, and to enjoy the simple act of being present, creative, and away from devices.
Each week, we’ll share a fun and relaxing art activity with you. Your job? Simply take a break from screens, find a quiet spot—maybe in your room, on the balcony, or anywhere you feel peaceful—and get creative.
Grab your favourite colouring pencils, set up a soft light or a lamp, and if you like, play some calming music in the background. Then colour in the picture on the next page and let your imagination take over.
Art is a great way to give your mind a rest from screen time. It helps you slow down, focus on the moment, and feel more balanced. It can even boost your mood and help you feel more in control of your day.
This is your time to relax—there’s no right or wrong. Just enjoy being in the moment.
My Weekly Mood Diary
This activity supports children in tracking their daily emotions using a simple symbol-based diary. Teachers should encourage a quiet moment of reflection each day, helping students connect changes in their mood to the amount and type of screen time they had, as well as any screen-free breaks.
This promotes mindfulness, emotional regulation, and greater self-awareness. Emphasise that the diary is private, creating a safe space for honest and personal reflection.
As you work through each activity this week, take a quiet moment at the end of each day to check in with yourself. How did you feel today? Did taking breaks from screens help you feel calmer or more focused? Were there times you felt frustrated, tired, or happy?
Using the task card provided, choose a symbol that best shows your emotion—happy, okay, or not great. Add it to your diary and write a short note about what may have caused that feeling. Was it something you did, how long you were on a screen, or what kind of break you took?
By the end of the week, you might start to see patterns. Maybe you feel better on days when you spend more time doing things off-screen. These discoveries help you understand yourself better and show how screen habits affect how you feel.
This diary is just for you. You don’t need to share it with anyone. It’s your own space to reflect, learn, and be proud of the choices you’re making to look after yourself.
Weekly Quiz: The Power of Screen Breaks
Students will complete a ten-question quiz to reinforce their understanding of how balancing screen time supports health, focus, sleep, and emotional wellbeing. A score of 80% or higher earns a certificate, with eight to collect across the course.
This activity promotes knowledge retention, encourages ongoing engagement, and celebrates progress as students build lifelong healthy habits around screen use.
Core Skill: Reinforcing content knowledge through assessment and reward
This week, you’ll take a fun quiz all about the power of taking breaks from screens. After rewatching the video, your task is to answer ten questions about how screen time affects your emotions, focus, sleep, and overall health—and how breaks can help you feel better.
If you score 80% or more, you’ll earn a special certificate to celebrate your learning—and it will be emailed straight to you. There are 8 certificates to collect in total, so give it your best and keep learning!
Good luck—you’ve got this!