Children playing with a parachute toy.

The CSBA Committee on Comprehensive School Health is committed to working in partnership with government, non-government, and community partners to advocate for active healthy lifestyles. Benefits to creating healthy learning environments include: greater overall achievement, well-rounded students, decreased discipline problems and improved attendance, improved lifelong health, reduced disparities.

We are committed to demonstrating leadership and providing a national voice in responding to the health and wellness challenges of students across Canada. Our Charter of Commitment provides a clear mission, terms of reference and a framework for our work.

From our partners at PHE CANADA…

“Healthy children have increased capacity to learn and develop the values, attitudes and skills necessary to be competent, effective and resilient adults. Learning environments that promote and support student and child well-being focus on their cognitive, emotional, social and physical development – a whole child/student approach. This comprehensive approach aims to improve student health and educational success through the creation of healthy school communities.

A healthy school community promotes a culture of wellness for all its members: students, teachers, administrators, principals, staff, parents, and community partners.  Together, the school community implements plans to create an environment that supports healthy choices among its members.”    

The above organization provides resources, frameworks for Healthy School Communities and current research.  Please visit  http://phecanada.ca

Comprehensive School Health

Outdoor Play Canada
OPC is a network of advocates, practitioners, researchers and organizations working together to promote, protect, and preserve access to play in nature and the outdoors for all people living in Canada.

Physical and Health Education Canada logo

https://phecanada.ca/

The PHE Community is empowered to equip each and every child and youth with the knowledge, skills and attitudes necessary to lead resilient, active and healthy lives. 

Comprehensive School Health Hub
K-12 CSH Resources – Healthy Eating, Positive Mental Well-Being, Physical Activity, Teacher & Staff Well-Being (ADD)

SIRCLE: Essential Conditions for Comprehensive School Health
SIRCLE has created a tool to help schools reflects, plan, and celebrate their Comprehensive School Health efforts.

The Coalition for Healthy School Food is a growing network of over 180 non-profit member organizations from every province and territory. They are advocating for public investment in and federal standards for a universal cost-shared school food program that would see all children having daily access to healthy food at school.

Mental Health: research, guidelines and resources

Learning for a Sustainable Future
LSF has resources and professional development to support teachers and programs to empower youth in undertaking action, keeping students safe, healthy, and engaged in learning.

Frayme
Frayme supports and leads a variety of work and projects with the aim of improving youth mental health and substance use (YMHSU) care systems in Canada.

mindyourmind
exists in the space where mental health, wellness, engagement and technology meet. They work with young people aged 14 to 29 to co-create interactive tools and innovative resources to build capacity and resilience.

What to Expect from Your Child’s School in Children’s Mental Health [from The F.O.R.C.E. Society for Kids’ Mental Health via BC Mental Health and Addiction Service] 

Workplace Wellness

College of Alberta School Superintendents (CASS)
Workplace Wellness
CASS supports building system leader excellence to ensure student success. System education leaders play a critical role in ensuring quality school leadership, quality teaching, and optimum learning for all students in Alberta. To meet the respective professional practice standard, all teachers, school leaders, and system leaders need to be in good health.

Well at Work
Developed by the EdCan Network, Well at Work supports education leaders across Canada to develop and implement system-wide strategies to improve K-12 workplace wellbeing for the long term – all while mobilizing a network of passionate educators, researchers, practitioners, and stakeholder groups.

Comprehensive School Health: articles, programs, and research

Anaphylaxis Emergency Plan templates [Food Allergy Canada]

Farm to Cafeteria Canada: Edible Education

Farm to School Canada
Farm to School (F2S) brings healthy, local food into schools, and provides students with hands-on learning opportunities that foster food literacy, all while strengthening the local food system and enhancing school and community connectedness.

The Global Strategy For Women’s, Children’s and Adolescents’ Health (2016-2030)
https://www.who.int/docs/default-source/child-health/the-global-strategy-for-women-s-children-s-and-adolescents-health-2016-2030.pdf
“Health and education are symbiotic. What affects one affects the other. The healthy child learns better just as the educated child leads a healthier life.”

PLAY IS THE WAY® is a behaviour education program and process in which the entire school community (all adults and every child) can participate, grow, and enjoy. The program helps build an environment and culture for transitions from youth to adolescence and adulthood. [Text via Play Is the Way.]

What is the Early Development Instrument? The questionnaire has 103 questions and measures five core areas of early child development that are known to be good predictors of adult health, education and social outcomes. [Text via The Human Early Learning Partnership.]

Vaping, Cannabis, Tobacco, and Youth: federal/provincial updates, news, research

Federal
• Consider the Consequences of Vaping Virtual Tour
• New national regulations setting maximum nicotine level for e-cigarettes will reduce youth vaping
• Canadian Government Timeline on Regulatory Actions for Vaping
• Consider the Consequences of Vaping
• Vaping-associated Illness
• Cannabis laws and regulations
• Preventing kids and teens from vaping
• Industry Guide to Vaping Products Subject to the Canada Consumer Product Safety Act
NL
• Cannabis Education Resources for Families and School Communities (Newfoundland & Labrador English School District)
PE
• Prince Edward Island bans flavoured e-cigarettes [article]
NS
• Nova Scotia strengthens vaping regulations to protect youth [article]
NB
• New Brunswick imposes ban on flavoured vaping products [CTV News]
• Smoking and Vaping [Government of New Brunswick]
QC
• Quebec to ban vaping flavours and restrict nicotine content [article]
ON
• Cannabis Information for Schools and School Boards (Government of Ontario)
Recreational cannabis is legal across Ontario for adults 19 years of age or older. Although it is legal, schools and school boards may have questions about the rules for recreational cannabis at school, on school property and at school-related activities, as well as the impact legalization may have on schools and what information and supports are available for educators, parents/guardians and students.  
MB
• Province introduces proposed amendments to the Smoking and Vapour products control Act for a Healthier Manitoba [Government of Manitoba]
• Youth Vaping & Smoking Prevention [BREATHE | the lung association]
SK
• Sask.’s new vaping regulations now in effect [article]
• Vaping: Protecting The Future Health Of Young People In Saskatchewan [BREATHE | the lung association]
• Saskatchewan’s Vaping Crisis [BREATHE | the lung association]
AB
• Addressing health harms of smoking and vaping [Government of Alberta]
• Alberta tables legislation to prohibit minors from vaping but doesn’t ban flavours [article]
• Electronic Cigarettes [Protect Alberta Kids]
BC
• Cannabis Corner (Vancouver School Board)
Relevant and easy-to-use cannabis resources, guides and tools for youth, parents, caregivers and teachers.
YK
• Find out about tobacco and vaping products legislation [Government of Yukon]
• Tobacco and vaping information [Gadzoosdaa]
NT
• NWT considers banning sale of flavoured vape products [article]
NU
• Public consultation on tobacco and vaping regulations [Government of Nunavut]
Articles & research
• Has COVID-19 caused Canadians to cut down on smoking? Expert says yes [Global News]
• Health Canada aims to cut nicotine limit for vaping products [CBC]
• An evaluation of school-based e-cigarette control policies’ impact on the use of vaping products [NCBI]
• Vaping Resource For Schools [JCSH-CCES]
• Cannabis use among Canadian high school students grew before legalization, study finds [Toronto Star]
• Policy and Regulations (Cannabis) [Canadian Centre on Substance Use and Addiction]
• Child Resistant Container Certifications for Tanks & Pods [VITA-ARIV]
• Vaping and Youth [BREATHE | the lung association]