Skip to content

Substance Use/Addictions

Substance Use, Addictions, and Related Behaviours

Schools have a unique opportunity to positively influence students through educating, role modeling, and creating healthy and supportive learning environments.

What Works?

Alcohol and substance use prevention efforts in schools are best achieved by:

  • Promoting students’ well-being and fostering welcoming environments.
    • Creating a school environment where students feel like they belong.
    • Encouraging recreational and extracurricular activities where adult role models help students develop a positive sense of self.
    • Establishing supportive and caring relationships with students.
    • Supporting positive peer relationships.
    • See videos:
Preventing Problematic Substance Use Through Positive Youth Development – Promoting Well-Being
Preventing Problematic Substance Use Through Positive Youth Development – Welcoming Environments
  • Providing opportunities for students to have open, non-judgemental conversations and to develop and practice media literacy and social emotional learning skills in a safe and inclusive space.
    • Providing knowledge and skills prior to the behaviour and at transition periods.
    • Teaching in the context of developmentally appropriate information (e.g., abstinence vs. harm reduction).
    • Providing booster sessions over a number of years that reinforce the knowledge and skills.
    • Applying knowledge and practicing skills that are relevant to their experience, in a low risk situation, and using “real-world” situations.
  • Presenting honest and factual information in a supportive and non-judgemental way while avoiding scare tactics.
  • Providing opportunities for active learning and engaging students in planning and delivering programs and initiatives.
  • Providing substance use awareness activities that consider the following:
    • Guest presentations and/or “lived experience” presentations can work well when the message is clear, known ahead of time, and when there are supporting activities that go beyond the actual presentation to reinforce the messages with students.
    • Messages should be evidence based and consistent with your school board approach.
    • Particular attention should be focused on vulnerable students that may be triggered by the presentation content. Informing parents of the presentation goals and messages prior will allow there to be an informed decision made regarding the student’s attendance.
    • For more information, refer to the School Mental Health Decision Support Tool.
  • Being a positive role model and avoiding modelling positive views about the pleasures of substance use (even when speaking to other adults in student spaces).
  • Including families in prevention efforts, when possible.
  • Becoming familiar with the general signs and symptoms associated with substance use.
  • Connecting students and families to community supports, when appropriate.

Resources

Resources to support implementation can be found in the sections below. Educators may also contact their School’s Public Health Nurse for additional support and consultation.

Teaching Tools

These resources from Niagara Region Public Health discuss what substances are, their effects, the risks associated with their use, ways to refuse and the link between mental health and substance use.

  • Cannabis (Grades 5-8)
  • Vaping (Grades 5-8)
  • Be Drug Free (Grade 6)
  • Substance Use (Grade 8)

Refusal Skills Activity for Vaping

Provides youth the opportunity to learn about and practice using various refusal skills to respond to different types of peer pressure.

Vaping and Teens

This resource provides facts on youth vaping.

OPHEA Cannabis Activity Plans

Inquiry-based activities for elementary and secondary students on the topic of cannabis.

Be. Do. Lead.

History has taught us that young people are the ones who ignite change. They question the status quo and imagine how things could be done differently. Help turn their passion into action with these 4 youth self-directed E-modules for youth advocacy (15–30 minutes each).

Not An Experiment

Evidence based resource for vaping education appropriate for grades 7–12. Includes an introductory PowerPoint presentation (complete with speaking notes) and an “Escape Room” activity that can be done all at once or broken up into several classes. Refusal skills activities are also available.

Vaping Teacher Resources

These resources from Niagara Public Health provide a PowerPoint (complete with speaking notes) and a menu of activities to choose from. This one is for grades 4–8 and includes curriculum links.

Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH) (Grade 1–10)

CAMH offers an integrated set of web based resources for teachers, schools and allied partners to utilize in their prevention/health promotion work with youth.

The Fourth R (Grades 7–9)

Contact the Health Unit for a consultation on this program.

The Fourth R is a comprehensive school-based prevention program based on extensive research. It applies best-practice approaches to building skills and reducing harm among adolescents. The contention of the Fourth R is that relationship skills can be taught in the same way as reading, writing and arithmetic. During the course of the lessons, students will engage in extensive skill development and role-play activities to help develop effective and healthy responses to situations of conflict and violence. Adolescents require opportunities to learn new skills (e.g., assertiveness, communication, and problem-solving), and practice applying them in a range or realistic situations within a safe environment.

Currently our agency recommends the sections that address Personal Safety and Injury, and Substance Use, Addictions and Related Behaviors. Please see the section on Healthy Eating and Sexual Health for resources supporting those themes.

10 Questions about Cannabis Use and Teens (for Students)

This is a resource for youth with answers to common questions about cannabis use.

OPHEA Conversation Tip Sheets

These tips sheets for educators on various topics related to substance use were created in partnership with youth from The Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH):

School Mental Health Ontario (SMHO) – Substance Use and School: Opportunities to Support Students

This guide supports educators and school system leaders in their knowledge of youth substance use and offers recommendations for action and considerations for working across student, school and community levels.

School Mental Health Ontario (SMHO) – Substance Use and School: What Youth Want Educators to Know

This resource provides an overview of youth experiences with substance use and substance use education and provides practical recommendations and information for those working with students and supporting substance use education in schools.

Cannabis: What Educators Need to Know

This info. sheet from SMHO and CAMH helps educators to have informed conversations with students about recreational cannabis.

These fact sheets from School Mental Health Ontario (SMHO) and CAMH provide general information about vaping and outline important facts, associated risks, and additional resources to support educators in having informed conversations with students:

OPHEA The Educator Voice: Talking About Vaping with Students

These videos help educators increase their knowledge of vaping and provide sample strategies to create safer, more inclusive spaces to engage students in learning:

Prescription Opioids Information Sheet

This information sheet from SMHO and CAMH provides information on what educators need to know about opioids, including fentanyl.

10 Questions about Cannabis Use and Teens (for Teachers)

This is a resource for educators with answers to common questions about cannabis use and teens.

Talking Pot with Youth

Youth allies can use this resource to inform and guide their discussions with youth about cannabis. This resource was designed by the Canadian Centre on Substance Use and Addiction with input from youth and youth allies.

Party Smart (Grades 10–12)

Contact the Health Unit for more information. Party Smart is an interactive half-day event that addresses Safe Partying principles. A Safe Party theme is identified (e.g. distracted driving, binge drinking) by a “Party Smart Team” that includes school staff, a Public Health Nurse, students and community partners. Students and community partners are invited to participate in the planning and implementation of interactive stations that cover 1–2 key messages related to the identified safe party theme. The Health Unit can support school implementation of Party Smart by:

  • Helping to establish and facilitate the “Party Smart Team”
  • Identifying appropriate community partners for the event
  • Engaging and training students in safe partying principles and messages
  • Facilitating a Party Smart station

Student Engagement/Leadership (JK–Grade 12)

Contact the Health Unit for more information. Student/youth engagement is meaningful and sustained participation by youth in an activity with a focus outside of themselves. When young people are engaged in decision-making, they feel connected to their school environment and community, they build relationships with their peers and adults, and they learn new skills. The Health Unit can support school implementation by:

  • Providing resources to support student engagement
  • Supporting student groups/clubs (e.g. Gay-Straight Alliances, OSAID, Student Health Clubs)

Canadian Centre on Substance Use and Addiction

This website provides evidence-informed information on substance use and addiction that affect the health and safety of Canadians.

School Mental Health Decision Support Tool

This tool will help to support the school decision-making process related to particular mental health awareness products or services, and aims to ensure alignment with the board/school mental health strategy and action plan.

Decision Support Tool for Classroom Teachers. Checklist regarding Student Mental Health Awareness Activities (smho-smso.ca)

The Decision Support Tool for Educators has been created to provide a framework for teachers in the planning and implementation of mental health and well-being materials, resources and information within the classroom. The tool is also a helpful resource to aid with decision-making at a classroom level. 

Quash – an online quit program specifically for youth

Feel better. Save money. Take back control. Quash is a made by-youth, for-youth, free quit program that works for vaping or smoking. It helps you create a plan that works for you.

Drug Free Kids Canada

Provides parents/caregivers with information and resources to help communicate effectively with children/youth on the topic of substances.

Prescription Opioids Information Sheet

This information sheet from SMHO and CAMH provides information on what parents and caregivers need to know about opioids, including fentanyl.

The following resources provide information and tips to help parents/caregivers have conversations with young people about vaping:

1Call1Click

1Call1Click helps children and youth (birth to 21 years of age) and their families connect with the right mental health and addiction services and care when they need it. They cover parts of eastern Ontario including Ottawa, Pembroke, Cornwall, Hawkesbury, and surrounding areas including the counties of: Lanark, Leeds and Grenville; Stormont, Dundas and Glengarry; Prescott-Russell and Renfrew. Call 613-260-2360 or 1-877-377-7775 between 9:00am–5:00 pm or visit the website: For Youth and Families – Kids Come First.

AccessMHA

AccessMHA makes it easier to find mental health and/or substance use health support, services, and care for anyone 16 years of age and older. They cover parts of eastern Ontario including Ottawa, Pembroke, Cornwall, Hawkesbury, and surrounding areas including the counties of: Lanark, Leeds and Grenville; Stormont, Dundas and Glengarry; Prescott-Russell and Renfrew. After reaching out, you will be paired with a trained mental health and addictions professional that will connect you to the services you need from a network of partner organizations. Visit the website to get started.

Triple P Parenting

A positive parenting program that gives parents simple tips to help manage the big and small problems of family life. Triple P Parenting can help with parenting questions from 0–16 years of age around topics such as sleep, self-esteem, not listening, aggression, family conflict – and many more! For support in Lanark, Leeds and Grenville, call 1-800-660-5853 and ask about Triple P or visit www.triplep-parenting.ca.

10 Questions about Cannabis Use and Teens (for Caregivers)

This is a resource for parents/caregivers with answers to common questions about cannabis use and teens. Contact the Health Unit to obtain hard copies.

Cannabis Talk Kit, Know How to Talk with Your Teen

This resource gives information on cannabis and provides suggestions on how to talk to youth about cannabis. For families of students ages 10–18. Contact the Health Unit to obtain hard copies.

Cannabis: What Parents/Guardians and Caregivers Need to Know

This Info-Sheet on recreational cannabis is for parents/guardians and caregivers of youth in grades 6–12. It provides information about cannabis, cannabis legalization, risks, signs of a problem, how to help your child, and where to get more information and support.

Talking with your Teen about Vaping: A Tip Sheet for Parents

This resource provides parents/caregivers with information and tips to start conversations with youth about vaping.

For more information, visit our Alcohol & Substance Use webpage.