Students and Substance Use

Substance use can impact students' academic performance, health and relationships. Educators are key to helping students make informed decisions and supporting those affected. This page provides practical tools, resources and programs to create a supportive and healthy school environment.

How can we help you?

We’re here to help you address substance use in schools with age-appropriate lessons, prevention programs, and strategies for early intervention. Our approach is rooted in trauma-informed care, ensuring education is supportive, inclusive, and empowering.

If someone is in immediate need of support for a suspected overdose or emergency substance services, call 911.

If you are looking for support with enforcement of the Smoke Free Ontario Act of 2017 on school property (i.e. students smoking or vaping on school property), please fill out the form on our enforcement page.

How can we work together to address substance use?

Our Healthy School Team works directly with schools in St. Thomas as well as Oxford and Elgin counties to provide workshops, school-wide initiatives, and tailored support for educators, parents, and students. Contact us at 1-800-922-0096 to learn more.

Are you a principal or educator looking for support for you response to vaping at school?

We've got you covered.

We worked with your school board to produce a Vaping Quick Support Guide that has supports to help students quit, supports to help parents and staff talk to students before they start vaping and information on where to submit an offence you've witnessed.

We also have this Parent and Caregiver Vaping Information sheet that can be given to parents if students have committed an offense at school or if they're curious about how they can talk to their students about vaping.

Do you need general information on substance use and vaping?

The Centre for Addictions and Mental Health (CAMH) has 3 resources below on vaping for students to help their friends and educators to help students in elementary and secondary school:

Vaping: What you and your friends need to know

Vaping: What elementary educators need to know

Vaping: What secondary educators need to know

This page below from Not an Experiment can help with everything from general information to posters to announcements to full-on lesson plans and educational games to help address vaping in your school: EDUCATORS - Not An Experiment

We host some posters on Cannabis, Alcohol and Vaping in collaboration with the Unfiltered Facts campaign from Hamilton Public Health here: Use Your Instincts | Southwestern Public Health

We also have general fact pages on Alcohol, Cannabis, Opioids, smoking, and vaping here: Alcohol, Drugs and Tobacco | Southwestern Public Health

Need some videos or lesson plans?

If you are a member of Thames Valley District School Board, you have access to the CATCH my Breath online vaping prevention curriculum tools on their website. Just go to catch.org and follow the instructions on this flyer for free access!

The Joint Consortium for School Health (JCSH) has a set of videos and resources on preventing youth substance use harms using a positive youth development approach. There are 3 videos: one for grades 6-8, one for grades 9-12, and one for educators and adult allies for school health along with some discussion guides and resource lists to keep the conversation going. Have a look!

Rethinking Conversation Around Youth Substance Use – Joint Consortium for School Health

The Cannabis and Mental Health organization has a mentor guide with helpful videos, poems, short stories and other prompts to get students talking about mental health and general substance use in the classroom. Check it out!

Mentor Guide

Hamilton Public Health has created and maintains a website on vaping information and prevention. Their landing page is here: Unfiltered Facts. For more resources and lesson plans for grades 7 and 8 ho here: Resource Hub | Unfiltered Facts and ask for the password at the email listed. You won’t be disappointed!

We have 2 toolkits that we’ve put together with the Middlesex-London Health unit with curriculum resources and activities that are aligned with the Ontario Foundations for a Healthy school found here:

Substance Use Prevention and Harm Reduction (K-8)

Secondary Substance Prevention Toolkit

Are you looking for an approach that prevents substance use with Social-Emotional learning principles?

The Healthy Relationships Plus Program from the Centre for School Mental Health at Western University is a 14-session program helps Grade 7 and 8 students strengthen their communication and relationship skills. It’s offered in collaboration with school staff and boards.

Get resources for the Healthy Relationships Plus Program

Are you looking for self-led learning modules for students?

Health Canada created an online self-directed program to teach students in grades 7-10 about vaping. IT covers harms and health risks, the cost of vaping and refusal skills. Check it out here: Vaping Education Resources For Students: Self-Led Module For Teachers.

The folks at Not an Experiment created an online version of their in-class escape room style game that can be played on computers in class by students individually or in groups. It can be found here: Escape The Experiment Game.

The same organization that created the Mentor Guide above also created a full-length 90-minute course for teens to help them better understand the effects of cannabis and the realities of mental health for teens. This course is great for any teen who wants to help their friends quit using cannabis or who is a leader in substance use prevention and harm reduction in your school. See if it is right for you and your students here: Course Home - Cannabis and Mental Health.

Are you looking for advice on how to help your student(s) quit vaping?

The Quash Brief Conversations Toolkit might be perfect for you!

Quash Brief Conversations Toolkit

The toolkit is designed to be used by parents, teachers and other caring adults to help you work with your student(s) to start their vaping quit journey. Quash is designed for youth and young adults aged 14–30 who want to quit smoking or vaping. It lets you create a personalized plan to help you quit and stay smoke-free for good.

Link to the Quash App.