COVID-19 resources for youth and students

Information on how you can help prevent the spread of COVID-19, tips for taking care of your physical and mental health, and other resources to help you.

Your role in preventing COVID-19

Youth and students play an important role in helping to slow the spread of COVID-19 by following public health measures. This includes:

staying home if you're ill
wash your hands often with soap and water for at least 20 seconds, especially after using the washroom and when preparing food
- use alcohol-based hand sanitizer (at least 60% alcohol) if soap and water aren't available
coughing or sneezing into a tissue or the bend of your arm, not your hand
- dispose of any soiled tissues as soon as possible in a lined waste basket and wash your hands afterwards
practising physical distancing

We've responded to some of the top questions you may have about COVID-19 in a series of video interviews.

Physical distancing

You can spread COVID-19 to others even if you don't have any of the symptoms, such as cough, fever or difficulty breathing. Physical distancing helps slow the spread of this disease.

Tips for physical distancing

The following content has been adapted with permission from Ottawa Public Health.

Do:	Don't:
use technology to keep in touch with family and friends, such as using social media, sending an email or text, or having a phone call or video chat spend time with the people you live with stay 2 metres away from others when you go outside for a walk, jog or bike ride read a book or write in a journal catch up on TV shows, movies or video games cook a meal for the people you live with try something new, like yoga, crafting or baking	hang out with your friends in person have sleep-overs take a drive with friends or anyone who doesn't live in your household share food, drinks, makeup, cigarettes or vape devices

Do:

Don't:

use technology to keep in touch with family and friends, such as using social media, sending an email or text, or having a phone call or video chat
spend time with the people you live with
stay 2 metres away from others when you go outside for a walk, jog or bike ride
read a book or write in a journal
catch up on TV shows, movies or video games
cook a meal for the people you live with
try something new, like yoga, crafting or baking

hang out with your friends in person
have sleep-overs
take a drive with friends or anyone who doesn't live in your household
share food, drinks, makeup, cigarettes or vape devices

Learn more about how you can help protect your family, friends and community.

Taking care of your mental and physical health

For some of you, this can be a difficult time for many reasons. School has been interrupted. You aren't able to connect with your friends in the same way. Many activities and important events have been cancelled. It's okay not to be okay, especially when the world has been turned upside down. But it's important to remember that this situation won't last forever.

You're not alone. You may feel overwhelmed, confused, scared or angry during this time. Take care of your mental and physical health during this time by:

taking breaks from social media and the news
practising healthy habits and a regular routine
- eat well
- be active
- get enough sleep
- minimize screen time
focusing on the good things and looking for positives in each day
spending time doing things you enjoy, starting a hobby or learning a new skill
staying connected virtually with your friends and extended family through:
- texts
- email
- phone calls
- video chats
- social media platforms

The above list has been adapted with permission from School Mental Health Ontario.

It's important to take care of your mental and physical health during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Ask for help if you need it. If you can, talk to a trusted adult. If you need someone else to talk to in confidence, reach out to a youth organization, such as:

Kids Help Phone
Wellness Together Canada: Mental health and substance use support
Hope for Wellness Helpline
- mental health counselling and crisis intervention for Indigenous peoples across Canada
Canada Youth Network
School Mental Health Ontario's resources for students
COVID-19 youth mental health resource hub
- education, tools, support and reliable information to support youth through the unique mental health situations they're faced with as a result of COVID-19
- the hub is a collaboration of Jack.org, School Mental Health Ontario and Kids Help Phone
Crisis Services Canada: Resources and supports
LGBT Youthline
Be There
- digital resource created by Jack.org that provides youth with knowledge, skills and confidence to identify and support each other through mental health struggles

Financial support

We have put in place a number of measures to help youth, post-secondary students and recent graduates financially, including:

the Canada Student Service Grant
the Canada Emergency Student Benefit
new jobs and opportunities for students
suspending repayment and interest on student and apprentice loans

Learn more about these and other financial programs, and how they can help you.

Preventing cyber scams

We've seen an increase in reports of harmful phishing campaigns and malware scams related to COVID-19. Learn how to protect yourself against scams.

For youth experiencing family violence

If you're experiencing violence or abuse at home, you should seek help at a time and place that's safe for you.

Visit our family violence youth site to learn more, and to find a list of who you can talk to.

For Indigenous youth

We've put together a list of Indigenous resources about COVID-19 across Canada. This includes two videos that show how you can help keep your family and community healthy and safe:

The videos listed above are also available in several Indigenous languages.

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