Eight Ways Your School Can Make Ontario Dress Purple Day Memorable
Hold a school assembly to raise awareness among students about the caring adults and community resources that are available to support them when they need help. Invite somebody from a community organization to talk about how they help children and youth.
Use the Ontario Ontario Dress Purple Day Prevention Classroom Resources, available on the OACAS website to engage elementary, middle, and high schools students in Ontario Dress Purple Day. These resources support students to identify networks of support that they can turn to when they need help, which has been shown to be an important prevention tool. The Ontario Dress Purple Classroom Resources offer teachers the option of engaging their students in these conversations gradually, just before, or on Ontario Dress Purple Day.
Host a speaker from your local Children’s Aid Society in the school auditorium. They will talk about the right of children and youth to safety and well-being, the responsibility of adults to support kids who have a worry or concern, and how Children’s Aid Societies are part of the community that cares for kids.
Host a youth speaker who can talk to students about breaking the silence, and share the positive message that help is available, and that nobody is alone. Contact your local Children’s Aid Society for suggestions of young people who are motivational speakers.
Hold a purple parade through your community. Design and carry banners that raise awareness about the right of children and youth to safety and well-being. Ask your school’s local business owners and community organizations to join in as part of the community that cares for kids.
Take pictures of school staff and students as they celebrate the community that cares for kids and share them on social media using the hashtags #IBREAKthesilence #OntarioDressPurpleDay.
