Elmer Vaccination Education and Awareness Program now available

The advent of social media has made it easier than ever to share information – both a blessing and a curse. While information is more readily accessible to us than any other point in history, it also brings the side-effect that misinformation is just as accessible.

Worse, in many cases — and especially within the context of COVID-19 and the continuing push for vaccination, messages are not so easily discernable from one another for those seeking to confirm an existing belief rather than weigh the balance of information.

To mark National School Safety Week, October 17 – 23, the Canada Safety Council seeks to help teachers and educators cut through the noise and deliver credible, well-researched information to children who may otherwise lack the ability to seek it out themselves.

“Regardless of choice in terms of the use of vaccination, the evidence within the scientific community is overwhelming clear that it works.” said Gareth Jones, President and CEO of the Canada Safety Council. “A high vaccination rate is among the main reasons why schools have been operating in-person as opposed to virtually, and the resulting impact at an individual level and more broadly with communities in Canada and around the world cannot be overstated.”

Elmer Vaccination Education and Awareness Program

A familiar face in schools across Canada, Elmer the Safety Elephant is back to share information on vaccines – how they work, why they work, and what anxieties can be addressed through research and data. While the presentation discusses vaccines as a whole, there is a particular focus on COVID-19 and its global impacts.

This program, developed in partnership with the Public Health Agency of Canada, is targeted at the Primary (gr. 1-3), Junior (gr. 4-6) and Intermediate (gr. 7-8) levels. The language in each level of the program is adapted to best reach the child in a language they can easily understand.

The Canada Safety Council firmly believes in science, in data, and in using the best tools available to keep as much of the population safe from harm as possible. These best tools include vaccines.

Program materials are available for teachers across Canada to use and include a video presentation, accompanying teacher guide, a psychological and social appendix, and various posters for display in the school. The program is entirely optional, voluntary, and available at this link.  

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For more information, please contact:

Lewis Smith
Manager, National Projects, Canada Safety Council
lewis.smith@safety-council.org