Take Action is a comprehensive, classroom-based program designed to support educators and engage school communities in teaching safety awareness regarding medicines and harmful substances and provides information about tobacco, alcohol and substance use through the integration of health and physical education expectations. 

Based on the Comprehensive School Health approach, Take Action provides a foundation of support for young people to make healthy lifestyle choices and develop problem-solving and decision-making skills. Take Action consists of 4 cross-curricular components, which include easy-to-use lesson plans, rubrics, and blackline masters that directly link to the Ontario Health and Physical Education curriculum. 

Components of the Take Action Initiative include:

• Take Action (Kindergarten) available in English and French
• Take Action (1-3) available in English and French
• Take Action (4-6) available in English and French
• Take Action (7-8) available in English and French
• Take Action in Secondary Schools available in English only

Take Action (Kindergarten) promotes safety awareness concerning medicines and harmful substances. Take Action (1-3) provides information about tobacco, alcohol and substance use and abuse prevention and teaches safety awareness regarding medicines and harmful substances. Take Action (4-6) teaches students about substance use and abuse through the integration of health and physical education and language and literacy expectations. Take Action (7-8) assists school communities in addressing alcohol, cannabis and tobacco use and abuse prevention among youth in Grades 7 and 8.  Take Action in Secondary Schools: An Educator’s Guide to Substance Use Prevention is a reference guide is intended to increase the confidence of educators and other members of the school community to address and prevent student substance use by providing information to connect schools with supports that are available in the areas of curriculum and instruction, policies and guidelines, and to link schools with available community programs, resources, and services.

The newest component to the Take Action series is the online version of they well received Secondary resource.  Developed for use as a complement to the hardcopy Take Action in Secondary Schools Educator’s Guide, www.opheaprograms.net/tasecondary provides an opportunity for continually updated content and access to information such as:

• The glossary and descriptions of drugs sections online
• A searchable database of resources with new additions
• Links to provincial, national, and international organizations, activities, and programs

Take Action (K-8) is an initiative of Ophea's Curriculum and School-Based Health Resource Centre and is funded by the Ministry of Children and Youth Services as part of the Ontario Health Promotion Resource System. Production of Take Action in Secondary Schools has been made possible through a financial contribution from Health Canada.

The Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH) is a contributing partner to the Take Action initiative. CAMH provides expertise and guidance to ensure that Take Action is consistent with current practices and relevant research related to substance use and abuse.