Let’s Explore (and check-in on our knowledge of) the Ontario Physical Activity Safety Standards in Education

A youth basketball team sits on blue bleachers. Their hands are extended inwards to form a pile and they are smiling at one another. All of the players have long hair secured into a ponytail.

Increasing opportunities for physical activity 

The classroom environment offers a wide range of opportunities for students to be physically active. Implementing meaningful opportunities for students to be physically active can influence a student’s overall school experience, their physical literacy, and their overall health and well-being. Using effective planning strategies can help to ensure that each opportunity is safe, equitable, and inclusive. The Ontario Physical Activity Safety Standards in Education (OPASSE) provides safety standards for both elementary and secondary schools in the areas of curricular (Health and Physical Education), intramural and interschool activities. 

Check your physical activity safety knowledge  

Use these questions, answers, and links to OPASSE to help affirm your current safety knowledge and build your confidence to make safety mindedness part of your regular planning and implementation process.  

For each question, think about how you would answer it and where in OPASSE you might find the answer. Then check the information we have included to see how you did. 

1. You are planning Physical Education lessons and are following the Safety Standards in OPASSE. Are there any additional requirements you should be aware of?   

OPASSE is considered to be the provincial minimum requirements for safety standards for physical activities provided in school boards and schools across Ontario. Teachers/coaches/intramural supervisors should check school board policies to ensure the safety standards found in OPASSE align with school board policies, as each school board is responsible for developing their own safety policies. School boards may RAISE the safety standards if they wish, but they are strongly encouraged not to LOWER them. 

Consult the About section for more information on the Background, Intent, and Impact and Scope of OPASSE.   

2. You are planning an intramural activity that is not listed in OPASSE. Can you still offer the activity to the students?  

If the activity being considered is similar to an activity page that already exists in OPASSE you can offer the activity by referring to the safety standards as set in the activity page(s) that most resemble the activity (e.g., for scooter soccer, refer to the activity pages for both Scooter Boards and Soccer). Use these pages to ensure the safety standards are in place for both activities.  

Consult the Elementary and Secondary activity pages that most resemble the activity.  

In cases where the activity does not resemble an activity page currently in OPASSE, then you can offer the activity if you receive permission from your appropriate school board official (e.g., principal, supervisory officer). This approval must include the identification of inherent risks and the strategies that will be used to minimize the risks identified.  

Consult the Tools and Resources section for Sample Checklist to Identify and Minimize Risk for Activities not Included in OPASSE to assist with this process. 

3. You are looking at an activity page and notice that it is divided into different categories, do all the activity pages have the same categories?  

Each activity page outlines safety standards to be applied to students, including practices/procedures, in six main categories. These categories include:   

  • Equipment (e.g., small/individual equipment, large equipment, personal protective equipment);  
  • Clothing/Footwear/Jewellery (e.g., appropriate clothing/footwear to be worn, jewellery requirements) 
  • Facilities (e.g., indoor and outdoor school and off-site facilities, permanent equipment in a facility);   
  • Special Rules/Instructions (e.g., safe participation for students with medical conditions, safe practices for concussion, instructional strategies related to safety);  
  • Supervision (e.g., types of supervision required for an activity, roles and responsibilities of volunteers, supervision ratios, qualifications required); and 
  • First Aid (e.g., first aid kits, communication, emergency response)  

Consult the Elementary and Secondary activity pages for the safety standards in these categories.  

4. You are teaching Full Day Kindergarten. Are there any activity pages that you can use for your program?  

The OPASSE activity pages for Elementary can be applied to the physical activities that are included as part of the Full-Day Kindergarten program. Some activity pages that may be helpful include Cooperative Games, Dancing/Rhythmic Activities, or Parachute. OPASSE also includes activity pages specific to Kindergarten/Primary Grades. These activity pages include: Movement Activities, Playground Structures, and Wheel Activities.  

Consult the Elementary activity pages for the safety standards for Kindergarten programs.  

5. You cannot seem to find the Canoeing activity page. What would you select from the drop-down menu to find Canoeing?   

When you are looking through the drop-down menu on the OPASSE website, you can find the Canoeing activity page under Outdoor Education (Canoeing). Although most activities are listed in alphabetical order as individual activities (e.g., Cross Country Running, Goalball, Tennis, Volleyball) other activity pages are grouped into broader interconnected categories such as Climbing, Outdoor Education and Track and Field. There are several activity pages listed in the Outdoor Education grouping including: Canoeing, Flat Water Kayaking and Winter Camping.       

Consult the Elementary and Secondary activity pages to see all the activity pages under Outdoor Education.   

6. You are coaching a school team. How does OPASSE help you address the requirements to provide all students athletes with concussion education?  

The School Board Policies on Concussion (PPM158) recognizes OPASSE’s Concussion Protocol as the minimum standard for school boards. The Concussion Protocol was developed in partnership with Parachute and aligns with the 5th International Consensus Statement on Concussion in Sport. OPASSE also includes sample Tools to support school boards with implementation, including:  sample tool to identify a suspected concussion, sample concussion management form, and sample medical concussion clearance form.  

Ophea also provides access to additional supports that can assist with implementation of concussion awareness education, these include: sample Codes of Conduct, concussion awareness E-Booklets, and concussion eLearning module for all educators.   

Consult the Concussion section for Ophea’s Concussion Protocol and the Tools and Resources to support implementation.  

7. You are wondering about the difference between a coach and coach liaison. Where could you find more information?  

On the bottom of each activity page, there is a section that includes relevant definitions specific to the activity page. The Definition section for the Elementary and Secondary interschool activity pages includes the definition for both Coach and Coach Liaison.  

The information regarding the definition of coach and coach liaison can also be found in the Tools and Resource section on the OPASSE website under Responsibilities. Under the Responsibilities heading, there is a Tool entitled Coach/Coach Liaison that provides the definitions as well as additional information regarding the roles of each of these individuals.   

Consult the Tools and Resources section for Coach/Coach Liaison information.   

Reflecting on safety  

Planning and implementing safe physical activity programs can be complex and challenging. OPASSE provides up-to-date information to support the planning and implementing of safe practices.  Taking the time to review the different sections of OPASSE and the content within each section can help you stay up to date and current in your safety practices.  

If you have additional safety questions, you can:   

  • Contact your School Board’s Safety Contact; or  

  • Submit a question using Ask Ophea: School boards, school leaders and teachers may use this feature to ask safety questions or seek clarification related to the safety standards. Submit your question and a member of the Ophea safety team will provide a response.