Healthy Schools Day 2015 Newsletter

Jon StoneCASLE Newsletters
Welcome to the electronic newsletter for Canadians for a Safe Learning Environment (CASLE).
CASLE is a registered charity working to improve the condition of school buildings and the products and practices used in schools, so that students and staff have safe and healthy places to spend their days.
Today, April 7th, 2015,  is the Sixth Anniversary of
NATIONAL HEALTHY SCHOOLS DAY IN CANADA!!To celebrate National Healthy Schools Day in Canada, Canadians for a Safe Learning Environment have re-developed our website www.CASLE.ca to be new and more interactive. You will find lots of great information about how to keep our schools healthy for both our children and staff. More articles are being added daily, so keep checking in.

Also go to the Canadian Healthy Schools Day Website at: www.healthyschoolsday.ca

Healthy classroom and school building environments is the website focus. Improve Indoor Air Quality. For example, be aware of the need for schools without musty air, learn about less toxic school cleaning materials and classroom materials, find lesson plans for grades P-12 that increase knowledge on school and home Indoor Air Quality for health.  If you notice an environmental health issue in your school, learn what you need to know, whether you are a parent, principal, teacher, student, custodian or building manager.  What does your school need?

Why is school indoor environment, and this website, important?

  • There is no longer any doubt. Many studies have found positive health impacts from improved indoor air quality.
  • Children attending schools in good condition score 5 to 10 percent higher on standardized tests than students who attend schools in poor condition.
  • Many schools have problems linked to indoor air quality.
  • Children are more vulnerable to environmental hazards.
  • Children spend an average of 30 to 50 hours per week in school.
  • Staff spend even more time in their school workplaces.
  • Poor indoor environmental quality is associated with a wide rage of problems that include respiratory illnesses and poor concentration leading to poor learning. Athletes need clean air in order to achieve their best and so do students!
  • Asthma studies show up to 13% and in some areas 17% of school age children have asthma, the leading cause of school absenteeism, accounting for thousands of missed school days each year, and high costs to the medical system.
  • Studies show that resources put into improving indoor environment quality have a rapid pay back.
  • Our Country’s school boards commonly make very difficult decisions between cutting back much-needed academic programs vs. cutting back on needed building maintenance.
  • Healthy new and existing schools provide cleaner air, improved lighting, and reduced exposures to toxic substances, and provide a healthier and safer learning environment for children, and improved academic achievement and well-being.
  • Federal and provincial governments have demonstrated interest in this important issue by developing programs like the Tools for Schools IAQ Action Kit, creating data, information and conferences on school IAQ; and are working to provide healthier schools every day. Use the Kit in your school!
  • Our schools have the great responsibility of guiding the future of our children.  Our children are our country’s greatest resource.