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Schools

Body Image

Body image and self-esteem begin to develop early in life. Individuals who have a positive body image and self-esteem have more self-confidence.  They are more resilient to daily stresses and challenges.

Body image refers to the way we feel about our physical bodies. A positive body image means feeling comfortable in your body.

Self-esteem is closely tied to body image. It refers to how worthy and confident a person feels. It also refers to the level of self-respect a person has for himself or herself.  
Body image and self-esteem begin to develop early in life and are heavily influenced by:

  • parent sand caregivers, 
  • peers,
  • educators, and 
  • the social and physical environment children grow up in.

Negative body image and self-esteem can have serious effects on health. Left unrecognized, negative thought patterns and resulting behaviours can lead to conditions such as depression, stress, anxiety and eating disorders.


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Whole School Approaches 

A healthy school includes activities to promote positive body image and self-esteem and body inclusivity. Consider the following activities as part of your health and well-being action plan:

Have a zero tolerance policy for weight-based teasing and bullying
Develop a strong weight-based teasing and bullying policy.  Communicate and educate staff, students and parents about examples and consequences related to offences.

Promote a Body Inclusive Environment

You can create a body inclusive school environment by developing activities for the school and classroom that direct focus away from weight and appearance, challenge assumptions about people based on their weight or appearance, change language being used by staff, educators and lunch monitors, and recognize harms associated with stigma and discrimination.

Look beyond appearance

A variety of factors outside of body image can contribute to students feeling good about themselves. This includes intellectual abilities, physical abilities, social skills, interests and talents. Engage students in activities that explore and identify non-appearance based characteristics. This encourages them to concentrate less on their physical appearance and build confidence.

Educator and Classroom Resources

  • Amazing Me – Grades 4-5. Includes Virtual Field Trip and classroom resources to build life-long confidence and self-esteem in students. 
  • NEDIC Beyond Images – Grades 4-8. Self-esteem and body image curriculum to address critical media literacy, digital citizenship, body-based bullying. 
  • Confident Me – Grades 6-8. Self-esteem teaching resources includes six, 45-60 minute lessons including class discussions, small group activities, engaging videos and activity worksheets. 
  • Media Smarts – Kindergarten to Grade 8. Offers a variety of lessons and resources to address body image, gender stereotypes and the influence of media. 
  • Ophea H&PE Curriculum Resources – Grades 1-8. Includes lesson plans, student templates and assessment tools. 
  • Confident Me – Grade 9. Self-esteem teaching resources includes six, 45-60 minute lessons including class discussions, small group activities, engaging videos and activity worksheets (grade 9)
  • Media Smarts – Grades 9-12. Lessons and resources about the digital and media literacy as it relates to body image.
  • Ophea H&PE Curriculum Resources – Grades 9-12. Includes lesson plans per grade, student templates and assessment tool.

For Students, Parents and Families

There are many ways for students to engage in promoting positive body image and self-esteem. Encourage students to:

  • Treat their body with respect.
  • Enjoy regular movement for the joy of feeling their body move and grow stronger
  • Get enough sleep.
  • Respect people based on the qualities of their character and accomplishments, not just how they look.
  • Surround themselves with friends and family who make them feel good about themselves and support and like them just as they are. 

Resources to share with students include:

  • Dove Beauty Evolution – Grades 4 and up.  A time-lapse depicting what happens behind the scenes in the beauty industry (Dove Self-Esteem Fund).
  • Dove Reverse Selfie – Grades 6 and up  A short video that can be used to address social media and retouching apps. Have #TheSelfieTalk.

There are many ways for parents, caregivers, and families to support their children to develop positive body image and self-esteem, such as:

  • Be a positive role model.
  • Encourage values not related to appearance, such as kindness and honesty.
  • Appreciate children’s strengths and abilities.
  • Foster a positive relationship with food.
  • Teach children think critically about what they see and hear in media.
  • Encourage movement and physical activity that is joyful and fun.

Resources to share with parents/families include:

Choose from the sample newsletter inserts below to share with parents/families of elementary school students:

Support your child to develop positive body image and self-esteem

Body image and self-esteem begin to develop early in life. Negative body image and self-esteem can lead to conditions such as depression, stress, anxiety and eating disorders. There are many ways for parents, caregivers, and families to support their children to develop positive body image and self-esteem, such as:

  • Be a positive role model.
  • Encourage values not related to appearance, such as kindness and honesty.
  • Appreciate your child’s strengths and abilities.
  • Foster a positive relationship with food.
  • Teach your child to think critically about what they see or hear in the media.
  • Encourage movement and physical activity that is joyful and fun.

Looking for more information? Call Health Connection at 705-721-7520 or 1-877-721-5720 or visit the health unit’s website at www.simcoemuskokahealth.org.

Choose from the sample newsletter inserts below to share with parents/families of secondary school students:

Support your teen to have a positive relationship with food

People often turn to dieting to try and change their bodies and feel better about themselves. But young people are growing and need the right amount of nutrients to be healthy. Not eating a variety of food or missing meals can be harmful for physical and mental health for not only young people but for everyone.  Support your teen to have a positive relationship with food:

  • Be a positive role model; avoid talking about your body or appearance or restricting food.
  • Encourage teens to value traits like kindness and honesty over appearance 
  • Appreciate your teens strengths and abilities.
  • Foster a positive relationship with food.
  • Teach your teen to think critically about what they see or hear in the media.
  • Encourage movement and physical activity that is joyful and fun.

Looking for more information? Call Health Connection at 705-721-7520 or 1-877-721-5720 or visit the health unit’s website at www.simcoemuskokahealth.org.

For More information

For more information, call Health Connection at 705-721-7520 or 1-877-721-7520 or email [email protected]. 
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