For Teachers

Chain of Life is a comprehensive school-based ESL and English Language Arts program with a mission to educate youth ages 15–17 about organ and tissue donation. Developed in the province of Quebec, Chain of Life may be suitable for adapting in other jurisdictions.

A round up of teaching resources from around the world focused on donation and transplantations with cross-curricular links to science, health, language arts, ethics, civics and social responsibility.

World Kidney Day, held in March, is a global campaign aimed at raising awareness of the importance of our kidneys. Here you can find an educational Power Point presentation tailored to school children from the age of 12 to 16. This presentation includes information about kidneys, how they work and how to keep them healthy.

Developed in BC by the BC Ministry of Education, this lesson plan for Grade 8 Students explores the topic of organ donation through discussion, news and social media, and stories within the community. Students will have the opportunity to connect their exploration with their own thoughtful opinions and reflect on their discoveries in connection with the inquiry questions.

Life is a Gift is a Grade 11 biology resource for organ donation and transplantation developed by the Transplant Manitoba - Gift of Life Program and Manitoba Education.

A collection of transplant stories for students in Saskatchewan to complement an organ and tissue donation lesson plan or in class presentation.

One Life...Many Gifts is a curriculum resource to educate senior secondary school students about the vital importance of organ and tissue donation and transplantation. Though developed in Ontario, these materials may be suitable for use in other regions.

Teacher Toolkit #3 from the Orgamites' collection, this educational toolkit has been created to encourage and inspire kids to take better care of one another and the environment too. As part of the ‘Mighty Kind Movement’ — over the course of 5 short lessons, your students will learn all about recycling, upcycling, lifecycling and how to not just do kind things, but be kinder people too.

Orgtober, formerly known as October, will be sweeping into primary school classrooms and calendars across the country. While the normal education curriculum will not be affected, this supplementary campaign seeks to breathe new life into organ donation education by starting earlier, getting more families talking, celebrating the fundamental values that underpin organ donation (kindness, compassion, and inclusivity), and having loads of fun while doing all of this!

Organ donation is an incredible gift. A number of things have to happen in sequence and in a really specific way for a person to become an organ donor.
Watch this video to learn how organ donation works in Canada.

A children's book series by US author and living kidney donor, Brenda E. Cortez. In the Howl the Owl Organ Donation Series, Howl learns firsthand about helping others as he is given the gift of life.

A parent's guide to having the organ donation talk with their kids.

Heart Sister is young adult fiction novel written by Michael J. Stewart and published by Orca Book Publishers in September 2020. The story covers the themes of organ donation, loss and grief. A teacher's guide is an important accompaniment to this novel as it clarifies the facts versus fiction in the context of this story.

World Kidney Day is a global campaign aimed at raising awareness of the importance of our kidneys. Here you can find an educational Power Point presentation tailored to school children from the age of 6 to 11. This presentation includes information about kidneys, how they work and how to keep them healthy.

The mighty Orgamites are a team of nine life-saving organs (led by Captain Marrow) found in every one of us. They’re known as the mighty organs because they represent the most-donated parts of the body. Teacher Toolkit #1 has been developed to help students (K-5) gain basic knowledge and understanding of their organs and what they do inside their bodies and introduces the basic concepts of organ donation and transplantation.

Researchers around the globe interested in understanding the impact of education initiatives on young people and their overall awareness and approval of organ donation.

The University of Toronto Transplant Institute in partnership with the Trillium Gift of Life Network, delivers presentations in and around Greater Toronto Area (GTA) high schools to increase awareness about organ donation and Transplantation.

An Orgamites poster showing where each of our organs are located in the body.

BC Transplant will award two $1000 scholarships to grade 12 students who lead an organ donation awareness project in their school or community 

Connecting DOTS | Donation & Organ Transplantation for Schools is an online platform dedicated to educating schoolchildren on donation and organ transplantation. It provides information for teachers, students and their families and is based on a program first developed in the Netherlands.

An animated video developed by the Canadian Critical Care Society (CCCS) in partnership with Canadian Blood Services (CBS) and the Canadian Medical Association (CMA to help explain the three pathways that lead to death.

Green Shirt Day is an opportunity to generate class discussions on organ donation, inspire action from students, and participate in a meaningful cross-Canada initiative. Learn about how you can spark a movement at your school on Green Shirt Day.

In addition to the curriculum booklets, One Life...Many Gifts offers an accompanying video that shows the emotional journeys of several of the individuals and families who are profiled within.

Teacher Toolkit #2 from The Orgamites' Collection: This educational toolkit has been created to encourage kids to look after their health by bringing the 5 most important pillars of health to vivid, vibrant life. Along the way, kids will learn how the health of their organs affects their overall health, and they’ll also be made aware of the concepts of organ transplantation and donation.

Find out which are the organs and tissues that are most often donated to patients in need of transplant.