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Explaining COVID-19 Vaccines to Children and Youth

Family and Caregivers: Information to help families and caregivers talk to their child or youth about COVID-19 vaccines

caregiver and client with a speech bubble showing a band-aid

Please note: The information provided in this tipsheet is for reference only. It is not intended as a recommendation or endorsement of organizations, news sources, agencies or private businesses, or as a comprehensive resource list.

Based on when you are viewing this tipsheet, the information may not be the most up to date. Please refer to the date at the end of this document to determine when this tipsheet was last updated. You can also access this tipsheet online at hollandbloorview.ca/covid-19-tipsheets

This tipsheet is a companion to the Holland Bloorview tipsheet 'Explaining COVID-19 and Coronavirus to Children'. When creating this tipsheet, we envisioned that the information in it would help families and caregivers talk to their child or youth about COVID-19 vaccines. Before you have a talk with your child or young adult, it might be helpful to define the word vaccine.

For Caregivers

Have questions and want to talk to someone?
FAQ (Frequently Asked Questions) about the vaccine

More information on COVID-19 vaccines and children can be found on the City of Toronto and Government of Canada websites.

How to have an age appropriate conversation with your child
Making vaccination shots less painful
Social stories to explain injections/vaccinations

Here are some examples of social stories that you can use:

Plain Language (easy read resources on COVID-19 vaccines)

          Need more resources? Try these:

          For caregivers who identify as BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, People of Colour)
          Vaccine information in different languages
          ASL Vaccine Information

          We encourage you to visit our website to access all of our COVID-19 or Coronavirus specific family tip sheets. If you are looking for other family resources that have to do with childhood disability, please visitwww.hollandbloorview.ca/resourcecentre.

          Created by the Family Support Specialists and Family Leaders at Holland Bloorview Kids Rehabilitation Hospital on November 29, 2021. If you have a question or a resource to share, please feel free to reach out to us at resourcecentre@hollandbloorview.ca