D. Healthy Living · Healthy Living

Bounce Back: Healthy Habits, Coping and Resilience

D2.4 A1.1 A1.2 A1.3About 45 minutes

Learning goals

I can explain how healthy habits in my daily routine help maintain mental health.
I can use several coping strategies in times of stress.
I can describe resilience and how to build it, and know when and where to get more help.

Words to know

mental health
Your emotional, psychological and social well-being: how you think, feel, act and connect with others. Everyone has mental health.

stress
The body's and mind's response to a challenge or demand. Some stress helps you focus; too much for too long can harm health.

coping strategy
Something you do to manage stress or strong emotions.

resilience
The ability to adapt and bounce back after stress, change or hard times. It can be built.

routine
The things you do regularly, such as when you sleep, eat, move and connect with people.

grounding
A coping strategy that brings your attention to the present moment, often using your senses.

When the bucket fills up

Imagine stress as water pouring into a bucket: tests, a fight with a friend, tryouts, family changes, the news. Everyone's bucket gets water. What matters is having taps that let some out: habits and coping strategies.

The Grade 8 curriculum asks you to demonstrate an understanding of how incorporating healthy habits and coping strategies into daily routines can help maintain mental health and resilience in times of stress.

The stress bucket: stressors pour in; healthy habits and coping strategies act like a tap that lets stress out.

Remember from Grade 7

In Grade 7 you learned the difference between mental health and mental illness, and that everyone has mental health. Now you'll build a daily routine that protects it, and a toolkit for the hard days.

Healthy habit	What's recommended	How it helps mental health
Sleep	Canada's 24-Hour Movement Guidelines: 9 to 11 hours a night for ages 13 and under; 8 to 10 hours for ages 14 to 17, with regular bed and wake times	Better mood, focus, memory and emotional control
Physical activity	At least 60 minutes of moderate to vigorous activity a day	Lowers stress, improves mood and sleep
Screen time	No more than 2 hours a day of recreational screen time; no screens before bed	Protects sleep; leaves time for people and activity
Eating	Regular meals and snacks following Canada's Food Guide	Steady energy and mood
Connection	Time with family, friends, teams, clubs, community or cultural groups	Support, belonging and someone to talk to
Fun, nature and meaning	Hobbies, time outdoors, helping others, spiritual or cultural practices	Joy, calm and a sense of purpose

Healthy habits that support mental health.

Coping strategy	How to do it
Box breathing	Breathe in for 4 counts, hold 4, out 4, hold 4. Repeat 4 times.
5-4-3-2-1 grounding	Name 5 things you see, 4 you can touch, 3 you hear, 2 you smell, 1 you taste.
Muscle relaxation	Tense one muscle group (like fists) for 5 seconds, then let go. Move through your body.
Helpful self-talk	Change "I'm going to fail" to "This is hard, but I've prepared. I can do my best."
Problem-solving	Name the problem, list options, choose one, try it, check how it went.
Break it down	Split a big task into small steps with a schedule.
Move	A walk, a bike ride, shooting hoops, dancing.
Express it	Journal, draw, make music, talk to someone you trust.

A coping toolkit. Different strategies work for different people and situations.

Box breathing: trace the four sides of a box, counting to 4 on each side. Slow breathing helps calm your body when you're stressed.

Helpful vs. unhelpful coping

Some ways of coping feel good in the moment but make things worse later: avoiding the problem, gaming or scrolling all night, using alcohol, cannabis or vapes, skipping meals, isolating, or taking stress out on others.

Helpful coping deals with the stress or the feelings in a way that keeps you healthy over time.

Resilience can be built

Resilience isn't something you're born with or without. It grows from supportive relationships, healthy routines, coping skills, a sense of purpose, and learning from setbacks. For many First Nations, Inuit and Métis people, connection to land, language, culture, family and community is a strong source of resilience.

When to get more help

If stress, sadness or worry lasts more than two weeks, gets in the way of school, sleep, eating or friendships, or you have thoughts of hurting yourself, talk to a trusted adult and get help:

Kids Help Phone: 1-800-668-6868 or text CONNECT to 686868 (24/7).
9-8-8 Suicide Crisis Helpline: call or text 988 (24/7).
Hope for Wellness Helpline (for Indigenous peoples across Canada): 1-855-242-3310 (24/7).
A doctor, nurse practitioner, school counsellor or social worker. 911 if someone is in immediate danger.

Worked example

Let's build a routine for exam week

Zara has three tests next week and a dance competition on Saturday. She's been staying up past midnight on her phone and skipping breakfast, and she feels anxious and snappy.

Spot the stressors: three tests, a competition.
Spot the habits that drain her: late nights on her phone (less sleep), skipping breakfast (low energy and mood).
Add healthy habits: phone charges outside her room at 9:30 p.m.; lights out by 10; quick breakfast (yogurt and fruit).
Add coping strategies: break studying into 30-minute blocks with movement breaks; box breathing before each test; helpful self-talk.
Connect: tell her parents she's stressed; study with a friend once.

Zara's new routine: more sleep, breakfast, study in small blocks, breathing before tests, and talking to her parents. Her bucket still gets stress, but now her taps let it out.

Just for fun

Q: Why did the rubber ball never give up?

A: It always knew how to bounce back. (Unlike the ball, you get to choose your own taps: sleep, a walk, a friend, a good laugh.)

Hands-on activity

My resilience routine

You need: paper, a pencil, and a quiet spot.

Draw your own stress bucket. Write your current stressors pouring in.
Draw taps: write three healthy habits you'll build into each day (for example, a bedtime, a daily walk, phone-free dinner).
Practise two coping strategies now: do box breathing for 1 minute and 5-4-3-2-1 grounding. Which felt better?
Write a "hard day plan": two coping strategies and two people you can talk to, plus Kids Help Phone.
Try your routine for one week and check off each day. Talk about it with your grown-up.

What to look for: specific habits, practised strategies, and named supports. This builds coping skills (A1.2) and perseverance (A1.3).

Your turn

What is resilience?

How many hours of sleep are recommended for a 13-year-old? For a 15-year-old?

Describe box breathing.

Name three healthy habits that support mental health.

Give an example of an unhelpful coping strategy and why it's unhelpful.

When should someone get more help for stress or sadness?

More practice: warm-up

True or false: all stress is bad.

How much physical activity a day is recommended for youth?

What is the 9-8-8 Suicide Crisis Helpline?

Name one sense used in 5-4-3-2-1 grounding.

Is resilience something you either have or don't have?

More practice: on your own

Rewrite this thought with helpful self-talk: "I always mess up. I'll never make the team."

Why does putting the phone outside the bedroom help mental health?

Use problem-solving for: "I have a big project due Friday and haven't started."

Explain how connection to culture and community can build resilience.

Why might different people need different coping strategies?

Challenge

Plan a realistic weekday routine for a Grade 8 student that includes sleep, activity, screen limits, meals and connection. Explain how it maintains mental health.

A friend says, "When I'm stressed I just vape. It helps." Explain why this isn't a healthy long-term coping strategy and suggest two alternatives.

Explain the difference between maintaining mental health and treating a mental illness, and why both matter.

Check your understanding

Quiz

Which is a healthy habit that supports mental health?

Resilience means...

Which is an unhelpful coping strategy?

How much recreational screen time do Canada's guidelines suggest for youth?

5-4-3-2-1 grounding uses your...

When should you reach out for more help?

How can you reach the 9-8-8 Suicide Crisis Helpline?

For parents and teachers

Big idea: This lesson covers the Grade 8 expectation to demonstrate an understanding of how incorporating healthy habits and coping strategies into daily routines can help maintain mental health and resilience in times of stress (D2.4). It builds emotion skills (A1.1), coping skills (A1.2) and perseverance (A1.3).

Facts used: Sleep, activity and screen-time recommendations come from the Canadian 24-Hour Movement Guidelines for Children and Youth (9 to 11 hours of sleep for ages 5 to 13; 8 to 10 hours for ages 14 to 17; at least 60 minutes of moderate to vigorous activity; no more than 2 hours of recreational screen time).

How to help at home:

Practise box breathing together, for example before a test or game.
Agree on a family "phones charge in the kitchen" time.
Model healthy coping: say out loud, "I'm stressed, so I'm going for a walk."
Notice changes in sleep, eating, mood or friendships that last more than two weeks, and talk with your doctor or school.

Common difficulties: thinking all stress is bad; relying on one strategy; using screens as the main way to cope. If your child ever talks about suicide or self-harm, take it seriously and get help right away (9-8-8 by call or text, or 911 in an emergency).