To all educators, you are absolute rockstars making a significant difference in students’ lives every day. We understand and deeply appreciate that you are already going above and beyond to deliver the SHSM program.
One of the reasons we provide full autonomy in customizing our program is so you can seamlessly integrate it with your SHSM sector experiences. While it provides a standard model, you have full autonomy to customize it to fit SHSM requirements, sector, and student needs. Personalize it and make it your own. We’re here to support you and your incredible efforts!
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The Playbook is designed for SHSM Leads (Award Leaders) to guide students through both SHSM and the Award. From Month 1, students can start both programs in tandem. If they don’t have a SHSM-specific activity for a section, they can use what they’re already doing—and when SHSM overlaps, it’s a bonus for their learning! For example, community service hours for graduation can count toward the Award’s Voluntary Service section. Whether it’s a robotics team or something outside your SHSM focus, it all works if it meets the 7 Elements of the Award Canada Way.
This is an exciting and unique pilot program. Together, we’ll be learning from the experience, gathering feedback, and refining it as we explore ways to better support your needs as educators.
Award Delivery At-a-Glance
Before you begin, depending on who will be the Award Coordinator, please refer to the Award-SHSM Management Playbook for a pre-delivery checklist.
Note: Level One training is an internationally recognized training, standardized across the world. It is asynchronous and takes approximately 2 hours to complete. There is also a more advanced Level Two training, which is conducted online and typically lasts around 4 hours. While both trainings are mandatory for the Award Coordinator (Board-Level Coordinator), the Award Leader (SHSM Lead) is only required to complete Level One.
SHSM Lead = Award Leader (delivers the Award). Board level/SHSM Coordinator = Award Centre Coordinator (manages the Award Centre).
Award Delivery Calendar Complete List of ResourcesWe are here to support you
We’re proud to support you and your students on this journey. Let us know how we can continue to support you in this rewarding work!
24/7/365 support through our AI Chatbot. Click the icon on the bottom right of your screen to begin.
Connect, share ideas and find support from peers. The Award Canada run Facebook group for all trained Award Leaders in Canada.
For key policies relating the Online Record Book (ORB), click here.
Month 1-2: Award and SHSM Start-Up
Welcome to the exciting launch phase of your SHSM Award journey! Month 1 of the Playbook is when students begin their SHSM, and at the same time, they can start the Award. Over the next few months, you’ll be setting up and managing key elements of the Award. Leverage the resources available to streamline the process and ensure a smooth setup. Remember, you’re not alone—our team is here to support you every step of the way as you integrate the Award into SHSM and prepare for a rewarding and transformative experience!
Key Tasks
Weeks 1-3
Prepare to Host an Introduction Session Checklist
Create excitement by planning when and how you would like to host the Information Session for the Award tailored to SHSM students, which is recommended to happen in week 4 prior to your first SHSM group experience. It’s important to decide the best timing and setting for the Information Session, such as a SHSM meeting, class, club or team, luncheon learn, in-class, sharing the parent brochure during parent-teacher interview night, etc. This session could be integrated into your existing SHSM information meetings or presentations, giving students a chance to explore how they can align their SHSM sector focus with activities with the Award.
- Students who are doing SHSM should also register for the Award as well. SHSM certifications and experiences also count toward completing Award Canada’s Framework. For example, a student learning a new skill in their SHSM sector would reflect on their experience following the SHSM training to add hours for the Award.
- The student process to register, set-up and learn about the Award’s Online Record Book (ORB) will earn them the SHSM Elective Certification: “Portfolio Development.” This session will also earn them the SHSM Certification: “Advanced Training in a Technology”, as it incorporates learning about and the usage of AI in setting up their ORB. The goal is to empower students to reflect and communicate their learning from the valuable Award and SHSM experiences and training. Additionally, students filling out the Award’s Planning Guide for the Adventurous Journey can fulfill requirements for their “Project Management” certification.
- Future SHSM certifications are also possible as students work through achieving their Award. For example, “Project Management,” or “Leadership Skills.” Teachers are encouraged to take the lead in administering additional SHSM certifications as students work through their Award. For example, “Leadership Skills” can be tailored to fit the students’ experiences and learning outcomes i.e., if they are doing Leadership for their Voluntary Service section.
- Certification Templates: Here are the templates you can use to support students in achieving their SHSM certifications:
- Portfolio Development Certification Template
- Advanced Training in a Technology Certification Template
- Project Management Certification Template
- Leadership Certification Template
- Generic Certification TemplatePlease note,students may have numerous reflections and entries; however, Online Record Book (ORB) is calculated by a minimum of one hour log a week or a 2 hour log every two weeks, or a 4 hour log every 4 weeks. The progress bar goes up each week, not by each log. Student SMART goals and SHSM reflections will continue to contribute to their “Portfolio Development” and understanding of “Advanced Training in a Technology with AI” to support an enhance their literacy experience.
- Award Blog
- Guide to Completing the Award: Summary of Award Requirements
- An Overview of the Award Journey: Award Canada Participant Guide
- Award Delivery Handbook
- Implementing school activities into the Award
- Award Activity Zone
- Award Canada Way Infographic
- Smart Goals Worksheet: A worksheet you can use with participants that shows how to create a SMART goal.
- How to Set Up an Activity on ORB (Video)
- How to add a Log to Your Activity (Video)
- Assessor Overview
- Who is an Assessor webpage
- How to Choose and Reach out to an Assessor
- Logging Examples and Understanding ORB Hour Counting
- Volunteering ideas for young people under the age of 16
Weeks 1-3
Adventurous Journey (AJ) Planning Checklist
Examine the Adventurous Journey (AJ) requirements to familiarize yourself with its components. The recommended timeline for completing the AJ is between months 3 and 6, so it’s beneficial to start preparing in advance. Note: The Adventurous Journey can be a group assessment.
Discover inspiration and ideas for planning your sector-specific Adventurous Journey by exploring our SHSM Activity Zone.
Review the AJ Navigator to help with AJ planning.
Coordinate with your school administration to follow the appropriate procedures for approving a new field trip or utilizing an existing one to plan and complete the Adventurous Journey.
Communicate with the Award Coordinator to ensure risk management has been thoroughly covered– risk assessment, necessary training, emergency responses and procedures, appropriate insurance, and participants are prepared and ready.
- Feel free to utilize the AJ Group Assessor Report after the PJ (Practice Journey) and QJ (Qualifying Journey), which allows an AJ Supervisor and/or Assessor to sign-off on the team’s PJ and QJ once, instead of completing it for each individual participant through the ORB.
- Another potential certification could be ‘Project Management,’ which students could earn by completing the Planning Guide for the Adventurous Journey (AJ) which includes collaboration with an industry partner. These opportunities allow students to develop and demonstrate key skills that align with SHSM certification requirements as they plan their AJ and put ideas into action.
Week 4
Host an Information Session Checklist
Host the Information Session with SHSM students and introduce the Award to them along with linkage to SHSM.
After the information session you can use our registration email template to streamline the registration process for students. You may also choose to turn the information session into a registration session. In the participants tab in ORB, clicking ‘Invite Participants’ allows you to share a link with participants to register directly with your school or with a specific Award Leader that automatically fills out relevant information for them. You may also utilize the standardized fillable registration template to assist students in registering by filling out the text boxes and then providing it to your participants.
Email the Information Session to any students that missed the session.
Week 5
SHSM & Award Registrations Checklist
Following the Information Session, begin approving students to register for the Award if they are also confirmed for SHSM. If students are still registering after this time, that’s fine. Track any missing registrations, and in weeks 7-8, after sending your SHSM list to the ministry, you will double-check your Award participant list to ensure all are continuing with SHSM.
Create and assign a label on the Online Record Book for the SHSM cohort of participants. You can watch this video for support.
- Participant registrations require three green checkmarks (participant email confirmation, parental approval, and payment) before you will be able to approve them. Once email confirmation and parental approval has been provided, ensure you have checked off the participant’s payment status on ORB to approve their account. Watch this video here on how to do so.
- Award Leaders should adjust start dates to the first day of the month. If you make this adjustment, participants can log their activities from this start date, even if they began before registration, allowing them to include any SHSM activities they were already doing. For more details on how to adjust the start date, see the video here.
- Best Practices: General tips for all areas of the Award that other Award Centres have found effective. This is a great resource to read at the very start.
- View our current opportunities and grants webpage
- Award Program Flexibilities.
Weeks 6
Host a SHSM Certification Session Checklist
Once students are registered, conduct a “Portfolio Development” and “Advanced Training in a Technology” certification session using our PowerPoint template. This session will cover how to write SMART goals, select an Assessor, choose activities, and how to incorporate AI to do so. The SHSM Lead should approve all certifications.
It is recommended that all students select ‘Skill’ as their Major in the Online Record Book (ORB). Since the Major requires more time and most students will likely be engaging in a Skill-related activity within their SHSM sectors, please emphasize this during the session.
By the end of the session, ensure all students have their Major section set up in the Online Record Book (ORB). It is also recommended to have the Physical Recreation and/or Voluntary Service section set up, as students may have an idea of their SHSM-related activity for these as well. If SHSM activities are still undecided at this point, students can either use other activities they are doing (view our Activity Zone for ideas) or add them later.
Set up a Buddy System and/or Award Mentor System to make sure students do not miss important SHSM training and Award entries.
- Students can also log each time they finish a SHSM activity, though ORB will only count up to 1 hour per week. For SHSM programs that track daily activities, even if they don’t count toward Award hours, they can still fulfill curriculum requirements.
- The SHSM Lead, who can verify all certifications, can also serve as the Assessor. To understand the role of an Assessor and their responsibilities, please refer to the Assessor Overview. While SHSM Leads may act as the Assessor for all sections, if the concern is that the SHSM Lead may not have enough time to assess all students individually, we encourage involving different Assessors such as teachers, coaches, or family friends. This will provide a broader range of feedback and support while helping to distribute the assessment responsibilities where possible. Individualized feedback is crucial- research shows that personalized feedback fosters positive youth development, and investing time in this way significantly benefits the participants. An Assessor is more than a verifier- personalized feedback, framed through a mentorship lens, is what truly benefits the youth and their development.
- Upon completing their Award, students will gain access to the Award’s CV template, allowing them to deepen their understanding of portfolio development and further enhance their learning.
Weeks 7-8
Registration Finalizations Checklist
Once your SHSM list has been sent to the ministry, double-check your Award participant list to ensure all Award participants are continuing with SHSM. Delete accounts of those that are not completing the Award or SHSM.
Month 3-4: Midpoint Milestones and Adventurous Journey
Welcome to the next phase of your SHSM Award journey! As you move forward, focus on crucial elements like the Adventurous Journey. In addition, monitor participant progress by having students regularly update their activity logs on the ORB after each SHSM training experience. This period is crucial for ensuring participants remain committed to their chosen activities, aiming to support participants in overcoming challenges and celebrating achievements thus far. We’re here to support you as you guide students through these important milestones!
Adventurous Journey (AJ) Practice Journey (PJ) Checklist
Confirm student participation in the AJ fieldtrip.
Conduct the Practice Journey (PJ) for the AJ with participants. While this timeframe is recommended for optimal readiness (months 3-4), it is not mandatory.
AJ can be a Group Assessment.
- You may also opt to complete the Practice Journey and Qualifying Journey (QJ) back-to-back. If you choose this option, you can schedule the QJ here accordingly. Be sure to include a debrief session for the PJ to ensure participants are well-prepared for the QJ. If you are doing this, feel free to utilize the suggested AJ Group Debriefing Report.
- Feel free to utilize the AJ Group Assessor Report which allows an AJ Supervisor and/or Assessor to sign-off on the team’s PJ and QJ once, instead of completing it for each individual participant through the ORB.
- Another potential certification could be ‘Project Management,’ which students could earn by completing the Planning Guide for the Adventurous Journey (AJ). These opportunities allow students to develop and demonstrate key skills that align with SHSM certification requirements.
- AJ Navigator: On this platform you will find guidelines, resources, templates, outlines, best practices, examples and more to assist with successfully and safely completing each stage of the Adventurous Journey.
Monitor Participant Progress Checklist
Ensure students update/reflect in the activity logs after each SHSM training experience on the ORB. They may also add more logs if they have connected experiences that were not facilitated by SHSM, but still applicable to the Award.
Send bi-weekly or monthly email reminders to prompt participants to log their activities after their SHSM activities/regular activities, emphasizing that logging doesn’t need to take long—just two minutes.
Utilize the spreadsheet under the ORB Lab, ‘Awards Progress Overview’. For this link to work, you need to be already logged in to ORB. If you aren’t already logged in, it will make you log in and bring you to the regular dashboard. It’s a powerful way to view participant progress. Watch this video tutorial if you need support.
- ORB Lab Activity Progress Overview: Keep up to date on your participant’s progress.
- Calculating Logged Hours Video
For the above link to work, you need to be already logged in to ORB. If you aren’t already logged in, it will make you log in and bring you to the regular dashboard.
Month 5: Qualifying Journey and Continue Monitoring Progress
In Month 5, the focus shifts to completing the Qualifying Journey (QJ) and continuing to monitor participants’ progress. If participants have not yet completed their QJ during months 3-4, this is the recommended time to schedule and finalize it. In addition, maintaining regular oversight of participant progress remains key, ensuring they are consistently logging activities in the Online Record Book (ORB).
Adventurous Journey (AJ) Qualifying Journey (QJ) Checklist
If you didn’t complete your Qualifying Journey (QJ) during months 3-4, it is recommended to schedule it during this time (months 5).
- AJ Navigator: On this platform you will find guidelines, resources, templates, outlines, best practices, examples and more to assist with successfully and safely completing each stage of the Adventurous Journey.
Continue Monitoring Participant Progress Checklist
Continue to monitor participant progress, ensuring they are regularly logging on the ORB. Utilize the ORB Lab Activity Progress Overview for support.
Send bi-weekly or monthly email reminders to prompt participants to log their activities.
- ORB Lab Activity Progress Overview:Keep up to date on your participant’s progress.
- ORB Lab Activity Progress Overview Tutorial Video
- Best Practices:View the section in our best practices for tips on how to help participants that are stuck.
- Reviewing Award Revision Notes Video
Month 6: Celebration Planning and Initiate Award Submission
As your students draw near to their conclusion of their journey with SHSM and the Award, it’s a time for celebration. This phase is dedicated to honouring the perseverance, achievements, and personal growth each participant has demonstrated.
In planning your celebration, aim to highlight the individual and collective milestones achieved that allow everyone’s experiences to be shared. This celebration is not just an end, but a bridge to future adventures, encouraging participants to reflect on their learnings and how they can be applied in their continuing journey of self-discovery and development.
Submitting Awards for Verification Checklist
Email the two videos to participants on how they can submit logs to their Assessor, and how they can submit their Award to their Award Leader.
When the participant completes their last log and sends to their Assessor, once the Assessor has done their report for that section, it will automatically be sent to the Award Leader. If all the requirements for that section have been met, approve that section. For support, utilize our Award Authorization Checklist.
Review and approve sections as they come in.
Ensure participants are submitting Awards for verification if all requirements are met.
- To recall the role of an Assessor and their responsibilities in submitting assessments, please refer to the Assessor Overview. Individualized feedback is crucial- research shows that personalized feedback fosters positive youth development, and investing time in this way significantly benefits the participants. An Assessor is more than a verifier- personalized feedback, framed through a mentorship lens, is what truly benefits the youth and their development.
Note: If you cannot get the Award to be approved, please reach out to your Account Manager, or the Support Centre if it’s an ORB issue.
- Award Authorization Checklist: A checklist for Award Centres when reviewing participants’ completed Awards.
Additional SHSM Certifications Verification Checklist
After participants submit their Award, we recommend they complete the Award CV template. Our aim is to empower students to reflect on and articulate their learning from the valuable experiences and training gained through the Award and SHSM.
As you approve sections, verify if any meet the criteria for additional SHSM certifications. For instance, a leadership certification might be applicable based on the student’s contributions to their Voluntary Service section or involvement in planning the Adventurous Journey (AJ).
Celebration Planning Checklist
To prepare for celebration planning with the Award Coordinator, ensure that: all participants’ ORB is up to date, verify award readiness, and validate the accuracy of logs.
Check that contact details in the ORB are correct for certificate issuance. Work with the Award Coordinator to determine who is ordering recognition materials from Award Canada and ensure recognition materials are ordered. Keep in mind the deadline to order recognition events is 2-3 weeks before your scheduled event.
Collaborate with the Award Coordinator to plan a meaningful celebration and determine the number of participants completing the Award to honor their achievements.
- Celebrate your participants and their achievements with others! Whether it’s a school assembly, graduation or another event, the key is to recognize the students’ hard work and present them with their certificates and pins. The actual hosting of the celebration is flexible, as long as their achievements are acknowledged.
- If you need help planning a celebration, please reach out to your Account Manager.
- If your Award Centre need help planning a celebration, please reach out to your Account Manager.
- Award Celebration Webpage:
Explains celebrations at each level, pins & certificates, an FAQ, and upcoming Award celebrations. - A Guide for Bronze & Silver Celebrations: If you need support planning a celebration, this document provides helpful guidance.
Month 7: Finalizing Award Completion and Transitioning to the Next Level
Completing the Award journey is an exciting milestone, and it’s also an opportunity to prepare participants for what comes next. This stage focuses on ensuring all requirements are met, guiding participants through the submission process, and celebrating their achievements. It’s also the perfect time to help them transition to the next level, offering resources and encouragement to continue building on the skills and experiences they’ve gained.
When the time comes to celebrate according to what you planned, take the opportunity to honor participants’ Award journeys. Acknowledge their hard work, express gratitude to your team, and reflect on the impact of this transformative experience.
Award Completion and Submission Checklist
Ensure that all participants have completed their activities across each section.
Verify that all participants have submitted their Awards for final approval. Once the Award Leader has approved each section, remind participants to log into their accounts one last time to submit their entire Award for final approval. They should also complete the personal reflection on their Award experience. Sending a friendly reminder, whether by email or another method, is a great way to ensure this step isn’t missed.
- ORB Lab Activity Progress Overview:Keep up to date on your participant’s progress.
- ORB Lab Activity Progress Overview Tutorial Video
Supporting the Transition to the Next Level Checklist
Encourage students to explore resources that help translate the skills gained through the Award into valuable tools for their education, personal growth, and future opportunities. Direct them to our webpage for resume templates, a cover letter, interview tips, and other helpful resources.
After completing their Bronze Award, invite students to register for the next level. Feel free to use our email template to remind participants and ensure they take the next step in their Award journey.
