Pandemic mask-wearing has always been important, but when it comes to protecting against the Delta variant Earl Rubin, director of Montreal Children?s Hospital infectious diseases department, says masks are crucial. ?The infectivity is so much higher,? says Rubin, meaning it?s much easier for someone infected with the Delta variant of COVID-19, compared to earlier variants, to pass it on to someone else. And for kids under 12 who can’t be vaccinated, masks are even more important as a line of defence against COVID-19.
Here are seven key things to consider when masking up your little ones, especially as they head back to school this fall. 
Make sure they’ll wear their masks
Cloth or surgical, two layers or three, it?s all irrelevant if your kid won?t actually wear the mask. That?s why Ottawa public health nurse Katie Souliere says the best mask for kids is one that they?ll wear. Let your kid participate in choosing colours and patterns online or in the store and try a few styles at home to make sure they are comfortable and they fit properly before loading up on a bunch of the same mask.   Focus on fit
The main purpose of a face mask is to protect others (and the wearer) from potentially infectious droplets and aerosols that are released from our mouths and noses when we do things like cough, sneeze, laugh and speak loudly. If there are gaps around the nose, chin and cheeks, there?s room for those droplets and aerosols to escape and the mask becomes much less ...