During the current COVID-19 outbreak, face masks have become increasingly hard to get, to the point that people are advocating for the ones available to be saved for healthcare workers.

However, it’s been widely recognised that face masks are effective in reducing community spread of the virus. At a time when parents are looking to keep their kids entertained and off digital screens, socially-led creative agency, We Are Social Australia, has created Mask Class, an initiative to help adults and children make their own masks while educating them about the COVID-19 virus and how to reduce its transmission.

Learn & Have Fun

The project offers easy-to-follow instructions, illustrated by Australian artist and children’s book author Sha’an d’Anthes, aka @furrylittlepeach, in her signature playful and colourful style, so that kids can learn what to do to limit the spread of the virus, and have fun while doing it.

“When you look in the right place, you can always find a silver lining. In lockdown, families are having more time to connect, and making it a great way to bond. That’s the main ambition of Mask Class. We defer to the authorities to define what’s the best way to fight the virus, but we want to give families a shared task. Something to talk about and learn from. – says Edu Pou, executive creative director – Who knows if we’ll help unveil the next fashion icon?”

Suzie Shaw, managing director at We Are Social Australia, said “At this time, we were compelled to use the best resource we have to help – our creativity. Mask Class is just one of those ideas that deserved a life, so everyone got behind it to make it happen.”

How To Access #MaskClass

The how-to content is delivered via the Instagram account @maskclass, which also features an array of UGC tagged with #MaskClass, and on the Mask Class website, where parents can download printable PDF versions of the instructions, for a full ‘screens off’ DIY experience.