Ontario schools will be shut down for two weeks following the March Break to help fight the spread of COVID-19.

The unprecedented move — believed to be a first for the province, and country — begins March 23 and impacts the province’s more than 4,800 schools and two million students.

The recommendation was made by Dr. David Williams, Ontario’s Chief Medical Officer of Health and the order issued by Minister of Education Stephen Lecce.

Earlier this week, the New Brunswick government banned any staff or students who travel outside of Canada — including the United States — from its schools and daycares for two weeks. It had initially said the new policy was only for those who had travelled to countries such as China, Italy and Iran.

The English Montreal School Board has told staff and students who have travelled to the hardest-hit countries to stay home, even if they feel fine.

Many boards in Ontario have already cancelled all international school trips.

As of Thursday, more than 2,100 American schools — public and private — had been closed or are set to close, according to EdWeek.

The online education journal reports that more than 1.3 million students are impacted and “schools are closing for many reasons related to coronavirus, including exposures, cleaning, or planning for extended closures.”

Many boards in Ontario have already cancelled all international school trips.

As of Thursday, more than 2,100 American schools — public and private — had been closed or are set to close, according to EdWeek.

The online education journal reports that more than 1.3 million students are impacted and “schools are closing for many reasons related to coronavirus, including exposures, cleaning, or planning for extended closures.”

Around the world, almost 40 countries have shuttered some or all schools.

In 2009, during the swine flu pandemic, a number of public schools in Manitoba, New Brunswick and Montreal closed for a short time.

Earlier Thursday in Ottawa, Premier Doug Ford said while the situation is fluid, he wanted Ontarians to enjoy their March Break.

“It can change at any day. But I just want the families and their children to have a good time,” the premier said. “Go away, have a good time, enjoy yourself, and we’re going to be monitoring the situation as it changes every single day. But I just want them to enjoy themselves just now.”

Ford’s comments came hours before the first ministers’ meeting was cancelled after Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and his wife, Sophie, went into self-isolation to await a coronavirus test.

Laurentian University in Sudbury suspended all classes as of March 11, moving courses online for the remainder of the semester.

Other post-secondary institutions in the province say they are currently monitoring the situation. Western University has cancelled its March Break open house and all on-campus events until at least April 1.

Sudbury has one case of COVID-19 — a man who attended a huge mining conference in Toronto on March 2 and 3. The university has said it had a large number of representatives at the event.

A number of American universities have already cancelled classes and are moving online, including Harvard and Yale.

In the legislature Thursday, NDP Education Critic Marit Stiles said “Ontarians are watching the developments around the COVID-19 pandemic unfold, there is, understandably, growing concern among parents and guardians about protections for our kids in our school system.”

She said “school boards are already taking, as we know, extra precautions to guard against outbreaks. Custodians are logging extra hours. Extra cleaning and sanitizing supplies are being ordered. But at a time when we’ve seen school boards squeezed and custodial staff laid off, the government needs to be prepared to provide resources as necessary.”

Education Minister Stephen Lecce later said resources would be provided as needed to schools for things like soap and hand sanitizer.

Liberal MPP John Fraser had also raised concerns about planned vacations for the March Break, saying “many of those students and their families have travel plans, and we all know that travel is going to create some risk. Parents are looking for direction and advice.”

Lecce said “to ensure that students and staff returning from March Break remain safe is the paramount priority” of the government.