Halton’s Catholic school board trustees have agreed to dip into the board’s reserve funds to reduce class sizes for the coming year.
Maximum class size will be 25 students, with the board-wide average coming in at about 22.1 pupils per class.
The board has received about $3.5 million in extra provincial and federal funding to address pandemic-related costs.
It will use that money and top it up with about $3.3 million from reserve funds to reduce class sizes. Most money will go to hiring extra staff, with some cash covering the costs of portables, additional technology and cleaning costs.
Original Post: August 30, 2020
The Halton District School Board announced that it will also be delaying the start date of school for both elementary as well as secondary school students; however, there approach is different than that of the Halton District School Board.
Secondary school students
Instruction begins for secondary school students on Wednesday, September 9th which is just one day than originally announced.
Elementary school students
Elementary school students (grades 1 through 8) begin full day instruction on Monday, September 14th for both in-class on and online programs.The delay provides teachers with time to rehearse the new Coronavirus health and safety protocols, as well as being used for the set-up of the learning management systems and resources for remote learning.
A gradual return to school for our elementary students will help alleviate some of the anxiety in students by providing a calm environment to help students learn the new health and safety routines at school and practice our entry and dismissal procedures in smaller groups.
What Does this Mean for Elementary Students?
At the elementary level, we will be easing into the new school year by bringing Grade 1-8 students back to school in smaller groups on September 9, 10 and 11th. All Grade 1-8 students will be in school beginning Monday, September 14th.
The following schedule will apply to Grade 1-8 students in all elementary schools:
Wednesday, September 9th
Only students in Grades 1-8 with surnames beginning with the letters A-F will come to school
Thursday, September 10th
Only students in Grades 1-8 with surnames beginning with the letters G- N will come to school
Friday, September 11th
Only students in Grades 1-8 with surnames beginning with the letters O-Z will come to school
Monday, September 14th ALL students in Grades 1-8 attending in-class instruction will come to school. Remote learning will begin for students learning from home.
Kindergarten
As per our usual practice, we will implement a staggered entry for Kindergarten students.
Year 1 and 2 orientation will take place on Tuesday, September 8th, and Wednesday, September 9th.
Year 2 students will begin on Thursday, September 10th.
Year 1 staggered entry will take place on Friday, September 11th, and Monday, September 14th.
All Kindergarten students in school beginning Tuesday, September 15th.
Special Education
Students in the self-contained Community Living, Essential Skills, and Structured Teaching special education classes in our elementary schools will begin in-class instruction on Wednesday, September 9 and attend school daily thereafter.
At the elementary level, students with special education needs who are not in self-contained classes will attend school on the designated alpha day with their peers. If the student would benefit from daily attendance, and/or further time to support transitions, they may attend on additional days in consultation with their school.
What Does this Mean for Secondary Students?
At the secondary school level, the first day of school will be delayed by one day for all students, except for students in the Life Skills classes, who will begin in-class instruction at school on Tuesday, September 8 and attend school daily thereafter.
As secondary students will be returning to an adapted instructional model, in cohorts of 15 or less, a gradual return will already be in place. Secondary schools will start in their Week 1 schedule, with the first day of instruction taking place on Wednesday, September 9, 2020.