Dear D.A. Families,

I'm Ms. Duff and I am very excited to be your Guidance Counsellor this year. I am here to support intermediate students, staff and families in the following ways:

• Creating and building MyBlueprint Individual Pathways Plan (IPP)
• Planning for and transitioning to Secondary School for grade 8 students
• Emotional, Social and Academic well being
• Exploring opportunities and areas of interest both in the school and greater community
• Self-identity, awareness and discovery
• Building and maintaining healthy relationships with others (peers, teachers, family, etc)

I look forward to getting to know your children and supporting them in their academic, career and personal goals throughout the year.

Students are invited to fill out a referral form if they would like to meet with me. The forms are available in the main office.

Wishing all of you an amazing year!

GUIDANCE UPDATE (February 2020)

Dear Families,

Happy February! I would like to thank you in advance for your support of the grade 8 - 9 transition to high school, especially during this busy time of course selection. 

If you have specific questions after reading this email, I will ask that you send a separate email to melissa.duff@tdsb.on.ca rather than reply to this one, so your query does not get lost in the replies. I will also ask that you indicate your child's name, classroom teacher, and school. I will do my best to respond to your questions as soon as possible in the coming days.

February update:

Most classes have had a chance to work with me and receive direct instruction on how to complete course selection plans for their home school/pathway school and any schools that they have applied to under optional attendance on myblueprint.ca. Any classes that are awaiting this support for any reason will be prioritized next week. Most students have also created an "invite" for their parent(s) or legal guardian(s) to create a "parent" myblueprint account that links to their account. Students were asked to create ONE plan for grade 9 courses for a home school (or pathway school for students in French Immersion/Extended programs). Students who applied to other schools/programs were welcome to create additional plans in myblueprint as they await acceptance, if applicable.

Note to families who applied to specialized programs/regular programs under optional attendance:

High schools should be contacting you between February 3rd - February 14th to let you know if you have been accepted. Please give a response to the school once you have heard back from all schools and indicate your intention to attend as soon as possible. In the case of specialized programs, there may be additional instructions for you to follow. 

If you are concerned about what to do about course selection due to absence/other reason:

If your child missed direct instruction, or you would like to review choices please refer to this " quick reference guide " I created which includes course offerings for grade 9 for 2020-2021 at some but not all choices for schools across the TDSB. Most schools in this guide were included because a significant number of grade 8 students/families at the schools I serve are considering attending these schools. Once again, I am also sharing this Secondary School information Guide

that was included in the grade 8 info package you would have received in the fall and that is available online.

What are the next steps?

1. Review the courses each student has selected for grade 9 in myblueprint as a family, including course descriptions of each course. Also review alternate choices (if applicable). 
2. If you have not applied to optional attendance/specialized programs, by the end of next week, and are satisfied with your choices, click "review courses" and "submit course selection" for ONE SCHOOL ONLY - the home school you will be attending. This will submit your courses to your elementary guidance counsellor to review/finalize. Only submit your courses once you and your family have talked about, reviewed and agree upon your choices.
3. If you have applied to specialized programs/regular programs under optional attendance, please wait for news of acceptance. Once you have received response(s) from high schools, and decided on a final destination, you may submit ONE course plan only for the school you are planning to attend next year.
4. Printed course selection sheets signed by student and parent must be returned to the elementary school by February 21st. If possible, I may be able to "group print" over the P.A. Day for the majority of students attending home schools only. Please stay tuned for an additional update next week.

Please have an amazing weekend and happy choosing!