Principal's Message

 

Principal’s Message:

Welcome to The Elms Jr. Middle School, a community of learning that features Kindergarten to Grade 8, located within the richly diverse Albion/Islington community. With a legacy of over 50 years of educational excellence, we are continually engaged in the school improvement process to meet the constantly changing needs of 21st Century Learners. 

As a member of Model Schools for the Inner-city within the Toronto District School Board, we are fortunate to have additional resources and a mandate to be the hub of our community, offering an extensive range of supports, including dental, vison and enhanced community partnerships. We share our site with the City of Toronto pool and recreational facilities, the EarlyON Child and Family Centre, a private daycare and an after-school Boys and Girls Club. 

The Elms offers a Junior Kindergarten to Grade 8 program, which draws from our own immediate catchment area, as well as from our two feeder schools: Braeburn Jr. School and Elmlea Jr. School. 

With a focus on achievement, well-being and equity, we are a learning community with high academic and behavioural expectations. Our dedicated and talented staff members share a deep commitment to ensuring student success, enhancing well-being and promoting a safe, inclusive and accepting learning environment. 

Our school is built upon the principles of equity and inclusion, whereby all students, parents/guardians, staff and members of the broader community play an integral role in developing the vision and culture of our school. Through fostering a caring and safe school climate, we continuously strive to augment student voice in all aspects of decision making. Through the power of voice, we encourage all parents/guardians to participate in our School Council and consider being a volunteer, so that each of us can be heard.

Rooted in Comprehensive Literacy and Balanced Math programming, our teachers differentiate learning for each student, and embed both technology and Culturally Relevant and Responsive resources, so as to reflect the diverse student needs and voices in each classroom. 

Our students are afforded the opportunity to explore higher order thinking and to pursue rich tasks through an emphasis on inquiry-based programming that is student-driven and culturally relevant. Our educators infuse and implement the Ontario Curriculum through the framework of Global Competencies, inclusionary learning and a respectful focus on Indigenous themes. 

Our monthly Character Trait assemblies promote and celebrate excellence and leadership amongst our students. We offer a wide and varied range of co-curricular activities, ranging from athletic teams, clubs and Student Parliament, through which students have the opportunity to build interpersonal skill sets and strengthen their problem solving and leadership abilities. 

The staff and I look forward to welcoming you to The Elms and we are here to be of any support. Should you have any further questions, please feel free to contact the main office at 416-394-7900.

Thank You.