Yes

WillowWood School offers a robust English as a Second Language (ESL) program in which students learn to speak, read and write English through a combination of instruction, field trips, and classroom immersion. The International Students in ESL receive much more than academic education: Our instructors take care to introduce new students to Toronto as a city, and Canada as a culture. They also work towards integrating ESL students into the wider student body through holiday meals, trips together, clubs and athletics.

International Students are a key part of how we demonstrate our multicultural values and curiosity about the world. Students make solid friendships across cultures, whether they take those lessons back home or into their future adventures in Canada.

French

16

10

Yes

Every one of our classrooms is equipped with a digital interactive display screen. Each student enrolled at WillowWood receives a high-end laptop computer. Lessons, assignments, grades, and communication occurs through our Blackbaud platform (a cloud-based software). We have been offering virtual learning options for the past few years, both to domestic students and our international cohort abroad.

WillowWood School has been offering online courses for the past few years. As such, the transition to virtual learning was remarkably smooth for us. WillowWood offers online courses as well as a hybrid option in which students can learn in-person and online.

Our school is non-denominational.

High School students must take and pass the Ontario Secondary School Diploma (OSSD) standardized literacy requirement. The Ontario Secondary School Literacy Test (OSSLT) is administered by the EQAO in both semesters one and two using an online portal. All students must take the test at least once. A pass or fail mark is awarded. Students can also take the Ontario Secondary School Literacy Course (OSSLC) grade 12 to achieve the requirements (and attain a High School credit).

Students are invited to participate in a range of Math competitions operated by the University of Waterloo, e.g. Pascal in grade

100% of students attain the OSSLT or OSSLC.

Generally, teachers assign homework in their classes. The amount and frequency of homework assignments are dependent on the course, grade level, and the instructor.

1-2 hours

Over 95 percent of our graduates attend a post-secondary institution.

Yes.

In Lower School, when a student requires more intensive intervention, enrichment or remediation, they have the opportunity to participate in our Additional Support Program.
These programs include Orton-Gillingham and Remediation Plus Reading programs, Reasoning and Writing, Reading Comprehension, Expressive Writing, Math Support, Homework/Text Support, Organizational Skills, and Assistive Technology. Orton-Gillingham and Remediation Plus are two multisensory, systematic phonics programs that are designed to help students who are experiencing difficulty learning to spell and read accurately, or who have dyslexia and/or language learning disabilities.

The Homework/Text Support Program offers support for what is happening in the classroom. This can include anything from projects to homework, to math support and organizational skills. Students will review learned concepts taught in class and learn how to highlight and chunk important information. It also includes the teaching of software strategies to learn to become more proficient in transferring, planning, and organizing their thoughts and ideas into writing.

High School students can enroll in TOSS (Teaching Organization and Study Skills), an extra-fee small-group class focused on helping students manage and develop their executive functioning skills, time management, assistive technology, and self-advocacy abilities. TOSS can be a credit course or a non-credit course, and its administrators will work with you to fit it into your student’s schedule.

High School students can always get extra help in Homework Hubs, tutorials and workshops before school, at lunchtime, and after school. We also offer a tutoring program for students requiring that.

The programs are divided into detailed, comprehensive lessons that focus on specific phonic sounds. Students are taught phonological awareness, phoneme-grapheme correspondence, syllable instruction, and morphology through systematic and cumulative instruction.

All of our students are encouraged to challenge themselves to achieve excellence in academics, athletics and the arts. Some of the ways this is addressed is through lunchtime clubs which allow for artistic abilities to be developed further, theatrical performances such as annual school plays, and external academic competitions such as those organized by the University of Waterloo allow academic rigour.

The school has relationships with a number of professionals who provide such services.

Applicants to WillowWood School complete one or more interviews with school administration and may undergo internal academic assessments.

An information interview is conducted with the student’s parent(s) or guardian(s).In Lower and Middle Schools (gr.1-8), the prospective student usually visits a classroom for a morning. In Upper School, (grade 9-12), the prospective student comes in for an interview with a member of the admissions team, and a tour. A review of documentation is conducted by the admissions team.

Some grade levels currently have a waiting list.

There is continuing intake for students in Lower and Middle schools until capacity is reached. It is recommended that high school students enroll prior to the start of a semester (September and February).

Yes

8:30 am

3:30 pm.

Yes

Yes

WillowWood has a cafeteria that offers a variety of lunches made fresh each day. Our menu is healthy and nutritious, and no junk foods or is sold on our premises.

Accommodations can be made.

WillowWood School has a uniform policy. Students in grades 1-6 are expected to wear a white WillowWood sweatshirt or gold shirt along with blue pants. Students in grades 9-12 are expected to wear a black/grey WillowWood sweatshirt or golf shirt along with khaki coloured pants.

WillowWood offers Gardening, Work-out, Cartooning, Volleyball, Table Tennis and Badminton, Tabletop Games, Rock Band, Chess, Podcast, Meditation, Homework, Writer’s, and Horticulture clubs.

Students may take courses in Physical Education or Personal Fitness. Our physical education classes play variety of sports including Basketball, Softball, Soccer, Ice Hockey, Volleyball, Badminton, Ultimate Frisbee, Flag Football, Table Tennis, Badminton, Curling, Bowling, Tennis, Dodgeball and athletic games.

WillowWood is a member of the Small Schools Athletic Federation (SSAF) and competes against other private schools in Toronto. The SSAF has separate leagues for girls and boys, and students play in under 14, under 16 and under 20 age divisions. We field teams in Basketball, Softball, Soccer, Ice Hockey, Floor Hockey, Volleyball, Badminton, Ultimate Frisbee, Flag Football, Table Tennis, Badminton, Curling, Bowling, Tennis, and Dodgeball.

WillowWood School features a gymnasium, a personal fitness room, a music room, a crafts room, a computer science lab, and a a science lab.

We have a full-sized gymnasium with a total of 6 basketball goals that can be fitted with appropriate equipment to allow volleyball, badminton, soccer, and floor hockey to be played. WillowWood also has a fitness room that features free weights (dumbbells, barbells, weight plates), treadmills, elliptical machines, and stationary bicycles. Our outdoor space features a basketball court, a volleyball court, a table tennis table and two chess tables.

WillowWood was founded in 1980 based on the core value that all students have a right to learn with dignity, that a warm and nurturing school can serve as a foundation for remarkable lives and that it is the whole person who matters.

We have a long tradition of delivering targeted, personal education that considers each student's needs, inclinations, and strengths. This individualized approach ensures that students are able to discover and embrace their strengths, address their weaknesses, and maintain their dignity. Classes are small, the atmosphere is warm, and the pedagogical approach is holistic. Our effective teaching strategies, enthusiastic staff members, and innovative programs bring out the best in students, build self-confidence and inspire a love of learning.
WillowWood’s Foundation Program includes grade 1 and 2 students and is an intensively individualized early learning program. The program is Language and Math intensive, with Science and Social Studies integrated into Language. Students are tested frequently, through observation and informal evaluations to fine-tune the individualization/personalization of teaching methods and to capitalize on student strengths. The Foundation Program’s small grouping and deep individualization allows tremendous flexibility in terms of pace and instruction, ensuring a strong foundation for students to build upon in the following years.

High School courses cover all the requirements of an Ontario Secondary School Diploma – and more. We offer supports to help students manage skill-gaps, and/or to develop the executive skills needed for post-secondary learning. Students develop leadership skills, and the knowledge and confidence for active self-advocacy, preparing them for life at the post-secondary level.