Learning at HTS

As a school which delivers a Truly Canadian Education, we are well equipped to provide learning resources and environment which facilitate students to experience Canada as a cultural and academic destination. We do this through:

• Canadian educational and governmental entity partnerships
• Sourcing of authentically Canadian learning resources
• Educators who have been trained in the most updated Ontario Curriculum delivery methodologies
• Ongoing cooperation with Canadian institutions to provide project-based learning, academic, and cultural experiences
• Frequent site visits and inspections by our Canadian partners
• Summer camp and academic excursions to Canada

The HTS Comprehensive Literacy Development Program is built using a multi-tiered system of support (MTSS), which allows students access to high-quality classroom instruction followed by internal assessments that increase the time and intensity of instruction.

The essential structural elements of our program include the following:

• Knowledgeable experts who use effective and evidence-based instructional practices, and participate in ongoing professional development.
• Adequate instructional time, which means a literacy block of 90 minutes.
• Instructional resources and materials that are developmentally sequenced and use research- and evidence-based instructional practices.
• An assessment system that ensures universal screening, timely progress-monitoring, diagnostic and formative assessment, and a comprehensive system of tracking all students’ reading and writing growth.
• Opportunities for parents and families to participate in their student’s instruction and improve outcomes.

The Ontario Curriculum as delivered by HTS provides harmonizes learning objectives across disciplines, adopts a holistic approach to learning, embraces the growth mindset, and integrates STEM throughout. We do this by:

• Comprehensive curriculum planning which identifies the essential learnings in each subject, amalgamates them with related objectives across disciplines, and maintains accountability, relatability, and validity.
• Differentiated, extended, and enriched instruction which address the needs and preferences of each learner.
• An activity-driven methodology for meeting learning objectives. An example would be the construction of physical number lines in the Grade 1 mathematics class or building a waterproof model house in the Grade 4 science class.
• Focusing on the big picture and cultivating higher order thinking and 21^st century skills.
• Conducting timely and reliable procedural assessments which inform instruction and guide individual and class learning trajectories

The HTS Life Skills Program is a curriculum-based program focused on physical, social, emotional, and attentional self-regulating skills, and is developed to cultivate wellbeing, resilience, and lifelong learning. It is delivered through framework of our Core Values:

It is integrated into learning by allocating daily time slots during which classes investigate, analyze, and synthesize key understandings related to each Core Value. Each class is responsible for developing a final product and presentation which communicates the essential concept espoused by the value.

Hanoi Toronto School utilizes the Ontario Ministry of Education’s Steps to English Proficiency (STEP) as framework for assessing and monitoring the language acquisition and literacy development of English language learners across The Ontario Curriculum. We facilitate English Language Learners (ELLs) attain high levels of achievement, provide access to teacher and students resources to support programming, assess, and track students’ language proficiency over time.

The STEP resource is intended to be used for initial and ongoing assessment purposes. There are two major components: Initial and Ongoing Assessment.

1. Initial Assessment allows teachers to:

• develop a student profile
• determine placement
• provide a starting point for instruction
• support programming

2. Ongoing Assessment allows teachers to:

• support planning and programming decisions
• implement responsive differentiated instruction and assessment
• track language proficiency and literacy development
• select appropriate resources
• make decisions regarding participation in and support for large-scale assessment
• engage students in self-assessment and goal setting
• identify possible special learning needs
• provide students and parents with accurate indication of the child’s level of English language acquisition and literacy development
• determine discontinuation of EAL support
• engage in reflective teacher practice and professional dialogue.

ELLs enter the program with varied assets and skills. Through STEP, they will:

• learn English at the same time as the Ontario curriculum
• see themselves in the learning environment
• feel that their culture and language are valued
• have confidence to express their opinion and know they have a voice.
• meet high expectations when they are involved in setting goals
• have opportunities to choose pathways that honor their strengths and interests

The EAL program at HST follows the Co-teaching / Planned Support / Co-planning & Co-teaching approach. The EAL teacher will work with the classroom teacher to create an Individualized Learning Plan (ILP) that will effectively meet the student’s language support needs through curriculum objectives. Using the same textbooks and resources as the classroom teacher, the EAL teacher constructs meaning and understanding by facilitating the learner to engage with the mainstream curriculum objectives on his or her level. In this way, the learners can progress in line with their classmates. Moreover, the EAL program has its own resources and parallel curriculum which is used to supplement each student’s ILP by formulating a solid base of foundational learnings.

The program consists of two after-school lessons and one in-class support lesson per week delivered by trained EAL instructors in conjunction with the classroom teacher and other stakeholders.

Learn more about our EAL Program at HTS here