Small Classes
Oak Learner’ Micro School maintains 6:1 ratio in all classes, allowing for personalized and enriched learning opportunities.
Outdoor Education
At least 2 hours every day is spent learning outside in our community and natural surroundings.
Experiential Learning
Hands-on learning and site-based learning.
Arts-Enriched Curriculum
Enhanced learning through the Arts, including daily dance, music, movement, art and creative expression.
Learning Exceptionalities
Personalized instruction to support all learners, including Gifted, LD an Mental Health needs.
STEAM
Integrated learning through Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Math.
Oak Learners offers progressive, interdisciplinary, inquiry-based programming in a student-driven, teacher-facilitated, alternative learning environment.
Each learner goes through a cyclical process of identifying their unique strengths, needs, goals, and interests. Through collaboration with teachers, peers, parents and members of their community, they design inquiry-based projects to guide their learning over the course of a term.
Each day at Oak Learners brings new learning opportunities through an integrated and immersive approach to elementary education. Ontario Curriculum content and skill achievement guidelines are covered and enriched through a holistic approach to learning in a project-based inquiry model, leading to a much deeper and richer learning experience for the students.
Take a look inside our classrooms:
Lower Elementary Curriculum
Integrated Literacy
Overview
Reading and Writing form the building block for communication FOR and ON learning. At Oak Learners, reading comprehension and oral communication skills are taught within other subject areas, such as Science or Social Studies. Children develop strong literacy habits and communication skills through meaningful experiences with text.
Skills Gained
Students in the Primary Program at Oak Learners will:
*Develop a deep phonetic understanding and expansion of language use, This includes spelling, sounding out, pronouncing and reading words and sentences.
*Engage in more advanced communication via use of new words, sounds and verbal comprehension.
*Use advanced descriptions and expanded terminology, along with distinguish between nouns, pronouns, adjectives and other types of words.
Teaching Strategies
The lower elementary school program is delivered by passionate teachers that use an alternative and experiential learning tactic in order to influence the most beneficial learning for your child. Through years of experience, the teachers continue to instill confidence and comfort in the school environment while encouraging the children to expand their knowledge and understanding, inside and outside of the classroom. The encouragement of curiosity in an educational setting will only help the children find the passion for school that Oak strives for.
Mathematics
Overview
Math is all around us and students at Oak Learners are taught to recognize Mathematical patterns and apply problem solving skills through real-world applications. Mathematics instruction at Oak Learners takes a very hands-on approach, using manipulatives as well as leveled workbooks to provide an enriched approach to learning Math.
Skills Gained
Students in the lower elementary mathematics program are focusing on a continuum of learning. Every skill is scaffolded off of a successfully learnt topic in math. Key concepts they will learn are:
*counting everyday objects
*learning concrete versus regular concepts within math, and how they expand off of each other
*applying skills into everyday items, such as counter, objects for measurements, etc.
*learning about more abstract ways of collecting units of measurements
*understanding how mathematics evolve and build off of each other -> perfecting addition and subtraction, and beginning the introduction into multiplication and division
*focus on topics such as collecting data, organizing and displaying data, interpreting data, probability, properties of geometry, units of measurement, location and movement, counting, estimation, place value, fractions and decimals, among other topics as well.
Teaching Strategies
Each Mathematics class in the Lower Elementary program will follow a three-part lesson: 1) Minds On (i.e., activating prior knowledge); 2) Action (i.e., students have the opportunity to work in small groups to solve a problem and share their strategies, via “”conference style””, with teachers and peers); 3) Consolidation (i.e., independent practice with teacher support). Many Math classes will take place within the community so students can witness the subject in real-world contexts.
S.T.E.A.M. *Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts Math
Overview
At Oak Learners, we believe that STEAM Education plays a very important role in educating young leaders of the 21st Century. The more students can observe, explore, question and design the world around themselves, the more they have the opportunity to construct true understanding of new concepts.
Skills Gained
Technology is the future and although it cannot fully predicted what the employment opportunities or challenges that our students will face in the years to come, we can certainly prepare them to ask questions, engage in design challenges and think like innovators through an integrated approach. The most important skills that students will learn through engaging in STEAM activities at Oak Learners are problem-solving, communication, creativity, collaboration and critical thinking. Through hands-on skills such as website and app development and design, coding, building and engineering, students will feel confident in bringing their STEAM skills to life.
Teaching Strategies
Oak Learners takes a hands-on, experiential, project-based approach when teaching STEAM so that students can be fully immersed in each step from start to finish. Each design challenge begins with a question and students, as innovators and creative thinkers, devise ways to solve the problem.
The Arts
Overview
We believe that Arts Education plays a very important role in educating young learners. We make sure to integrate Art, Music, Drama and Dance throughout our days, throughout every subject area. The Arts brings learning to life and provides a context for deep emotional and social learning.
Skills Gained
In Visual Arts, students will gain skills in each of the five elements of art: line, colour, shape, form and texture and use these skills to create beautiful and functional art pieces that express creativity and individuality. In the Lower Elementary program at Oak Learners, Eco Art and digital art are also important components, where students will learn skills in art such as the different forms of it. This can include sculpting, collaging, painting, and uses the environment as a source of art supplies. In Drama, students will work collaboratively to learn skills in performance and improvisation, with the incorporation of dance routines and techniques. In Music, students will learn theory and composition through consistent enjoyment of songs that include layers and different sound textures.
Teaching Strategies
In the Lower Elementary program, the students are immersed into the Arts in a variety of ways. Students are provided with diverse instructions that allow them to use their creativity and become comfortable with their own ideas. Oak Learners urges the students to learn a variety of art forms and techniques and allows the students to be expressive in whatever way they would like.
Outdoor Education
Overview
Outdoor Education is the centre of everything we do at Oak Leaners. Research has demonstrated that interacting with nature on a consistent basis is highly beneficial for the mental health and well-being of children and teenagers. In particular, the World Health Organization has found that children raised with exposure to green spaces are 55% less likely to develop mental health concerns, such as stress-related illnesses. Also, children have demonstrated improved concentration, increased productivity, better behaviour and more positive relationships amongst their peer group when frequently learning in an outdoor environment.
Skills Gained
Utilizing the outdoor classroom as the “third teacher”, students at Oak Learners have the opportunity develop skills in stewardship, navigation, observation and stewardship. Skills in other subject areas are not learned in isolation; rather, students see how they are used in the community to ask questions and devise plans to solve real-world problems.
Teaching Strategies
All subject areas can be taught in an outdoor environment; however, the learning involves interaction with the outdoors and using our natural world as an opportunity for deeper understanding. Through Literacy, Mathematics, Science, Social Studies and the Arts, students gain knowledge about their role as stewards and take responsibility for their role in preserving their environment. In particular, students are given many opportunities to see ‘treasures’ and ‘troubles’ in their community and work towards devising solutions.
Start the Admissions Process
We are currently accepting applications for the 2024-25 school year for all Grade Levels, JK through Grade 8.
Complete an Intake Questionnaire to begin the process today!
Highlights from our School
Mimico Village BIA Mural Project at Oak Learners
Together with Oak Learners, the Mimico Village BIA has undertaken the commission of an innovative and inspirational for the community.
NEW Mural welcomes students at the Oak Learners Lake Shore Campus
Designed, illustrated and painted by Julia Taylor. Julia taught at Oak Learners from 2020 through 2023 and helped lead the launch of the Lake Shore Campus Location in September 2022.
Move and Groove at Summer Camp with Oak Learners
Wow… time flies when you are having the BEST time ever! This week at the Royal York campus Summer Camps, our theme was “Move & Groove” and we certainly did that! Read more about Summer Camps at Oak Learners.
A Natural Way to Learn
On a beautiful spring afternoon in mid-May, we noticed that our local park was blanketing in gorgeous yellow dandelions. The fields of green and yellow seemed to stretch forever, providing us an opportunity to reflect on the absolute beauty of the natural world around us.
Creating a Culture of Inclusivity: How Our School Values Diversity and Equity
At its core, inclusivity means recognizing and valuing the diversity of our students and ensuring that each and every one of them feels welcome, supported, and included in our learning community. This includes students of all races, ethnicities, religions, genders, sexual orientations, and abilities.
2022-23 Diversity Unit: North America
Students in our class each chose one spirit animal or First Nations image to paint. Following a “paint by colour” template, the children painted with traditional native American colours (black, red and blue) to form an image.
Spring Wonder Walks
The weather is getting warmer and the sun is shining brighter and it helps us all feel a little bit better each day. It’s the perfect time to get outside and take a walk!
2023 Top Choice Awards: Best Private School In Etobicoke
Oak Learners was voted Best Private School In Etobicoke in the 2023 Top Choice Awards.
Oak Learners Summer Camp 2023
Oak Learners Summer Camp overview. Spots are filling up quickly for our new 2023 Summer Camps and the time to act is now! We offer a unique summer camp experience designed to engage children and make them want to return year after year. Check out our new specialty camps!
Smaller Classroom Ratios Bring Measurable Results
At Oak Learners, we believe that small classes benefit everyone. Students receive more individual attention and are able to build constructive relationships with both teachers and peers.
Partner Showcase: Humber College Placement Student
Oak Learners has teamed up with Humber College and various other colleges to gather talented students from across Canada to work inside the school. Nick started at Oak Learners in the summer of 2022 as a placement student on the administration team. Nick shared what he has learned from working at Oak Learners and what takeaways he has from the placement.
The Oak Learners Eco Adventures Summer Camp 2022
Oak Learners had another amazing summer! Our Eco Adventures Camp focused on themed activities, and...