4258 Bloor Street West, Etobicoke, Ontario, M9C 1Z7, Canada
13415 Dufferin Street, King, Ontario, L7B 1K5, Canada
2020
1972
40
806
JK to 8
JK to 12
Coed
Coed
Day
Day
English, Polish
English
Academic
Academic
Traditional
Progressive
8 to 16
18
In-class adaptations
In-class adaptations
$12,900
$32,450
No
Yes
0%
0%
None
None
$0
$0
4
54
0%
0%
0%
0%
JK, SK, K, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12
Rolling
Dec 01, 2023
Not available
Not available
No
Yes: grades JK - 12
No
No
information not available
“In the 50 years since its founding, The Country Day School has managed to retain its small-school, community feel while growing to offer students rich academic, artistic, outdoor, and athletic programs on a modern campus.”
“Nurturing academic excellence and challenging students are key priorities, but not at the expense of the whole child’s development.”
“Everyone wants to be successful, and our teachers push us to get to the next level, but all in a supportive atmosphere where the goal is to get us ready to be independent, motivated learners.”
Read The Our Kids Review of The Country Day School
When it opened in 2020, Quo Vadis at a stroke added a new dimension to the educational mosaic in Toronto, particularly around language instruction. It’s the first to offer an intensive bilingual Polish-English program at the elementary level. Bilingual, in their meaning, is as good as it gets, namely a Polish and an English teacher together, at all times, in every classroom. The language curriculum based on that used in schools in Poland. The cultural piece is here too, widening the students’ perspective on the Polish community in Toronto, Canada, and around the world. The school is itself an expression of that community, founded to meet the needs of parents who were looking for a student-oriented school, one that would start at the early grades and continue adding grades as they grow. Quo Vadis checks those boxes and then some. Academics are rigorous, and delivered through a Catholic lens.
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Building experience and leadership
Liz Diaz - Parent (Feb 03, 2018)
Balanced education which means his receives great education and many options to participate in other...
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"Parents are involved in the life of the school on many levels."
Jennifer Sanderson - Parent (Nov 02, 2021)
Both of our children went to The Country Day School from Kindergarten through to graduation. They ar...
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"The teaching staff at The Country Day School are top-notch!"
Jane Cathers - Parent (Nov 02, 2021)
My daughter started grade 9 at CDS last year and right from day one she was very impressed with CDS,...
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"Quo Vadis Elementary School is a one-of-a-kind independent Catholic day school offering a fully bilingual Polish-English academic program for Kindergarten through Grade 8. We are currently accepting students to JK through Grade 5. Quo Vadis provides a well-balanced education at a high academic level combined with the teaching of Polish language and culture, and Catholic values in an environment that will help and encourage each student to develop to his or her full potential."
"Situated on a 100-acre campus just north of Toronto among the rolling hills of King Township, The Country Day School is a leading JK-12 co-ed independent school. Since 1972, the dynamic and friendly CDS community has been nurturing student talent and fulfilling promise. Our innovative approach to learning integrates leading-edge technology, sophisticated facilities and exceptional teaching. We offer a superior educational experience that is sensitive to each student's individual needs, enables learning and equips them for life. Emphasizing education with balance, CDS provides diverse opportunities in academics, athletics, and visual and performing arts. Plus, students of all ages also love to explore our sprawling campus for outdoor education activities. This is a place of possibilities where students unearth their passions and everyone feels known, supported and inspired. CDS is a school where each graduate can answer the biggest question of all: Who will you be? Learn more at www.cds.on.ca."
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"At CDS, we help students realize their brightest future, and equip them with the knowledge, abilities and perspectives they need to navigate their journey with empathy, fortitude and confidence.
We do this by offering an education with balance that includes outstanding academics & arts programs, excellent extra-curricular clubs and leadership opportunities (including a world-recognized Debating program), and expansive athletic offerings, all supported by our highly dedicated teachers."
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"Prospective parents either hear about CDS’s warm and friendly teachers via word of mouth or get a sense of its caring community firsthand hand while touring and find themselves imagining their students here.
As well, they consistently comment on how impressed they are by our confident and kind student ambassadors when visiting our school and want their children to be part of it. We actively work at creating an environment where kids can feel comfortable and happy in their learning and it shows."
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"While we consistently offer balance in a nurturing and supportive academic setting, we are also a university preparatory school with rigorous academic offerings that can challenge students on that playing field as well. There is an academic strength here that can challenge the mightiest of learners with a broad range of curriculum offerings and teachers who will help them soar."
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"There are probably lots of answers to this question, but the main one is how deeply rooted the sense of community is at CDS, starting with how well the teachers get to know each student. The expression Support, Know and Inspire is taken very seriously by every faculty member. Likewise, the more effort our students (and parents) make to become involved, the more rewarding their CDS journey will be. Amazing lunches in our Dining Hall, incredible facilities and a 100-acre campus also top the list!"
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What do I love most about The Country Day School? That’s a good question. It is the overwhelming sense of community I discovered the first time I visited.
Community still remains at the core of all that we do here at CDS. In 1971 a group of committed parents first conceived of the idea to start a co-ed private school in King and worked tirelessly to open our doors to 47 students just a year later. CDS has since grown to 810 students with offerings in JK-12 and beautifully situated in the original 100-acre country setting.
This is a place where your children can come be themselves and feel encouraged and supported in everything they do. Our tagline – Education with Balance – speaks to our balanced offerings of a wide range of individualized academics, athletics, arts and extra-curriculars that will cultivate a passion in every student and help them achieve a healthy balance. I encourage you to experience some wonderful examples of this by watching our Portrait of a Graduate videos.
Are you just starting your search for an independent school? Or are you well on your way to making a decision?
Whatever stage you are at in this important process, I invite you to explore our website and social media presence, and then attend an Open House or request a personal visit. Once you step onto our campus for a face-to-face visit, you will witness firsthand the feeling of community I talked about earlier.
Thank you for your interest, and we look forward to meeting you soon.
John Liggett,
Head of School
Progressive
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Traditional curricula tend to be very content-based and rooted in the core disciplines. It is a structured approach that involves the teacher delivering a unified curriculum through direct instruction. Students usually learn by observing and listening to their teacher, studying facts and concepts in textbooks, and completing both tests and written assignments - which challenge students to not only demonstrate their mastery of content but their ability to analyze and deconstruct it critically. Class discussions are also used to create critical dialogue around the content of the curriculum.
Progressive (sometimes called "in- quiry-based") curricula attempt to place children's interests and ideas at the heart of the learning experience. Instead of lessons being driven by predetermined pathways, progressive curricula are often "emergent", with learning activities shaped by students' questions about the world. Instead of starting with academic concepts and then tying it to everyday experience, progressive methods begin with everyday experience and work back to an academic lesson. Teachers provide materials, experiences, tools and resources to help students investigate a topic or issue. Students are encouraged to explore, reflect on their findings, and discuss answers or solutions.
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At CDS we are mindful that as students enter the final stages of their educational journey with us, they will be confronted with very difficult life choices, not least of which are post-secondary destinations. We offer the Ontario Secondary School curriculum, as well as Advanced Placement courses. As students move through their Senior School years, the number and range of optional course offerings increase to reflect greater levels of independence and choice, so that by their final year students have more than 20 optional courses from which to choose. Our Senior School staff is committed to a yearly academic renewal process in which new courses are vetted for consideration to ensure students have the opportunity to fully engage their interests and cultivate the skills necessary for future success.
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Traditional Math typically teaches a method or algorithm FIRST, and THEN teaches the applications for the method. Traditional algorithms are emphasized and practiced regularly: repetition and drills are frequently used to ensure foundational mastery in the underlying mathematical procedures. The traditional approach to math views math education as akin to building a logical edifice: each brick depends on the support of the previously laid ones, which represent mastery over a particular procedure or method. Traditional Math begins by giving students a tool, and then challenges students to practice using that tool an applied way, with progressively challenging problems. In this sense Traditional Math aims to establish procedural understanding before conceptual and applied understanding.
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Systematic-phonics programs teach young children to read by helping them to recognize and sound out the letters and syllables of words. Students are then led to blend these sounds together to sound out and recognize the whole word. While other reading programs might touch on phonetics (either incidentally or on a “when needed” basis), systematic phonics teaches phonics in a specific sequence, and uses extensive repetition and direct instruction to help readers associate specific letter patterns with their associated sounds.
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Programs that balance systematic and process approaches equally likely have an emphasis on giving young students ample opportunities to write, while providing supplementary class-wide instruction in grammar, parts of sentences, and various writing strategies.
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Science programs that balance expository and inquiry learning equally will likely have an equal blend of tests and experiments; direct, textbook-based instruction and student-centred projects.
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Evolution as consensus theory
Evolution as one of many equally viable theories
Evolution is not taught
Evolution as consensus theory
Evolution as one of many equally viable theories
Evolution is not taught
Physiology
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Ancient lit
English lit
World (non-Western) lit
European (continental) lit
American lit
Canadian lit
Ancient lit
English lit
World (non-Western) lit
European (continental) lit
American lit
Canadian lit
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The Thematic approach organizes the curriculum around certain themes or cultural universals. Students might spend time focused on food. Then they might focus on transportation or government, and so on.
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The communicative method of language acquisition emphasizes the use of the target language in authentic contexts. The approach commonly features interactive group work, games, authentic texts, and opportunities to learn about the cultural background of the language. Drills and quizzes may still be used, but less frequently than with the audio-lingual method.
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Hebrew
ESL
Spanish
Russian
Latin
Japanese
Italian
Greek
German
French
Chinese-Mandarin
Chinese-Cantonese
Hebrew
ESL
Spanish
Russian
Latin
Japanese
Italian
Greek
German
French
Chinese-Mandarin
Chinese-Cantonese
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Visual Arts
These programs have an equal emphasis on receptive and creative learning.
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Acting
Dance
Drama/Theatre
Graphic Design
Music
Visual Arts
Acting
Dance
Drama/Theatre
Graphic Design
Music
Visual Arts
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Web design
Robotics
Computer science
Web design
Robotics
Computer science
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Academic
Academic-based preschools and Kindergartens are the most structured of the different types, and have a strong emphasis on math and reading readiness skills. These programs aim to expose children to what early-elementary school is like. While time is still allotted to free play, much of the day is built around explicit lessons guided by the teacher. Classrooms often resemble play-based ones (with different stations set up around the room), but at an Academic program the teacher leads students through the stations directly, and ties these activities to a whole-class lesson or theme.
Academic-based preschools and Kindergartens are the most structured of the different types, and have a strong emphasis on math and reading readiness skills. These programs aim to expose children to what early-elementary school is like. While time is still allotted to free play, much of the day is built around explicit lessons guided by the teacher. Classrooms often resemble play-based ones (with different stations set up around the room), but at an Academic program the teacher leads students through the stations directly, and ties these activities to a whole-class lesson or theme.
A successful kindergarten program encourages curiosity and imagination. Our full-day developmental program provides our students with a balance between academically appropriate activities covering math, language, science and social studies, and fosters a sense of mutual respect, responsibility and a positive attitude toward learning.
Standard-enriched
The main curriculum accelerates beyond the pace of the provincial one; ALL students do the work of OLDER public-school peers in tangible and measurable ways. This accelerated pace is maintained by the teachers and school, (through textbook selection, topic selection, grading, assignment standards and expectations, etc).
Broadly-speaking, the main curriculum -- like that of most schools -- paces the provincially-outlined one. This pace is steady and set by the teachers and school. The curriculum might still be enriched in various ways: covering topics more in-depth and with more vigor than the provincial one, or covering a broader selection of topics.
Supportive
A school with a “rigorous” academic culture places a high value on academic performance, and expects their students to do the same. This does not mean the school is uncaring, unsupportive, or non-responsive -- far from it. A school can have a rigorous academic culture and still provide excellent individual support. It does mean, however, the school places a particular emphasis on performance -- seeking the best students and challenging them to the fullest extent -- relative to a normal baseline. High expectations and standards – and a challenging yet rewarding curriculum – are the common themes here. Keep in mind this classification is more relevant for the older grades: few Kindergarten classrooms, for example, would be called “rigorous”.
A school with a “supportive” academic culture focuses more on process than short-term outcomes: academic performance is a welcomed side-benefit, but not the driving focus. This does not mean the school lacks standards, or has low expectations for its students: a school can have a supportive academic culture and still light the fire of ambition in its students. It does mean, however, the school provides a less intensive culture than schools with a “rigorous” academic classification, and is focused more simply on instilling a love of learning and life-long curiosity.
We really work at making sure that students meet their potential and go on to thrive from there. In the Senior School, we require students have a 70% average to promote them, but also take into account if they've had struggles in their home lives or whether there are other relevant factors. Our teachers and courses do provide academic rigour because we are a university preparatory school, but we are not a pressure-cooker school. We want students to be successful, but we also want them to be well and happy in that success.
"We honour and distinguish our brightest students, using them as examples for other students to follow."
Balanced
Equal emphasis is placed on a balance of priorities: intellectual, emotional, social and physical cultivation.
Balanced
Equal emphasis is placed on a balance of priorities: intellectual, emotional, social and physical cultivation.
Intellectual
The goal is to cultivate "academically strong, creative and critical thinkers, capable of exercising rationality, apprehending truth, and making aesthetic distinctions."
CDS provides an intellectually challenging, diversified and balanced academic program that is learner-centered. At the heart of The Country Day School’s academic vision is the belief that all students can achieve success and meet their learning goals. A one-size-fits-all approach to learning does not serve the best interests of most students who approach their studies from various learning styles and preferences and at differing stages of skill development. To this end, we diversify our instructional strategies, the content of our curricula and our assessment methods to create an overall approach that focuses on how students are learning and ensures success.
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RecreationalRec. |
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Cross-country skiing |
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Cycling |
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Downhill skiing |
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Equestrian |
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Fencing |
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Field Hockey |
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Figure Skating |
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Football |
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Golf |
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Gymnastics |
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Ice Hockey |
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Ice Skating |
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Lacrosse |
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Martial Arts |
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Mountain biking |
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Racquet Ball |
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Rowing |
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Rugby |
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Running |
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Sailing |
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Skateboarding |
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Snowboarding |
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Soccer |
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Softball |
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Squash |
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Swimming |
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Tennis |
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Track & Field |
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Volleyball |
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Weightlifting |
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Wrestling |
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Archery |
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Curling |
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Ultimate |
Ballet and Classical Ballet
Yoga
Yearbook
Student Council
Scouting
Science Club
School newspaper
Round Square
Robotics club
Radio club
Poetry/Literature club
Photography
Paintball
Outdoor Education
Outdoor Club
Online Magazine
Musical theatre/Opera
Math Club
Jazz Ensemble
Habitat for Humanity
Foreign Language Club
Environmental Club
Drama Club
Debate Club
Dance Club
Computer Club
Community Service
Choir
Chess Club
Band
Audiovisual Club
Astronomy Club
Art Club
Animation
Ballet and Classical Ballet
Yoga
Yearbook
Student Council
Scouting
Science Club
School newspaper
Round Square
Robotics club
Radio club
Poetry/Literature club
Photography
Paintball
Outdoor Education
Outdoor Club
Online Magazine
Musical theatre/Opera
Math Club
Jazz Ensemble
Habitat for Humanity
Foreign Language Club
Environmental Club
Drama Club
Debate Club
Dance Club
Computer Club
Community Service
Choir
Chess Club
Band
Audiovisual Club
Astronomy Club
Art Club
Animation
0%
0%
$0
$0
0%
0%
JK, SK, K, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12
Rolling
Dec 01, 2023
Not available
Not available
No
Yes: grades JK - 12
No
No
No
No
No
Yes: grades 7 - 9
No
No
No
No
The Country Day School recruits students who have the desire and potential to engage in their studies and embrace all facets of school life. A balanced education includes academics, athletics, the arts, service and opportunities to learn otuside of the classroom. The admission process identifies students who will thrive in the CDS environment so that we will continue to meet our objective of developing students who are confident, independent, intellectually curious, morally responsible, appreciative of the arts, physically fit and globally aware.
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