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Go to child profileThe YMCA Academy is an alternative middle school and high school serving youth with learning disabilities and learning style differences. The school's small class sizes, individual education plans, life skills counselling, and experiential learning opportunities support students in their pursuit of college preparation and workplace level courses in a state-of-the-art facility located in the Central YMCA in downtown Toronto.
The very heart of private education is providing options for parents looking to support their learner, and YMCA Academy sits at the very heart of that concept. It was founded and developed to support learners with needs that may not be adequately met within other settings. Likewise, it comprises an academic environment in which those students aren’t constantly reminded of their exceptionality. Here, they participate in a community that is supportive, sympathetic, and socially oriented around their personal needs. That, in itself—irrespective of the programs or the curriculum—can be transformational. This isn’t a school for others, making a concession for them. Rather, it is a school for them. That’s huge.
Focus | Special needs |
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Academic | Special needs |
Subject | offered |
---|---|
Evolution as consensus theory | |
Evolution as one of many equally viable theories | |
Evolution is not taught |
Subject | offered |
---|---|
Biology | |
Chemistry | |
Ecology | |
Geology | |
Meteorology | |
Physics | |
Physiology | |
Zoology |
Subject | offered |
---|---|
Acting | |
Dance | |
Drama/Theatre | |
Graphic Design | |
Music | |
Visual Arts |
Expressive | |
Disciplined |
Subject | offered |
---|---|
Computer science | |
Robotics | |
Web design |
Flexible pacing style | offered |
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Subject-streaming (tracking) | |
Multi-age classrooms as standard | |
Ability-grouping (in-class) as common | |
Frequent use of cyber-learning (at-their-own-pace) | |
Regular guided independent study opportunities | |
Differentiated assessment |
Full-time programming is offered for all students which is exclusively focused on one or more special needs.
Subject Type | offered |
---|---|
Learning strategy and study counselling; habit formation | |
Extra support and minor accommodations for children experiencing subclinical difficulties |
Subject Type | offered |
---|---|
Accommodations | |
Modifications | |
Extra support |
Read our guide to special needs schools and special education
Program | offered |
---|---|
Full-time gifted program (parallel to rest of school) | |
Part-time gifted program (pull-out; parallel to rest of class) |
Curriculum delivery: This information is not currently available.
Program | offered |
---|---|
Custom subject enrichment (special arrangement) | |
Custom curriculum compacting (special arrangement) | |
Guided independent study (custom gifted arrangement) | |
Cyber-learning opportunities (custom gifted arrangement) | |
Formalized peer coaching opportunities (specifically for gifted learners to coach others) | |
Custom subject acceleration (special arrangement) | |
Career exploration (custom gifted arrangement) | |
Project-based learning (custom gifted arrangement) | |
Mentorships (custom gifted arrangement) |
In grade Gr. 12, YMCA Academy students perform an average of 30 mins of homework per night.
9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | |
---|---|---|---|---|
YMCA Academy | 15 mins | 15 mins | 30 mins | 30 mins |
Site Average | 69 mins | 81 mins | 98 mins | 107 mins |
Lettered or numbered grades | Gr. 9 to Gr. 12 |
Prose (narrative)-based feedback | Gr. 9 to Gr. 12 |
Academic achievement reporting | Gr. 9 to Gr. 12 |
Habits and behaviour reporting | Gr. 9 to Gr. 12 |
Parent-teacher meetings | Gr. 9 to Gr. 12 |
Competitive sports: 16
Recreational sports: N/A
The YMCA Academy offers 11 clubs and extracurricular programs.
7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | |
Day | $24,500 |
Grade range that need-based aid is offered: | 9 to 12 |
Percentage of grade-eligible students receiving financial aid | 30% |
Average aid package size | $10,000 |
Percentage of total enrolment on financial aid | 30% |
Total aid available | $300,000 |
This school works with other. for processing financial applications
Please complete the application form found on our website.
This information is not currently available.
Grades | Gender | Living Arrangement | Enrolment | |
---|---|---|---|---|
Group 1 | Gr. 7 to Gr. 12 | Coed | Day | 80 |
Total enrolment | 80 |
Average class size | 8 to 12 |
% of international students (total enrolment) | N/A |
Number of different nationalities within student population | N/A |
Assessment | Required | Grades |
---|---|---|
Interview | 9 - 12 | |
SSAT | ||
SSAT (out of province) | ||
Entrance Exam(s) | ||
Entrance Essay |
Day students: Rolling
Offer mid-year entry:
N/A
Application fee: N/A
Registration fee: N/A
Deposit:
N/A
For students entering our program at grade 9, we do an assessment of English and Mathematics to determine grade level and appropriate placement in our program
This is the percentage of applicants typically accepted into the school. So if 50 students are admitted out of 100 applicants, the school has an overall acceptance rate of 50%.
Student Entry Points
This shows approximately how many openings there are likely to be in each grade in a typical year, as well as the estimated acceptance rate for each grade level.
Student Type | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Day Acceptance (Acceptance rate) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Average graduating class size | N/A |
Students accepted into post-secondary studies upon graduation | N/A |
Percentage of students who attend post-secondary institutions outside of Canada | N/A |
Students who attended a Ivy+ school Number of students in the past 5 years that that attended one of Harvard, Yale, Princeton, University of Pennsylvania, Dartmouth, Brown, Columbia, Cornell, Stanford, University of Chicago, Oxford or Cambridge (UK) | N/A |
The YMCA Academy Graduates’ Post-Secondary Studies:
This information is not currently available.Aggregate of All Schools’ Post-Secondary Studies:
Career planning | |
Internships |
Mentorship Program | |
University counseling |
I have spent a quarter of a century working in independent schools in Ontario, having focused my career on curriculum development and research on learning and the adolescent brain. The following judgment, then, must carry some weight: The Academy is a uniquely impressive school, one that profoundly improves the quality of life of its students, and promises to multiply such improvement as they move on successfully to post-secondary studies or meaningful work placements. Of course, these are large claims, but they are supported by the achievements of our graduates. We have taken approved Ontario Ministry of Education courses and incorporated them into unique programs to meet the needs of our student population. Our goal is to give our students the skills to graduate from The Academy with their Ontario Secondary School Diploma in hand, ready to face the challenges of university, college or vocational endeavors.
Our personal, differentiated approach, specialized programs and individualized use of assistive technology are ideally suited to those students with mild learning disabilities or learning style differences. Our students typically have communication exceptionalities such as: learning disabilities, autism, giftedness and/or medical conditions that affect learning such as ADD and ADHD which have impacted their achievements in school settings. At the Academy we support our students from their first day of school with an Individual Education Plan outlining supports and accommodations specific to their needs.
The Academy team is made up of experienced teaching professionals with accreditation in their professional fields. They bring varied backgrounds and expertise in special education, IT, counseling, mentorship, curriculum development, guidance and career counseling, cooperative education, and many others.
Given its history in education, and its wide-ranging social programs for youth, the YMCA connection enhances The Academy in many ways. We recognize that our students can benefit from the “wrap-around” services our connection to the YMCA of Greater Toronto makes possible. For example, each of our students has year-round access to all Health, Fitness and Recreation centres with the Central Y being the facility for all school-related fitness education. Co-operative education opportunities are readily at hand as well. Our students experience school-wide overnight leadership and outdoor education sessions at camp Wanakita and/or Camp Cedar Glen, and access to Canada Youth Exchanges through the YMCA Student Youth Exchanges program, amongst a large variety of supports.
Finally, The Academy has been, and will continue to be, a school in which all students know that they are part of a supportive, safe and challenging community, dedicated to enrich their present and their future. We pride ourselves in our students’ success!
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