Learning Support
Background & Purpose
The Learning Support (LS) Team offers additional support to exceptional students. These students may be challenged by concerns with speech, giftedness, reading, dyslexia, written output, attention, behaviour, anxiety, or sensory distractions.
The LS Team’s aim is to help every student reach their God-given potential, recognizing that exceptional students often do so in unique ways while walking a different path than most. These students may need extra support to shape their world to meet their needs and highlight their strengths.
LS Support
The LS Team's approach is to:
- Support HCOS teachers by assessing & identifying student needs & helping find ways to deal with root causes while minimizing areas of challenge through the use of adaptations.
- Suggest ways to shape a learning environment & "outside of the box" approach by giving suggestions, insights and advice about resources & strategies.
- Support the creation of an IEP (Individualized Education Plan) when one is beneficial.
- Facilitate access to and funding of testing or resources.
- Educate and empower the wider school community about exceptionalities through blogs, emails, lectures.
Universal Supports and Resources:
HCOS is happy to be able to provide resources and supports to all of our students, regardless of designation or IE/LS status. These resources are housed in the Learning Commons.
Teachers may recommend a book or item that families can borrow, or parents and students can search or browse and find topics and materials that interest them. Some highlights from the Learning Commons include the Susan Barton program and Super Star Speech. Additionally, the Learning Commons hosts a large selection of audio books (including those used in our book clubs and synchronous courses) as well digital read-along and higher-interest/lower reading-level (hi/lo) books.
In addition, HCOS is working hard to provide sensory, attention, anxiety, behaviour and output supports for our various Learning Groups, and makes voice recognition software Read & Write available upon request.
Designations
Your Learning Support student may be eligible for an official designation with the Ministry of Education. Read on to see who qualifies and how it would benefit your child.
It is a letter code that lets the Ministry of Education (MoE) know what kind of special needs are in our student body. They use these codes to determine the financial grant that they send to HCOS in order for us to run a Inclusive Education program. Some designations help qualify for the grant, others do not, but overall, it helps the MoE understand our population. When a child is identified as desiring and being potentially eligible for a designation by parents and teachers, we put the student’s documentation through our internal process to see if they qualify.
A student is considered gifted when she/he possesses demonstrated or potential abilities that give evidence of exceptionally high capability with respect to intellect, creativity, or the skills associated with specific disciplines. Students who are gifted often demonstrate outstanding abilities in more than one area. They may demonstrate extraordinary intensity of focus in their particular areas of talent or interest. However, they may also have accompanying disabilities and should not be expected to have strengths in all areas of intellectual functioning.
Q = Learning Disability
A student’s intellectual functioning shows that they are capable but actual output is showing the opposite. Their IQ, or other such testing, results in average to above average results but their academic testing shows that they are not reaching this potential because something is hindering progress. Example, age 12: IQ shows should be able to work at a grade 7 level, but actually working at grade 3 level.
K = Mild Intellectual Disability
Their IQ shows their intellectual functioning is low or low average and their output matches. Example, age 12: IQ shows should be working at a grade 3 level and yes, they are working at grade 3 level.
R = Moderate Behaviour and/or Mental Illness
A student must be diagnosed by psychologist/pediatrician/psychiatrist with a mild to moderate mental illness, OR we have assessments/documentation/observations of behaviour that is above the norm but not severe enough to require external supports such as the police, Ministry of Child and Family Development (MCFD), etc.
If you want more information around each designation, you can find the information here.
A = Physically Dependant – Multiple Needs
B = Deafblind
C = Moderate to Profound Intellectual Disability
D = Physical Disability/Chronic Health
E = Visual Impairment
F = Deaf or Hard of Hearing
G = Autism
H = Severe Behaviour Support/Mental Illness
Students eligible for these designations should contact Calvin Johnston (Director of Inclusive Education) for more information. cjohnston@onlineschool.ca.
If you want more information around each designation, you can find the information here.
- Sometimes additional supports are available for students that have certain designations.
- Sometimes having a KPQR Learning Service designation first can help get a A-H Inclusive Education designation in the future if issues become more intense.
- Maintaining a designation in grades 10-12 may help continue supports into post secondary options.
Please speak with your teacher and they will connect with Learning Support and together we will walk through the process with you.
If your child would benefit from learning support help, your teacher will get you connected!
