Wellness & inclusion
Every student belongs here
Student-centred support
Support built into everyday school life
Regulation and quiet rooms
Calm, comfortable spaces students can choose to use when they feel overwhelmed, anxious or need a reset — with a trusted adult nearby.
Accessible learning spaces
Step-free access, adjustable furniture, accessible washrooms and assistive technology throughout the building.
Student services and counselling
School counsellors, learning support teachers and links to community health services, in a welcoming central hub.
Inclusive classroom practices
Students learn together in shared classrooms, with support brought to the student rather than the student removed from learning.
Universal Design for Learning
Lessons planned from the start with multiple ways to engage, to access information and to show learning.
Sensory-considerate spaces
Good acoustics, natural light, adjustable lighting and quieter zones, so the building doesn't overwhelm.
Student voice
Regular surveys, advisory conversations and student representatives on school committees — with visible follow-up.
Respectful relationships
Clear shared expectations, restorative approaches to conflict, and explicit teaching about consent, kindness and repair.
Digital wellbeing
Teaching healthy, critical and creative technology use — and protecting focused learning time during the school day.
Regulation rooms
A place to reset — never a punishment
Regulation rooms are
- A space students can choose to use, or be gently offered
- Supervised by caring, trained adults
- Stocked with sensory tools, soft seating and quiet activities
- A short pause, followed by a supported return to learning
- Part of each student's plan where that helps
Regulation rooms are not
- A disciplinary or detention space
- A place where students are isolated or locked in
- A substitute for proper learning support
- A way to remove students from class long-term
Digital wellbeing
A balanced approach to phones
Phones bring real benefits and real distractions. Our proposed phone-locker system protects focused learning time and face-to-face connection during the school day, while respecting students' needs and their families' peace of mind.
It is paired with explicit teaching about technology: how apps are designed to hold attention, how to manage notifications, and how to use digital tools creatively and responsibly.
How it would work
- Each student has a personal, lockable phone locker near their advisory room
- Phones are stored at the start of the day and collected at the end
- Students can reach families through the office at any time, and families can reach students
- School devices are available for learning that requires technology
Exceptions
- Accessibility needs, such as communication apps or assistive technology
- Medical needs, such as glucose monitoring or health alerts
- Legitimate learning needs, when a teacher plans a lesson that uses personal devices
- Individual circumstances discussed with students and families
Universal Design for Learning
Designing for the edges helps everyone
Universal Design for Learning asks teachers to plan for learner variability from the start: offering multiple ways for students to engage, to take in information, and to express what they know.
In practice that might mean a reading available as text and audio, a choice between a written report and a recorded explanation, or flexible seating and movement breaks. Expectations stay high; the routes to meeting them widen.
Engagement
The why of learning — interest, effort and self-regulation
Representation
The what of learning — perception, language and comprehension
Action & expression
The how of learning — physical action, communication and planning