Schools may be organized in a variety of different ways, with some schools having enrolments from K-6 and others going from K-8. In some school districts there are “middle schools” which have students from Grades 6-8. Yet other schools go from Grades 7-12. Note that elementary school is sometimes called grade school or primary school. You can learn more about the organization of specific schools at the following website: School Information Finder
The purpose of elementary education in Ontario is to provide each student with a solid foundation upon which to develop each student’s potential for further learning. In Ontario, special emphasis is placed on literacy and numeracy skills as building blocks to future academic achievement. The Ontario government has a goal to have 75% of all students achieve at the provincial standard (a “B” grade level) in reading, writing and mathematics. To monitor progress toward this goal, provincial assessments are conducted annually in Grade 3 and Grade 6 and results are published: http://www.eqao.com/en
In the past 10 years, the Ontario government has made significant investments to improve the quality of education and to increase student success. For example, the number of students in classrooms in the primary years has been greatly reduced. You can review class sizes for specific school boards at the following link: www.app.edu.gov.on.ca/eng/cst/searchBoard.asp. In addition, in order to assist with adjusting to elementary school to secondary school and cope with the issues of adolescence, many new initiatives such as orientation programs and transition strategies have been implemented for students.