Students return to in-person learning on January 10

On December 30, 2021, Alberta's Education Minister announced that the pre-Kindergarten to Grade 12 student winter break would be extended to January 10 provincewide, and that January Diploma Examinations are cancelled. 

On January 5, 2021, Minister LaGrange announced that all students would return to in-person learning on Monday, January 10, 2022.

Return to in-person learning on January 10
We look forward to welcoming students back to school on January 10! Continued safety measures, including the use of masks, additional cleaning and sanitization, cohorting, and, most importantly, staying screening daily for illness and staying home when we feel sick, are critical to keeping our school communities healthy and students in the classroom. Thank you for your continued support and diligence.

Updated: Daily Health Checklist
Alberta Health Services has recently updated the daily health checklist with testing recommnedations and isolation requirements for children and adults who are fully, partially, or not vaccinated. Download, print or screenshot the checklist here.

Rapid tests for home use and masks 
To lower the risk of in school transmission and provide an additional layer of protection, the Government of Alberta will be supplying rapid tests for home use and masks to schools for students. These supplies will be distributed to students when received. The province has suggested that students might rapid test twice a week. Use of these government-provided supplies is completely voluntary.

A how-to video for parents and a rapid test program fact sheet offers tips on how to use the rapid test kits.

Preparing for potential shifts in learning
We are excited to return to in-person learning and to keeping students in the classroom; however, we do caution parents to prepare for potential short-term shifts to at-home learning should student or staff illness require it. Shifts to at-home learning could occur for individual classes, schools or, (unlikely) the Division. Any necessary shifts will be for the shortest time periods possible.

Isolation requirements
Isolation requirements for Alberta have recently changed. Please refer to the Government of Alberta webpage for details.

e-Tutoring Hub
The province is launching an e-Tutoring Hub next week to help students catch up on skills and learning they may have fallen behind on due to the pandemic. Initially, students in Grades 4 to 9 will be able to access pre-recorded video tutoring sessions online anytime to build their literacy and numeracy skills. Plans to expand the free online tutoring service to cover more grades and subjects is planned for later this year.