Don Mills Middle School's Mission Statement
Don Mills Middle School ~ Celebrating Excellence Since 1959
Don Mills Middle School (DMMS) is located within the Don Mills community of Toronto. Our school is unique as it shares the same campus as Don Mills Collegiate Institute (DMCI). This offers our students with many opportunities for cooperative learning and for a smoother and more successful transition for our students who choose to attend DMCI.
We pride ourselves on excellence in education and on high academic standards. It is our goal that each and every student grows to become young people who are critical thinkers, who have a highly developed character and a strong connection to the school community.
At DMMS, we are proud of the experiences that our staff members provide our students to learn and grow. In addition we have a library with diverse reading materials (with a variety of reading levels and genres), an intensive instrumental music program, two large gyms, and a cafeteria where our students can purchase lunch. We are also proud to offer successful applicants, our specialized CyberARTS multi-disciplinary program which integrates artistic expression and multi-media technologies in the teaching of the middle school curriculum.
Don Mills Middle School ~ #Awesome Lives Here
Cyber ARTS
Cyber Arts' classes are offered for Grade 6, 7, and 8. Information and applications are posted on the school website on the TDSB web.
More Information About Don Mills Middle School
Literacy
We will be focusing on literacy strategies that help students with ‘making connections’ with what they read, understanding the ‘big idea’ and ‘inferencing’. In addition, we continue to focus on reading for meaning and providing supporting evidence, with a further focus on descriptive feedback and expanding assessment for learning.
We have planned blocks of literacy time where possible within the school and class timetable. We will continue to increase our use of high-yield strategies and differentiated instructional strategies.Our goal is also to optimize teaching and learning time by involving all subject areas in literacy planning.
Numeracy
This year we plan to expand our use of the three-part problem-solving method and continue to build on strategies to address the Geometry & Spatial Sense aspects of the curriculum. Professional learning for staff will focus on strategies to choose and/or design richer math tasks.
We are moving towards common numeracy planning of units and assessments and implementing 3 part lessons. We are also expanding our use of diagnostic and formative data to drive teaching, and will continue to focus on high-yield strategies and differentiated instruction, along with furthering our use of math manipulatives were possible
Pathways
Our goal is to ensure continued success and smooth transitions at the key points between: Gr. 5 to Gr. 6 and Gr. 8 to Gr. 9 through focusing on academic, emotional and social preparedness. As a Family of Schools we have worked to promote consistent assessment and evaluation methods and DI techniques as part of our school and FOS initiatives.
We will continue with Transition programs to communicate information, help alleviate parent concerns and answer questions regarding the transition points. We will also continue to implement guidance support and communicate to Grade 8 parents, information about academic vs. applied secondary courses that are available for Grade 9 students.
Community, Culture, and Caring
We will work to build an inclusive school culture that promotes a safe and caring learning environment. Our work will continue to further strengthen students’ sense of belonging to school. We will build our school initiatives on the ‘Me-to-We’ board initiatives in order to foster a greater sense of social justice among our students.
We will expand our use of the TDSB Character Ed traits as monthly themes that will include bullying prevention. We will continue with Eco-School initiatives and explore ways to utilize Student Council to access more student input about school programs and activities.
Lastly we plan to initiate professional development for staff with the Restorative Practices Framework.
Lastly we plan to initiate professional development for staff with the Restorative Practices Framework.
Additional Features
- GoldEco-School
- Partnerships with the Community
- Instrumental Music / Band
- Best Buddies
- Dedicated teaching & support staff
Student Life - Where You Belong
GO TEAM
Don Mills students participate in a variety of intramural activities and inter-school sports. Students are involved in volleyball, hockey, basketball, soccer, cross-country, and track and field. Clubs and sports such as these allow students to enjoy athletic pursuits, as well as participate in leadership activities within the school and community.
Music also plays a large role in student life at Don Mills Middle School. Instrumental Music is taught by a full-time music specialist, and students have the opportunity to further their love of music through participation in the school band.
WHAT SETS US APART
Don Mills offers a range of intramural sport and club activities. Students enjoy a wide range of co-curricular activities offered at lunch and after school.
PARENT AND COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT
We have established partnerships with the following organizations: Toronto Public Health, Toronto Police Service 33 Division, Metro Grocery Store (Don Mills location), Royal Bank of Canada (Don Mills branch), Junior Achievement, Settlement & Education Partnerships of Toronto (SEPT) which is a support network for new immigrants to Canada, SKILLS Canada, PEER Tutoring program linked with Don Mills CI.
Our school also benefits from the participation of parents. We have a number of parents involved in assisting with excursions, serving on our Safe and Caring Schools Committee and helping with school events throughout the school year and serving on School Council. Parent volunteers support our students' efforts to achieve greater academic success.