How to choose an after-school academy for your child?

When choosing an after-school academy for your child, there are many things to consider.

It’s important to take some time out of your busy schedule to do the research into the variety of schools offering programs for your child, but the internet can only give you a limited glimpse into what the school is like.  When selecting a school for your child, it’s a good idea to go down in person and get a feel for the atmosphere, and then be equipped with the right questions for staff.

Each child has their own needs, but if your child is seeking success in the Canadian education system, Little Mountain is a great fit for your child.  With just a quick visit to our school you can feel the difference:

Little Mountain Learning Academy is a great companion to students working towards success in the Vancouver School system.

Located on UBC campus, Little Mountain is perfectly nestled into UBC Village, where great minds take a break and seek sustenance and perhaps new inspiration. Walk up the stairs and through the narrow hallway towards the little school and you may hear chatter and laughing of teachers and students joking during break time. When you first enter the doors of Little Mountain you are greeted by our wonderful front desk staff, ready to answer your questions in English, Korean, or Chinese. As you continue into the space, the welcoming bright natural light, rows of English books, and colourful walls promotes a sense of creative space and pleasant learning environment. Small classes of 4-6 students are in session, and teachers are engaging each learner with opportunities to go deeper into content and language practice. Technology is being utilized as well, as can be seen by the long bar tables lined with chrome books, where students are perched atop stools, practicing vocabulary or writing tasks with the LMLA brand online curriculum. Parents of young students are sitting on the comfortable chairs in our library, waiting for classes to finish, and every once in a while glancing up to peer at their children through the glass wall of the classroom. Bulletin boards display students’ latest work, and you can see that it is on par with the grade-level school assignments of Vancouver’s school district.

A school visit can make you feel right at home.

And now here are some questions to ask during a school visit, to be sure the school is right for your child.

Here is how Little Mountain Learning Academy would answer these questions:

What is the teacher-student relationship like?

At Little Mountain, students are nurtured into the perfect learning opportunities.  You will notice that class sizes are small at 4 to 6 students per class, and that every child is given an opportunity to participate in discussion, debate, and project work.  Research shows that the higher level thinking tasks help your child to realize how  important it is to identify as strong, independent learners.  It is also on par with the VSB curriculum and will help your child to get out of ELL and into mainstream classes sooner.  In these ways Little Mountain rises above its competition, because we focus on learning objective-driven practices which are closely aligned with VSB core.  In addition, students are provided with homework help.  Little Mountain has a lab where students can make up a missed class, and get additional individual attention and help with their assignments.  The child’s teacher knows her name but that’s not it– the academic director, front desk staff, and owner all know who your child is, and this can lead to a more nurturing environment for each student’s self esteem to grow.

What is students’ work like?

Portfolios of students work are collected throughout the term, and often the best work is displayed on bulletin boards in our hallway.  The curriculum is designed by BC certified teachers and so is a combination of language arts and ELL, traditional and new techniques.  Our streams provide a balanced curriculum of language skills, topics, and tasks which draw from best practices in BC schools.  Many of our teachers throughout the 10 years Little Mountain has been open are BC certified, and the result is high expectations of relevant student work which speeds success in the Vancouver School system.

What are the academic expectations?

Little Mountain courses don’t give grades, but rather work towards building intrinsic motivation, which is proven to produce more lifelong investments in learning. Studies show that emphasis on results only, prevents students from evaluating their learning process, and students become unable to transfer skills to new tasks. If students learn strategies and skills that focus on process, their success in many areas escalates simultaneously. Students are invested in their own learning, and this shows during moments of peer teaching, discussion, debate, and all the activities which Little Mountain demands of students for higher order thinking tasks.  During parent teacher meetings, you can see that clear expectations were placed and frequently met due to the teachers’ emphasis on goal-setting and reflection about learning process and result.

Does the school have an inspiring environment?

Little Mountain provides students with an ample library, sufficient technology, and roomy, bright and colourful learning environment.  Students often arrive early and stay late, finding a spot on a couch or at a desk in the learning lab to complete their homework or read another chapter in their novel of choice.  Parents also enjoy lingering in the school, and it is the inviting environment which often compels them to sign up for their own English classes offered during the day by skilled Little Mountain teachers of Adult ESL classes.

 Is there support for teachers so that they can be the best?

Little Mountain believes in being the best at every level of the academy: in the way students are cared for, the curriculum, the approachability to parents, and the way teachers are nurtured and challenged.  This is one of the areas where we rise far above the competition.  In addition to hiring the best in the field, we provide ongoing teacher evaluation.  Also, extra teacher support and training exists so that teachers can constantly improve their skills and ignite their passion.  The owner of the school, Ryan Tierney, takes the coaching approach to staffing. At Little Mountain, teachers’ strengths are nurtured and refined so that they can be an integral part of the dynamic life and growth of the school.  Frequent staff meetings, opportunities for further training, and a staff room replete with resources keeps teachers happy, informed, and invested in the success of the academy.