Journey starts transitioning students to Middle School in January with the start of our second session of Exploratories. Each of Sooke's and Port Renfrew's elementary schools take part in an afternoon exploratory for the second and third terms of school. The Future Journey Dragons (Term 2, January to March) and The Cooperative Games Exploratories (Term 3, April to June) aim to connect incoming students with the staff and students at Journey. Mrs. Bridal teaches these exploratories so that she is able to get to know all of the incoming students as well as students on IEPs who might be accessing her services.

Some students will make additional, scheduled visits to the Middle School especially if transitions are a challenge. These visits are coordinated and planned by Mrs. Bridal in concert with the elementary school Integration Support/Learning Assistance Teacher in question. A student might visit the school to take part in a Lifeskills class or regularly deliver mail to Mrs. Bridal.

Staff Preparation:

Mrs. Bridal meets with the elementary school Integration Support/Learning Assistance teachers in March/April to review student files so that she can advocate for their needs at the Middle School level.

Parents and Guardians:

Please access the Journey Middle School web site for updates on parent information nights. The site can be found on our "Links" page.

Middle to High School
Student Preparation:

EMCS coordinates student transitions from Middle to High School. Visits will begin in March/April for students requiring more tailored programs because of their exceptionalities. All of Journey's students will have visited EMCS and have become familiar with key staff, facilities and programs by April/May.

Please refer to the "Calendar" and "News" pages for updates on EMCS's Transition Plans.

Staff Preparation:

EMCS' Support Services Team meets with Mrs. Bridal to discuss student profiles in February/March. Mrs. Bridal prepares a brief overview of each student's strengths, challenges and programming needs for the EMCS Team. In addition, IEPs are shared with the High School so that they can honour the adaptations/modifications outlined in those documents.

Parent/Guardian Preparation:

EMCS' Support Services Team will contact parents with students on IEPs to discuss individual programming and course planning in May.

Please refer to the EMCS SD 62 site for updates as well as our "Calendar" and "News" pages.