Early School Entrance

Children's Services Branch provides leadership within the preK-12 education system to assist school divisions and educational partners in meeting the needs of students with exceptional learning and behavioural needs to ensure they have equal access to, and benefit from, the provincial educational program. Children's Services collaborates with school divisions, educational partners, early childhood intervention programs, community-based organizations, inter-ministerial groups, and local service providers to provide responsive and innovative supports and services that meet needs of all students.

Areas of support within Early Entrance include:

• policy development;
• research and development of teacher resources and initiatives which outline effective practices;
• funding recognition protocols, guidelines and approval procedures to assist school divisions with service investments;
• consultation support services; and
• response to a variety of social and economic issues related to the education of students with exceptional and behavioural needs.

The Education Act, 1995 and The Education Regulations, 1986 continue to permit boards of education the opportunity to provide educational programming for children identified with intensive needs who are three years of age or older.  

Early Entrance is a Funding Support within the Ministry of Education's Operating Grant to School Divisions.  Funding recognition is provided to school divisions for specific students as identified through a Provincial Impact Assessment Process. These students have learning needs that impact on numerous areas of performance and require intense and frequent supports as documented in their Personal Program Plan. In addition, intensive supports funding recognition provides assistive technology that allows students identified as requiring intense and frequent supports to access educational programs and instructional services.  Two different levels of intensive supports exists (Level I and II). The distinction between the levels relates to student needs and the amount of incremental costs incurred by the school division in the provision of intensive supports to a student.

For more information on Early Entrance, contact Corey Hadden.