To us, Equinox Holistic Alternative School is a special place. Of course, anywhere that children come together to learn is bound to feel special. Our particular brand of special has something to do with the tall city Lindens under which kindergarteners spend their days. It’s in the delight of a child teaching their grownups the difference between a bird's nest and a drey, or a linden leaf and an aspen. It’s in the amount of dirt that comes home under fingernails and inside boots. It’s in the fresh air meditating and the painted rally signs for justice marches. Equinox, as we call our school, is a public school, part of the Toronto District School Board, and as such, follows the Ontario Ministry of Education curriculum, but our educators draw on a range of holistic teaching philosophies and approaches, such as Waldorf, Reggio Emilia, and Montessori. Subjects are taught across disciplines and teach the whole child — heads, hands, and heart. Through this holistic academic approach with a focus on nature, students are encouraged to become thoughtful, productive, and caring people who are environmental stewards and life-long learners. In 2009, Equinox was one of the first schools in Canada to offer outdoor kindergarten. In 2020, we were able to create outdoor classrooms for every grade. Equinox Holistic Alternative School stands on land first tended by the people of the Mississaugas of the Credit, the Anishnabeg, the Chippewa, the Haudenosaunee, and the Wendat First Nations. To honour and renew our participation in the Covenant Chain, our students learn ecological stewardship and Indigenous culture and history, grow native wildflowers for pollinators, and share food with each other and our community. Our educators are committed to becoming life-long learners too.
