The 2026 Kindergarten Communication of Learning: What Changed and How to Write It

September 2026 is the first school year under The Ontario Curriculum, Kindergarten, 2026, which replaces The Kindergarten Program, 2016. The Communication of Learning template has been updated to match. If you are writing your first Initial Observations this fall, here is what is different — and what has not changed at all.

Frames are now strands

The four areas of learning are now called strands, matching Grades 1–12, and one has a new name:

The new curriculum sets out mandatory expectations in the same format as the later grades, and adds explicit, systematic reading instruction, coding concepts, a wider number range and financial literacy. Play-based learning and inquiry stay at its heart.

The comment box has not changed

Each strand still has one comment box headed Key Learning / Growth in Learning / Next Steps in Learning, with ESL and IEP boxes beside it. There are still no letter grades, levels or marks in Kindergarten.

• Key Learning — the most significant learning at the time of the report
• Growth in Learning — movement to a more complex stage, or increased skills or knowledge
• Next Steps in Learning — appropriate goals, based on comparing observations with the expectations

When reports go home

• Initial Observations — late October to November
• Two Communication of Learning reports later in the year, typically February and June
• The June report records placement in September: Kindergarten Year 2 or Grade 1

Writing each strand

Describe what you and your Early Childhood Educator partner actually saw — in play, in inquiry, in routines — and keep the language warm and concrete for families.

Foundations of Language and Mathematics (Year 1, February)

Ava enjoys looking at books with educators and can point to pictures to retell a familiar story. She recognizes the letters in her name and is beginning to notice them in other words around the classroom. Since the fall, she has grown in her confidence to share ideas during group time. A next step is for Ava to say the first sound in simple words. Singing rhyming songs and playing "I spy" with sounds at home will support this.

Problem Solving and Innovating (Year 2, June)

Jayden uses loose parts to design ramps and tests which objects roll the farthest, explaining his ideas to friends and educators. He has grown in revising his designs when something does not work, rather than starting over. A next step is to record his plans with a simple drawing before building.

Avoid

• Any level, grade or "meeting expectations" judgement
• "Behind", "immature" or "not ready for Grade 1"
• Comparisons with other children
• Abstract curriculum wording in place of what the child did

Sources

• Kindergarten Communication of Learning template (3046E, 2026)
• Kindergarten Communication of Learning (ontario.ca)
• The Ontario Curriculum, Kindergarten, 2026