When it goes home
The ministry's Communication of Learning page describes three written reports a year. The first, the initial observations report, goes home between late October and November and describes how the child is settling in and what the educators have noticed so far. The other two are full communications of learning later in the school year. Your board sets the exact dates and the software you write in. Grades 1 to 8 teachers work to a similar rhythm under Growing Success, with a progress report card in the fall and provincial report cards in the winter and at the end of June.
The four areas
Each communication is organised by four areas, which from the 2026-27 school year line up with the four strands of The Ontario Curriculum, Kindergarten, 2026:
- Foundations of Language and Mathematics (strand A)
- Problem Solving and Innovating (strand B)
- Self-Regulation and Well-Being (strand C)
- Belonging and Contributing (strand D)
Catholic schools add a section on religious and family life education. The report also has places to note English as a second language support and an Individual Education Plan where they apply.
Key learning, growth and next steps
- Key learning is the most significant learning for the child at the time you write: what they know and can do in this area, shown with an example from play, inquiry or conversation.
- Growth in learning is the change you have seen: a more complex stage, a skill that is new or more consistent, or knowledge that has widened since the last report.
- Next steps in learning are the goals you set from the curriculum expectations for this child, with ideas for how school and home can each support them.
Where the evidence comes from
New Kindergarten teachers often find the report hardest because there are no tests to draw from. The evidence is your documentation: photos of a structure with the child's explanation, a transcribed conversation, a drawing with the child's label, notes from observing play. Start a simple folder or note per child in September, and aim for one dated observation per child per area every couple of weeks. When the report is due, key learning and growth write themselves from what you already have.
Worked example
Here is one area, Self-Regulation and Well-Being, written for a made up child. It is an example of the shape, not a comment to copy.
Leo can now name when he feels frustrated and asks for a break at the calm corner before returning to play. In September he often left activities when a tower fell; this term he rebuilds it and asks a friend to help. Next, Leo will practise using words to share materials during play. At home, families can take turns in short games and name the waiting out loud.
Sentence one is key learning with evidence. Sentence two is growth, framed as a change since September. The last two are the next step, with one idea for school and one for home.
Common mistakes in a first Communication of Learning
- Describing the program ("We have been exploring patterns") instead of the child.
- Writing a growth sentence that is really another key learning, with no sense of change.
- Next steps that only the school can act on, or only the family.
- Jargon such as expectation codes, frames or strands that a family has never been shown.
- Writing each area from memory the night before, instead of from dated documentation.
Doing it faster without losing the child
With a full class, each area for every child adds up. The Kindergarten comment examples show three drafts per strand, and the write page drafts all four boxes for every child from a tone you pick, with names, pronouns and no repeats handled. Keep your minutes for the sentence only you can write: the example from your documentation.
Last reviewed 26 September 2026. Comment Desk is not affiliated with any school board or ministry.