Learning
Experiences

Teacher-Led programs allow teachers to use the JA resources to run the program with their students. Teachers will have access to the JA Campus where they can find the digital resources. Support will be provided by a JA staff contact for questions or any issues they may have with the JA Campus. JA does not provide a program facilitator for the teacher-led programs, as the teacher is running the session. Volunteer-Led programs are facilitated by a trained JA presenter. The presenter will run all the activities with the class during a set date/time. The teacher must remain on the session for classroom management; however, your JA presenters will be responsible for running the presentation. Your JA staff contact will provide you with your student workbooks and activities (program dependent) for your JA in-person volunteer-led program. Virtual Volunteer-Led programs are the same as in-person volunteer-led but are condensed versions of the program (usually 90 minutes). Online programs take place using an online video tool (such as Google Meet).

Unfortunately not. JA programs are dependent on funding and presenters. Thanks to our many corporate partners, grants, and some government funding, we can provide JA programs to schools at no-cost. When programs are available, a JA Program Manager will reach out to registered classes to offer a date. We do our best to offer our programming to as many of our registered classes as possible.

It is possible to register for more than one program, however, classes are generally only offered one program per year. We often have more requests than we do have availability for programming, so to ensure that as many classes as possible can participate in our programs, we don’t typically offer two programs to the same class. Students are welcome to continue their learning on our JA Campus where we have self-directed programs and games.

It is possible to register for a higher grade level program, although we do try to book classes for the recommended grades. However, if you feel a different program would be more appropriate for your class, please indicate this in the comments section of your registration and we will do our best to accommodate your request.

If you have registered separately or for a different program than your colleague, you may not receive the program at the same time. We book our programs throughout the school year depending on when we have presenters and/or support for the program. We cannot guarantee when a class will receive a program. We do our best to reach as many of our registered classes as possible.
Please feel free to reach out to info@jacentralontario.org and we can confirm that your class is registered for the program.

At JA Central Ontario, our programs are available to schools located in our catchment area: Toronto, York, Peel, Durham, Simcoe, and Halton regions. If your school is in one of these regions, please register for our programs here.
If your school is located outside of this area, please visit https://jacanada.org/our-locations to find the JA Charter closest to you.

If you work for a youth community organization such as a library or other youth initiative, please reach out to us. We may have an opportunity for your group. Contact us at info@jacentralontario.org, and we will connect you with someone from our team who will see if we have available funded programming for your group.

JA programs are educational and many of the concepts that are included in the program complement the learning objectives in the Ontario Ministry of Education curriculums. If you would like to see how the program you’ve registered for will complement what you’re already teaching with your students, please reach out to your JA contact. The JA program isn’t intended to replace any of the information being taught in the classroom, but the program may be used to complement what is being taught and reinforce some of those concepts.
Many of our programs have a focus on financial literacy. Teachers may choose to include the JA program to help meet the learning objectives in this new area of the curriculum.

JA programs are offered at no-cost to teachers or schools. Our programs are funded and made available through the generous support of our corporate partnerships and/or grants/foundations.

Each class that is interested in participating in the program should complete the online registration. This will help us in planning, so we are aware of how many presenters/programs you are looking for. If all the classes in your grade would like to participate, multiple classes can be added in one registration. We will reach out to you when we have an available program for all the classes.

The teacher-led program is very flexible. Since JA is not providing any presenters to facilitate the program, teachers can choose when the students participate. Teachers can choose to run the program in one day or can spread the activities out across several dates. Once your program has been set up by JA, the timeline is up to you.

Once your class has been set up for the teacher-led program, you will be able to run the program any time during the school year that is convenient for you. You can run the entire program in one day, or you can spread the lessons across several days. The teacher-led program provides flexibility, so you can run the program at a time that is convenient for you and your class.

By participating in the JA program, you will be given access to the JA Campus. This is where you will find all the digital resources needed to run the program.

You will be provided with notes on how to run the program, digital program elements, and access to any videos that accompany the program. You will also be provided with student workbooks which your students will use for some of the activities. If your students are learning in person, JA will ship the workbooks to your school (a digital version will be made available for students learning online).

To run the teacher-led program, you will access all the resources through the JA Campus. You’ll be able to access this through your browser (Google Chrome works best). If you are teaching in-person, you can show the resources on a screen via projector. If you have students learning online, you should be able to share your screen when connecting with students via video conference.

If you have any challenges accessing or using the resources, please reach out to your JA contact. We are here to support you!

Codes are active until the end of the school year. When you register your class, you can indicate what time of year would be most convenient for you to participate in the program and we will do our best to provide you with your resources (funding dependent).

No. We kindly ask that the program details and access to our resources are not shared with other teachers. If you do have a colleague who would like to participate in the program, please connect with your JA contact. We would be happy to assist interested teachers in registering for programs.

We are required to track all the classes and students participating in our programs. Therefore, we do need to make sure each class is registered. Your JA contact will be able to help you with this process and provide you with you and your students with your own materials and answer any questions.

If you have any challenges accessing the JA Campus or the online resources, please reach out to your JA contact. We will be able to troubleshoot any challenges you are having. We’re here to support your program experience! Contact info@jacentralontario.org

For the virtual volunteer presentation, we recommend that teachers give access to our presenters to join a platform they’re already using with their class (E.G. Google Meet, Zoom, MS Teams, Brightspace, etc.). Please set up a test session with your presenter and share the meeting link ahead of time to make sure they’re able to join, share their screen, and access audio/video.

If for any reason you’re unable to share your platform with your presenter, you are welcome to ask your presenter if they have a platform they can share for the presentation. Whichever is easiest for your class.

If you are having challenges connecting to a platform, please reach out to your JA contact. We will help troubleshoot any challenges you’re having.

We work with a variety of presenters who are from the local business community. All our presenters come from our corporate or community partnerships. Each presenter is screened and comes with a unique level of experience and expertise. We encourage our presenters to share information about their career development and to share relevant stories from their professional life as it relates to the program content. Students will be able to interact with our presenters and ask them questions throughout the presentation.

We hope you and your students enjoy having our presenter join your class for the program.

Yes. We ask our presenters to reach out to their teacher the week before their presentation to introduce themselves and to test that they can get onto your platform. If you have not received an email from your presenter in advance, please reach out to your JA contact to let us know. We will follow up with your presenter to ensure that they do reach out in advance.

Yes. We encourage you to share any information that would be helpful to the presenter. Any insights and tips for engaging your class would be helpful. Our presenters enjoy running an engaging session with students. We know different students learn in different ways. If your students enjoy asking questions and participating that is great, however, if you have a quieter class that enjoys hearing more stories that works as well.

Yes. It is very important that you test the online platform with your presenter ahead of time (ideally a week before the presentation). This ensures that the presenter can join your online platform and allows them to test screen sharing/audio/video.

When your presenter reaches out to introduce themself, we recommend setting up a time to test the online platform. This can be done at any time that is convenient for both of you. Normally the test call takes approximately 10 minutes.

It is important that this step happens. Some of our presenters have had challenges joining platforms hosted through the school board or had security challenges accessing platforms. If this does happen, please reach out to your JA contact. We will help troubleshoot and offer some solutions. This is also why we recommend setting up the test call a week in advance. This allows for time to find solutions if there are any challenges with the online platform.

The online program session will last 90 minutes. Most of our programs are run as one session (90 minutes). Occasionally, we will offer the program as two sessions of 45 minutes.

The primary role of the teacher is to manage the class and ensure that the presenter is set up to broadcast the session for the students.

Teachers are required to remain on the session at all times and to monitor the students. Should there be any challenges with student behaviour, this should be handled by the teacher.

The presenter will run all the activities and bring any online resources. The teacher will not be asked to run any elements of the program during the presentation. However, if teachers want to join in on the conversation, they are welcome to participate.

Our presenters also love engaging with the students. Any information you can share with the presenter ahead of time on how to best engage your class would be most appreciated.

 

If your presenter has not arrived for your online presentation, please reach out to your JA contact ASAP. We will reach out right away to see why your presenter has not arrived and will assist with the situation.

If your school or school board has a policy around student privacy, please share that info with your JA contact. Our presenters will follow any policies/procedures that are required.

Our presenters understand that there are many privacy regulations when working with a youth audience. Our presenters are also instructed not to take photos during the presentation.

We would love to hear feedback about your JA program experience. After your presentation, please feel free to reach out to your JA contact to let them know about your program experience. This feedback is most valuable to us! You will also receive an online survey that you can complete.

If your class would like to share a thank you of some sort with the presenter, they often enjoy hearing how the students enjoyed the program. We’ve had some teachers share student testimonials, ask the students to share something they learned, or put together a digital thank you card for the presenter. These types of gestures are typically well appreciated by our presenters. You can feel free to include your JA contact when sending this, as we love seeing this as well.

Sending a thank you after the program is not required. These are just a few ideas in case your class would like to do so.

We do ask that our presenters stick to the 90-minute time slot for your presentation. We understand that you likely have other plans for your class after the presentation. We know that different presenters and classes will get through the program at different paces.

If your class is having good discussions with the presenter, they may not get through all the content. After the program, your JA contact will have some additional resources that they can share with you should you want to continue the learning with your class.

No. Unfortunately, we are unable to share the presentation deck. However, if you would like to continue the learning with your students, we can share some additional resources with you. Please reach out to your JA contact and we can set this up for you.

Most of our virtual volunteer opportunities involve running a 75-minute online session with a class.

The total volunteer commitment is approximately five hours. This includes attending a 60-minute online training, facilitating the 75-minute session, running a short test session with the teacher, and some preparation time to review the content before the presentation date.

Many of our virtual volunteers prefer to facilitate the program on their own. With that being said, if you would prefer to run the session with a partner there’s no issue with that. Please be sure to indicate in the online registration that you would prefer to have a partner. If you have someone you would like to be partnered up with, you can indicate this in the online registration as well. Both people will need to complete the online registration in order to participate. Once you’re both registered, we can set you both up for your online presentation together.

We understand that unforeseen situations do arise on occasion. If you are unable to attend your JA presentation, please let your JA contact know ASAP. Cancellations, particularly last minute, can be very challenging for teachers. They have often paused their lesson plans to accommodate the JA presentation. The teacher may not have alternate plans for their class if you do not arrive for the presentation.

Where possible, we do ask that you reschedule your session (instead of cancelling). Please let your JA contact know and they can help coordinate a new session time with the teacher.

Yes. If the teacher requested a virtual session and the students are meeting in-person at the school, the teacher will broadcast the session from the classroom. However, you will still be joining virtually. The teacher will likely point the camera at the class, so you can still see the students and will have your session up on the projector.

Training is mandatory for anyone who has not facilitated the online program. Currently, our training takes place using an online platform (such as Zoom or Microsoft Teams) and is only 60 minutes. If you are unable to attend the live training, we can make arrangements to share a recording with you. The training includes information about the online classroom experience, how to access the online resources, and how to run each of the program activities. Attending the training also gives you an opportunity to ask questions.

If you are a returning volunteer, we recommend you attend training as a refresher, although this is optional.

As the teacher is likely already using a platform with their class, we recommend having the teacher set up the online session for you to join. The actual platform you’ll be using could vary. We have found that a large portion of our schools have been using Google Meet. We also had schools using Microsoft Teams or Zoom. If you have any concerns about the online platform, please reach out to your JA contact.

Yes. All our program content is created and organized for you. You won’t need to create anything for the presentation. We will also provide you with all the resources and notes on how to best run each of the activities. Although the activities are pre-created, you are still encouraged to share your experiences and stories with the students as it relates to the content. We do ask that you run the activities that are provided, however, you are not bound to a script. Teachers enjoy having our programs because of the great value our volunteers bring to the presentations.

You will have access to the digital material you need for your presentation through the JA Campus. During training, your JA contact will demonstrate how you’ll access all the resources online. If you have any challenges accessing the JA Campus, please reach out to your JA contact.

Yes. We do have a program kit which includes student workbooks (the students will use these during the presentation). If your class is in-person, your JA contact will send the program kit to the school and will make the arrangements with the teacher. We will ask the teacher to share the workbooks with the students ahead of time. If the students are all learning online, your JA Contact will send a digital version of the workbook to the teacher. You will not need to worry about distributing any material, the teacher will do that.

There are no program materials required, however, for the Personal Finance Program. We will communicate to the teacher beforehand that students will need a pen and paper to participate in the session’s activities.

We recommend that you spend some time familiarizing yourself with the program content and the online resources that you’ll be using for the program. An overview of this will be provided in the 60-minute online training. We find that most volunteers will spend 2-3 hours reviewing the material and preparing for their session (in addition to the training). Should you have any questions about the program or content, please reach out to your JA contact. We are here to make sure you feel well prepared for your session.

Most volunteers will receive their classroom assignment at least 7-10 days before their scheduled presentation date. Please feel free to reach out to your JA contact if you have any questions. Once your classroom assignment is confirmed, you’ll receive an email confirmation which includes the date, time, school, and teacher contact info.

Yes. We ask that volunteers reach out to the teacher about a week before their presentation. This is a great opportunity for you to introduce yourself and it reassures the teacher that you’ll be there. We also ask that you set up a test session with the teacher for the platform technology. This is very important. This can be scheduled anytime that is convenient for both you and the teacher. You’ll want to test the technology to make sure you’re able to join their online platform to use the video/audio/screen sharing. If there are any challenges with the technology, this gives some time to troubleshoot. If you have any challenges with the technology, please reach out to your JA contact. We are here to help you and will come up with a solution.

Please do test the technology ahead of time even if you have used the platform in the past. We have seen some situations of unexpected challenges with corporate firewalls and/or school board restrictions. To make your presentation run as smoothly as possible, please ensure that you set up a test call with the teacher.

If you have any challenges getting a hold of the teacher, please reach out to your JA contact. We recommend reaching out to the teacher via email. If you don’t have a response within a few days, please let us know. Many teachers are juggling multiple priorities and managing the ongoing challenges of teaching online. Please be patient with the teacher if it takes them a day or two to get back to you.

If you haven’t received a response within a few days, please let us know. We can assist with this. You’ll want to be in contact with the teacher a week before your presentation so there is enough time to connect and set up a test call with the online platform.

Yes! Please do test the online platform with the teacher ahead of time. Even if you have used the platform before, please still test the platform with the teachers. We have seen some unexpected challenges with corporate firewalls and/or school board restrictions. If you test the platform and have issues ahead of time, this will give us time to assist you and provide you with some solutions before your presentation date. If you have any challenges when you test the platform, please let your JA contact know. We are here to help you.

If you do not test the platform ahead of time and there are challenges accessing the platform, your session may need to be rescheduled. We know this is not ideal for either the volunteer or the class.

If you are unable to join the online platform that the school uses, please let your JA contact know. We will help troubleshoot. We know some firewalls may not be compatible with the platform the school is using. This is one reason it’s essential that you set up a test call with the teacher in advance.

If you cannot join the platform the teacher is using, you are also welcome to offer to host the session with your own platform. The teacher can let you know whether this is allowed within their school board regulations. We are here to help you access the online session and will work through a solution with you.

If you’re having tech challenges on your presentation date, please let your JA contact know. We will do our best to assist. You should already be in contact with the teacher for your class and can please let them know via email about your tech challenges. We will do our best to get you up and running.

If your presentation is delayed because you had challenges joining the online session, you are not expected to stay on the session longer. If you’re able to get the session going, please complete as much of the program as you’re able to in the remaining time. If you can’t get onto the session, please let us know and we’ll try to reschedule the class. Although these things can happen, we do recommend setting up a test call with the teacher in advance to hopefully minimize the odds that you’ll have any challenges joining the session.

No. We kindly ask that you do not take any screenshots or recordings of your online program session. We need to respect the privacy of all the students on the session.

Don’t worry! We know that not every presenter will get through the content at the same speed. Teachers have signed up for a 75-minute session, so whatever content you get through is fine. If you don’t get to all the activities because you are having a good conversation about the content or are answering questions, that is also time well spent with the class.

We don’t typically share with the teacher a list of all the activities, so they won’t be aware if any activities are left out. Please feel free to end the session when your 75 minutes is up. We do ask that you don’t share any of the remaining activities with the teacher. If they’re looking for more info or content, please reach out to your JA contact. We’d be happy to connect with the teacher.

When you reach out to the teacher before your session, please feel free to ask them how you can best engage the class. If the students are in the classroom wearing masks, there may be some challenges hearing their individual responses. The students may not necessarily be located near the microphone for the device broadcasting the session. The teacher will likely be able to relay their responses to you.

If hearing the students is challenging, you can also ask for visual responses (e.g., put up your hand if the answer is yes).

The teacher will be responsible for setting up the online session and managing the students for the duration of the presentation. The teacher will remain on the session with you. If you’re using the teacher’s online platform, they’ll manage the online session.

If the students are in the classroom, the teacher will share the student workbooks with the students ahead of time. These are shipped directly to the school. If the students are online, your JA contact will share the digital version with the teacher.

The teacher may be engaged with the conversation, but they are not required to do so. The teacher knows our volunteers will be running all the activities and presenting the session, and we have not provided them with any program content ahead of time. We ask that the online resources not be shared with the teacher as we would like to protect our content.

If you did not request a specific partner, you will be notified who your partner is and their contact information in a final confirmation email that is sent prior to your classroom delivery date. You may contact your partner and discuss how to coordinate the lessons for the day.

Unless schools are pre-booked for your organization you will receive these details at training or shortly thereafter. It can take 3-6 weeks to confirm all schools for volunteers. Please hold the delivery date we will confirm a school for you.

Once classrooms are booked you will receive a confirmation email from programs which will include the teacher’s name and contact information. If you would like to call or email to ask questions, please feel free to. However, please understand that teachers have different schedules and availability than most people who work in an office, and they might not have a chance to respond.

The delivery date was confirmed and the teacher has received a confirmation email from JA Central Ontario which includes the details for the program delivery. Please feel free to email your JA contact if you are not hearing from your teacher. They are expecting you so please plan to go as scheduled.

You are not required to take treats or prizes into the classroom. However, if you decide you would like to, please contact the teacher to confirm if it is possible to do so and if there are any dietary concerns or allergies. All schools are nut free so please also ensure anything brought into the school is labelled as “nut free”. Please also connect with other teams in the same school so that there is consistency with each classroom.

Once you are registered, we will match you to a team and book you to a classroom. Our policy with the school is to deliver programs to all of the classes in the respective grade on the same day. Unfortunately, if we cancel one class, we have to cancel all of them. We ask you to prioritize your commitment to deliver the program and request that you find a replacement if you are no longer able to participate. Please notify the Corporate Coordinator if a replacement is required.

JA Central Ontario offers Community Volunteer Days throughout the year. If you are interested in participating again as a Community Volunteer, please contact info@jacentralontario.org for more information.

Unless the program has changed training is not required for returning volunteers. You are welcome to attend training as a refresher if you choose. Please make arrangements with your Corporate Coordinator to pick up the materials in advance of your delivery.

No. All the lesson plans and activities for use with the class are created for the volunteer and detailed in an easy-to-follow guide. We’ll also provide you with all of the materials necessary to teach the program.

We recommend that you spend some time familiarizing yourself with the program content and the online resources that you’ll be using for the program. An overview of this will be provided in the 60-minute online training. We find that most volunteers will spend 2-3 hours reviewing the material and preparing for their session (in addition to the training). Should you have any questions about the program or content, please reach out to your JA contact. We are here to make sure you feel well prepared for your session.

Don’t worry! We know that not every presenter will get through the content at the same speed. If you don’t get to all the activities because you are having a good conversation about the content or are answering questions, that is also time well spent with the class.

We don’t typically share with the teacher a list of all the activities, so they won’t be aware if any activities are left out. Please feel free to end the session when your time is up. We do ask that you don’t share any of the remaining activities with the teacher. If they’re looking for more info or content, please reach out to your JA contact. We’d be happy to connect with the teacher.

No, the teacher will always remain in the classroom to assist with any issues that may arise. The volunteer presents each activity to the students; the teacher is present to provide classroom management, offer insight into the class and to help out if the volunteer needs assistance.

Yes, if an opportunity is available. We make every effort to place you where you feel most comfortable. Sometimes there are more requests than openings. In that scenario, we’d ask that you volunteer in another school/classroom where there is a need until we can place you at the school that you prefer.

Volunteering with JA not only helps to inspire and prepare local students, it can also strengthen your communication, self-confidence, coaching, leadership, presentation, facilitation and time management skills. Companies that encourage employees to volunteer with JA enhance their image by demonstrating their commitment to educating today’s youth and supporting the local community.

We are committed to ensuring a safe learning environment for young people and therefore a vulnerable sector screening is a requirement for all volunteers of JA Central Ontario as well as all school boards with whom we work. After registering, JA will provide you with exact instructions to ease this process.

Task	Approximate Time
Training Session	1 hour
Review Program Materials	1-2 hours
Live Teaching Session	5 - 6 hours (will vary)
Registration & Screening	0.5 – 1 hour
Email Communications	0.5 hour
Total	10 hours approx.