Revised Grade 9 English Curriculum

The new Grade 9 English course is part of Ontario’s plan to modernize the education curriculum to ensure all students have the foundational and transferable skills they need in a rapidly changing world. The curriculum builds on the new elementary Language (2023) Curriculum for Grades 1 to 8 and aims to equip students with the knowledge and skills that are essential for them to become confident communicators. It is designed to help students further develop oral communication, reading, writing and digital media literacy skills to allow students to access their full potential.


As of September 2023, this course replaces English, Grade 9, Academic (ENG1D), which expired at the end of the 2022–23 school year. The Applied course (ENG1P – English, Grade 9, Applied) expired at the end of the 2021–22 school year.

What’s New?

This curriculum represents a significant shift toward evidence-based, explicit and systematic Tier 1 instruction in foundational word reading and fluency skills. This new grade 9 curriculum, ENL1W will enable students to continue to develop and consolidate the foundational knowledge and skills that they need for reading, writing, and oral and visual communication. Throughout the course, students will continue to enhance their media literacy and critical literacy skills, and to develop and apply transferable skills, including digital literacy.  Students will also make connections to their lived experiences and to society and increase their understanding of the importance of language and literacy across the curriculum. A summary of the key changes can be found here. 


Who was Involved in the Revisions? Where Can I Access the Revised Curriculum? 

Revisions to the Grade 9 course were informed by current research and best practices that highlighted the need for explicit instruction in foundational reading skills, modernized content on digital literacy and the inclusion of Indigenous perspectives. The curriculum was further informed by feedback from education stakeholders and partners to ensure that it meets all the literacy learning requirements for supporting Ontario students.

The new curriculum is available to all parents, educators and students on the Curriculum and Resources website at Ontario.ca/curriculum and in Grade 9 English Course: A Guide for Parents

What Support will be Available to Educators?