The Grade 9 mathematics course builds on the elementary program and is based on the same fundamental principles. 

The overall aim of the Grade 9 mathematics course is to ensure that all students can access any secondary mathematics course they need in order to pursue future studies and careers that are of interest to them.

This course is designed to be inclusive of all students in order to facilitate their transition from the elementary grades to the secondary level. It offers opportunities for all students to build a solid foundation in mathematics, broaden their knowledge and skills, and develop their mathematical identity. This approach allows students to make informed decisions in choosing future mathematics courses based on their interests, and in support of future plans for apprenticeship training, university, college, community living, or the workplace.

Similar to the elementary curriculum, the Grade 9 course adopts a strong focus on the processes that best enable students to understand mathematical concepts and learn related skills. Attention to the mathematical processes is considered essential to a balanced mathematics program. The seven mathematical processes identified in the curriculum include problem solving, reasoning and proving, reflecting, connecting, communicating, representing, and selecting tools and strategies.

Throughout the course, students actively participate in the learning of mathematics by making connections to their lived experiences and to real-life applications. They continue to develop critical consciousness of how socio-cultural structures within systems impact individual experiences and opportunities, and to shape their identities as mathematics learners.

Teachers implement the curriculum through effective assessment and instructional practices that are rooted in Culturally Responsive and Relevant Pedagogy. Teachers utilize a variety of assessment and instructional approaches that provide students with multiple entry points to access mathematics learning and multiple opportunities to demonstrate their achievement in mathematics.

This course continues the learning from Grade 8 and prepares students for success in all senior secondary mathematics courses in all pathways moving forward. Students who successfully complete the Grade 9 mathematics course may proceed to a mathematics course in Grade 10.

Note: For students who completed any of the Grade 9 mathematics courses prior to September 2021, refer to the prerequisite chart on page 10 of The Ontario Curriculum, Grades 11 and 12: Mathematics, 2007. 

Locally Developed Compulsory Credit Courses (LDCCs)                                      

School boards may offer up to two locally developed compulsory credit courses in mathematics – a Grade 9 course and/or a Grade 10 course – that may be used to meet the compulsory credit requirement in mathematics for one or both of these grades. The locally developed Grade 9 and/or Grade 10 compulsory credit courses prepare students for success in the Grade 11 and Grade 12 workplace preparation courses.

Half-Credit Courses

The course outlined in this curriculum is designed to be offered as a full-credit course. However, it may also be delivered as two half-credit courses. Half-credit courses, which require a minimum of fifty-five hours of scheduled instructional time, must adhere to the following conditions:

• The two half-credit courses created from a full course must together contain all of the expectations of the full course.
• The expectations for each half-credit course must be divided in a manner that best enables students to achieve the required knowledge and skills in the allotted time.
• A course that is a prerequisite for another course in the secondary curriculum may be offered as two half-credit courses, but students must successfully complete both parts of the course to fulfil the prerequis