Students with the Trillium Lakelands District School Board (TLDSB) are having one of their days off moved.
The Professional Activity (PA) Day is being moved from Friday, March 1 to Monday, April 8 for elementary and secondary students.
“The reason behind this move is to support student and staff safety,” says Wes Hahn, director of education for TLDSB. “A solar eclipse is anticipated to take place across the board on April 8, with the peak of the eclipse occurring during school dismissal time when individuals are more likely to be outdoors.”
Hahn explains the change does not add a new PA Day.
Multiple school boards, including Toronto’s, are making similar moves in the name of student safety.
According to exclipse2024.org, a website endorsed by the Canadian Space Agency (CSA), around 3:21 p.m. is when “the maximum amount of the sun’s disk is covered” over Haliburton. However, only close to 97 percent of the sun will be covered.
According to a chart created by the CSA, the duration of the eclipse will range from just over one minute in Summerside, P.E.I., to almost three-and-a-half minutes in Sherbrooke, Que.
If you’re planning to view the rare occasion, CSA officials say it’s “essential to wear special glasses with filters designed for watching solar eclipses.”