As School District No. 46 gears up for its first year offering full-day kindergarten as well as half-day kindergarten and blended kindergarten and Grade 1 classes, the district is assuring parents that all programs are play-based and teach the same learning outcomes.
The district announced in April that six of its nine elementary schools - all save Cedar Grove, Roberts Creek and Halfmoon Bay -will offer full-day kindergarten in the program's inaugural year in the province. The Ministry of Education has funded half the province's kindergarten classes as full-day programs this year; next year, all district kindergarteners will participate in the full-day program.
However, according to a district pamphlet called "Welcome to Kindergarten," all district kindergarten students, regardless of the length of day in their program, will be taught all areas of child development: emotional and social development, intellectual development, physical development, aesthetic and artistic development and social responsibility.
The pamphlet also addresses a range of potential parental questions, for example, highlighting that children grow and develop at different rates and noting that schools will develop an appropriate program for children who face "some delays in readiness skills." It advises that if a child seems to be behind in completing tasks, parents should contact the child's teacher to get a more complete assessment of the situation.
The district is also highlighting that Aboriginal programs and services are available for children of First Nations, Métis or Inuit ancestry. For further information, principal of Aboriginal programs Kerry Mahlman can be reached at 604-885-8345.
The district notes that new kindergarteners will be required to bring school supplies to class or else contribute a fee towards collective supplies; lists of the required supplies are available online, under each school heading, at the district website: www.sd46.bc.ca.
The kindergarten pamphlet itself, which is also available at the district website, further includes tips for kindergarten students' success, such as: ensuring your child gets at least 10 hours' sleep daily, ensuring your child brings healthy lunches and snacks to school daily (and checking to see if there are life-threatening allergies in the school before sending any food with nuts), and reading to your child for 15 minutes daily.
