Could anyone help me with any information on children starting school in Canada.

What age is Kindergarten?

How does the Education system compare with England

Are they tested with exams regular?

Any information would be appreciated.

we came here in january and i was dreading the whole school thing for my 2 kids aged 5 and then 7. they start school in primary class here at aged 5. i was horrified to think that my kids were going to be repeating a whole year as they both started at 4 in the uk. kindergarten here is the equivilent age to reception class back home. they were both put in the class which matched their age group therefor son in primary and daughter in grade 2. she is advanced anyway (not from me i must add!!!) so they mixed here in with grade 3 kids and she is doing their work and even finds that too easy. she may even be skipping grade 3 in september and going straight into grade 4. my son on the other hand is a july baby so is one of the youngest and has come on strong repeating the first year again.

if you want my honest opinion on comparisons to the uk educational system, then give me the canadian way anyday. their school is very family orientated and keeps the parents involved with everything whenever its possible. the class sizes are a lot smaller than in the uk. my son has gone from a year 1 class of 30 to a primary class of 20 and the same with my daughter. they do a lot more work outside of the classroom and get to go on a lot more trips. theyre not at the stage yet where they are doing exams regularly but my 11 year old step daughter is at a different school and she is constantly getting tested on one thing or another.

i was very dubious about the whole change in the schooling when we moved here but i even told the principal last week that they have come on leaps and bounds and i am very pleased we made the move for their educational standards.

Thanks for your fast and informative response. I too am thinking this to be a big worry.

Just out of interest where did you move to?
We are thinking of Alberta, Calgary or Edmonton but would welcome any comments or advise you might have.

im in halifax, nova scotia. to be honest with you other than visiting my in laws in southern ontario i havent been anywhere else in canada but its such a beautiful place all over.

i asked my now 8 year old daughter for a kids point of view comparing the uk to here and the education differences. she says she much prefers it here in canada as there is so much more for them to do and im not telling her she cant go to places as its not safe. the worst difference she finds is the early starts at school though every school, even here, is different. they get the school bus (kids love the novelty of that!!) at 730am to start their lessons at 8am but they are both home by 220pm. its an early start but it gives us the rest of the day to do things while its still daylight.

best thing you should do which we did is to contact the local school board of wherever you want to settle and ask if you can go in for a quick visit. their school was really helpful in helping us with this and its better for the kids to settle. you might also want to look into study permits. i have no idea how it works as im married to a canadian citizen but i had a nightmare of a time at immigration when we arrived. what they said were the rules and then what the school board said were 2 completely different things!!!

We are really at the beginning of the application stage, but feel we need to think about things such as schooling etc. Thanks for your comments and advise. You both have been a great help to us.

In Calgary you can choose between two school systems, public or Catholic. You can also choose a private school if you want. Probably of little consequence but I thought I'd mention it.

you can do the same here in NS but if you opt for the "free" schools then you have to send you kids to the nearest school tyo wherever you live. this is why its worth looking at schools before you go ahead and buy a place. we lived in an apartment in town for a few months while the purchase of our house was going through. they werent supposed to be at the school nearest the house but we did it but it was a fight.

if, like me, you are worried about the schooling and the kids settling then check out the schools before the housing. that way you get your choice of school.