quick update... showed to Andrew when he got in from school tonight, thought it was 'dead funny' and totally got it... thanks again

I am planning on getting my 11 yr old DD to answer this for you when she gets home from school.

I have 4 kids, and they have all settled in very well tbh, but do think it is better if one of them answers because they may have more insight than I do

One thing about being in junior high (in my son's experience in Calgary anyway) .... they get to do sport/gym/games every day and they rotate through all the different sports, so try a lot of things they might otherwise not have thought of.

Field hockey is actually played here in Calgary, and up to a high level, but not so much as a school sport. The university has an excellent girls' team, but they play in a league which has teams composed of all men, all girls, boy/men/girls/women ... any combination in fact! They don't really seem to have the same rules as we did back in the UK re "mixed hockey".

My son (18 now, but we've been here 4 years) really enjoys street hockey, which is played with ice hockey sticks, but wearing running shoes rather than skates. He has just started playing in goal in hubby's field hockey team as well, and did plan to hone his skating skills and join his mate's ice hockey team too this year!

Mostly he loves his snow-boarding.

He really enjoyed school when we came here, which was a nice change from the UK, and quickly made loads of friends, but did soon tire of being asked to say "HARRY POTTER" so that they could all laugh at his accent!

We arrived here with an 8 yr old a 10 yr old & a 16 yr old last year.

1. The schools were liked by all the kids. They found the learning environment less prescriptive than their UK school & the children very friendly. My daughter had her 1st play date (as they call it) after her 2nd day!!

2. My son won't admit to having anything as his favourite thing but he likes the extensive use of technology in his classroom. He also enjoyed a recent weeks trip to the outdoor school. My daughter likes music & French best. My eldest is a miserable teen who only enjoys his weekends snowboarding at Olympic Park!!

3. The younger 2 have intramurals (basically fee lunchtime activities) which included floor hockey. I know there are plenty of places for street hockey in the summer (usually cul-de-sacs!) However, the main thing here is ice hockey. Skating lessons are cheap though & even if you'll never reach competitive standard there's recreational ice hockey & for all.

4. Packed lunches all round - my kids prefer it as they universally hated their old school meals!

5. The kids love no uniform, we hate it!

6. Can't speak for your area but I'm sure you'll find, just like my kids have, that there are plenty of kids local to you to hang out with.

7. Our kids don't miss anything. There's not much you can't get here, sometimes at a premium price but none-the-less obtainable.

Hope that helps. All 3 of mine are really, really happy here.

Thank you for your reply. I think the street hockey thing sounds like something he would enjoy. I am also reassured to hear that there some forms of field hockey around even if not the chosen sport so to speak...
I am looking forward to the various winter sports myself...can't wait! Must get fit.....

I am so glad you have all settled in and are happy. It definately sounds like the children have a much better quality of life in Canada accross the board. Most people have been very positive and reassuring. It is great to sit with the kids and read the replies and actually get them involved in something relevant to them...instead of constant 'red tape' and immigration discussions that now seem to dominate our mealtimes
(note to self... must search for house in suitable cul de sac)... with a big lake at the end of it (for me)

Street hockey is not an organized sport and not played in schools. If the child wants to wear a strip and be in a league for field hockey I think he'll be out of luck.

Except as stated earlier there is some activity in Halifax. Travel (and the expense of it) of course becomes an issue as other teams to play are few and far between I imagine.

err, no of course not .... it's played in the street, by kids who just want to have fun. We often have to pause near our house while the game is temporarily disrupted to let us drive by ("sorry guys!")

That may be true where you live, or you may not realise what field hockey is available if you haven't searched for it.
Here in Calgary there is certainly an opening for kids, and I saw young teenagers playing to an extremely high standard just last week. I'm sure they are destined for the national side!
It probably is somewhat dependent on the numbers and nationalities of immigrants as well, as folk tend to like to bring their interests with them.
The biggest place for field hockey is Vancouver, where their outdoor season is a lot longer. Here we play indoor hockey from November to April, and outside from May to September/October.

Hi Lorna,

We moved to Nova Scotia, from Edinburgh 18 months ago. Our kids were 8 and 10 at the time and settled into the Nova Scotia school system really well.

Like your son they were used to small class sizes in Edinburgh and were initially (well for all of 5 minutes) daunted by the larger school size - 400 kids, class size of 22. By lunchtime they had made friends.

Public schools in the HRM do provide school lunches. The price is reasonable and there is always a healthy option available. Pack lunches are optional.

My daughter is a bit younger than your son and won't hit Junior High until next year. but we know plenty of 13/14 year olds in the Junior High years. A lot of the kids in our area (St Margaret's Bay/Upper Tantallon) are involved in Hockey, Basketball and Football (Soccer) during the winter months and Baseball, Football (Soccer) in the summer months - sailing and kayaking are popular in the summer.

PM me if you would like more info, my daughter would be more than happy to give direct comparisons between Edinburgh and Halifax Region school life.