View the live online presentation of the 2020 Welcome To Kindergarten Parent Information Evening:
In the spring of each school year, all WVS elementary schools host the nationally acclaimed ‘Welcome to Kindergarten’ (WTK) program for registered four/five year old children and their parents. This program focuses on welcoming our new Kindergarten students to our public elementary schools as they work with their parents and new teachers in a fun filled, interactive family orientation session.
The mission statement of the Welcome to Kindergarten program is as follows;
“To provide pre-school children and their families with the resources and experiences to begin formal education with a foundation in early learning that is nurtured within the home.”
At this orientation workshop, Kindergarten teachers, Resource teachers and other school staff provide parents and their newly registered Kindergarten children with early literacy resources through hands-on learning activities and demonstrate for parents’ strategies and activities to use the resources at home. Each child leaves with a better understanding of their upcoming Kindergarten experience plus a delightful Welcome to Kindergarten resource bag filled with activities to continue their learning at home with their families.
For more information on WVS Welcome to Kindergarten program, please visit www.thelearningpartnership.ca or directly contact your child’s school. Click here for school contact information.
Ready, Set, Learn
At West Vancouver Schools, we value the important role that families have in teaching their young children. To assist families in our community as they move towards the school years, our early learning team works with community partners in West Vancouver to offer the BC Ministry of Education Ready, Set, Learn program.
For more information on Ready, Set, Learn, contact Sandra-Lynn Shortall or visit: www.bced.gov.bc.ca.
StrongStart
West Vancouver Schools is proud to offer StrongStart BC early learning programs for parents/caregivers and their children, from birth to five years-old, at no cost to families.
Both children and adults benefit from the StrongStart program, as children have access to high-quality learning environments and social interaction on school sites, while parents and caregivers learn how to support their child’s learning.
For more information about this BC Ministry of Education-funded program, please visit www.bced.gov.bc.ca.
Hollyburn StrongStart
1329 Duchess Avenue, West Vancouver
- Tuesday, Wednesday & Thursday Morning – 9:15 – 11:30.
- This will include 11:00 – 11:30 outside time in the school’s garden area rain or shine
- Tuesday, Wednesday & Thursday Afternoon – 12:15 – 2:30
- This will include 2:00 – 2:30 outside time in the school’s playground area rain or shine
- Please note this schedule is subject to change. Pre registration and a confirmed appointment is required to attend in person. We are unable to accommodate drop ins.
Please contact Early Childhood Educator, Deanna DeVita at ddevita@wvschools.ca to confirm schedule, register and reserve an appointment to attend.
Eagle Harbour StrongStart:
5575 Marine Drive, West Vancouver
Tuesday & Thursday: 8:30am – 11:30am
*Please note this schedule is subject to change. This program is drop in.
Please contact Early Childhood Educator, Marian at ehss@wvschools.ca to confirm schedule and register.
Helpful documents:
Health & Safety Protocols during COVID-19
WVS StrongStart BC Registration Form
Media, digital media and video release – parental consent form
WWest Vancouver Child and Family Hub
WVS is a proud partner of the West Vancouver Child and Family Hub located at the Community Centre Civic Site.
The West Vancouver Child and Family Hub is ‘collaborative, community based, co-located programs and services that promote the healthy development and well being of families and young children in West Vancouver’. The Hub offers a range of services including;
- Child Care
- Early Learning
- Health & Wellness Services
- Recreation
- Family Support Programs
WVS works closely with our community partners – Vancouver Coastal Health, Non-profit service providers, West Vancouver Memorial Library, the District and City of West Vancouver and community members to ensure that services to children 0-5 years are coordinated. The West Vancouver Family Place Society is an integral part of our Hub, working together to ensure that services to families with children 0-5 are met through this family resource centre. For more information on services provided by the West Vancouver Child and Family Hub, please contact Leah Howard, Child Care Hub Coordinator at lhoward@westvancouver.ca or visit www.westvancouver.ca.
Properties Family Hub Society (PFHS)
WVS has worked together with community partners to bring a range of multi-generational programming to residents in the British Properties area.
Properties Family hub Society (PFHS) is located at Chartwell Elementary school and offers a range of recreational, language and community programming for all age groups, along with an onsite pre-school. Independent non-profit service providers operate through the centre from across the North Shore in cooperation with the West Vancouver School District. The goal of the PFHS is to contribute to positive human and economic development by offering multi-generational, flexible community health and education programs for families, seniors, singles and children residing in and near the British Properties. The Hub programs are intended to create meaningful connections among local residents to foster.
For more information, including flyers in English, Persian and Mandarin, please visit the Properties Family Hub page. Contacts:
Deanna DeVita, Properties Family Hub Coordinator ddevita@wvschools.ca
Sandra-Lynn Shortall, Director of Instruction, West Vancouver Schools: sshortall@wvschools.ca
The Value of Play
Playmaking brings children a greater awareness and understanding of the world in which they live. Sutton-Smith (1971) describes play as an inquiry process that consists of four ways of knowing:
i. Exploration
ii. Testing
iii. Imitation
iv. Construction
When children play, they construct an understanding of what the world means for them in their own cultural milieu, using these four ways, together or individually, to create their knowledge base.
(Exert: Ready to Learn: Using Play to Build Literacy Skills in Young Learners, Anne Burke, 2010)
Connect for Kids is a one-stop link to information about hundreds of child and family services on the North Shore
Kindergarten Gradual Entry
View the 2020-2021 Kindergarten Gradual Entry brochure here.