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Truro Colchester Welcome Network

Public Schools

Public schools are for children and youth aged 4 to 18 years old.

The program for 4-year-olds is called pre-primary. It is an optional program for parents who want to send their young children to school.

The official start of school is grade primary. To attend, children must be 5 years old by December 31 of the year they start school. That means that for your child to attend public school this year, they must turn 5 any time before December 31st. It is possible that they will be 4 years old when they start school and turn 5 during the first half of the school year

The School Calendar

The school year begins on September 1 at the earliest. It ends on June 30 at the latest. School days are Monday to Friday.

The following are school holidays:

  • Labour Day – the first Monday in September
  • Thanksgiving Day – the second Monday in October
  • Remembrance Day – November 11
  • Christmas Holidays – 5 to 10 weekdays that include Christmas Day and New Year’s Day
  • Heritage Day – the third Monday in February
  • March Break – usually the third week in March
  • Good Friday and Easter Monday – the Friday and Monday surrounding Easter Sunday. Easter Sunday is the Sunday after the first full moon after the spring equinox.
  • Victoria Day – the last Monday before May 25
  • Summer Holidays – beginning July 1 at the latest and ending August 31 at the earliest

Children will also have days off school for in-service days and parent-teacher interviews.

Enrolling Your Child In Public School

Before you enrol your child in public school, decide if you want them educated in English or French. To register them in English, contact the Chignecto Central Regional Centre for Education (CCRCE). There are no admission criteria. See Other CCRCE programs.

To register them in French, contact the Conseil scolaire acadien provincial (CSAP). There are admission criteria. See École acadienne de Truro.

The CCRCE or the CSAP will assess your child’s needs to find out these things:

  • which grade they should be in
  • if they need support such as English or French language classes

In Truro and Colchester County, YREACH may help you register your child in school. They may also help you to communicate with the school if you have questions or concerns.

To find out more, visit ccrce.ca or csap.ca

Other CCRCE Programs

The CCRCE offers 2 programs that are popular with parents:

  • French Immersion – there are several levels of French immersion and they are offered at different schools in the region. To find out more, visit ccrce.ca and type “French immersion” in the search box.
  • The International Baccalaureate (IB) Diploma Program – this is a rigorous pre-university course of studies for students aged 16 to 19. To find out more, visit ccrce.ca and type “international baccalaureate” in the search box.

École Acadienne de Truro

École Acadienne de Truro is the only French first-language public school in Truro and Colchester County. All classes at this school are in French. Children enrolled at this school are expected to have been speaking French at home. It is not a French immersion school.

Admission Criteria

There are 2 kinds of admission criteria. The first has to do with the rights of the parent. The second has to do with permission given to children who meet certain criteria.

Parents with the Right to Send Their Children to French Public School

To have this right, parents must be Canadian citizens and meet at least one of the following criteria:

  • The first language they learned and still understand is French.
  • They went to elementary school at a French first-language school.

One of their children has gone, or is still going to a French first-language elementary or high school.

Children Who May Have Permission to Attend a CSAP School

Children must meet at least one of the following criteria to get permission to attend a CSAP school:

  • Their grandparents speak or spoke French during their lifetime and the parents agree to promote the French language throughout the child’s schooling.
  • They can speak, read, and write in French at their grade level and live in a household where French is spoken. This applies only to children of non-Canadian parents.
  • They are taking part in an international exchange program and speak, read, and write in French at their grade level.
  • They live with someone who has the right to send their child to school in French even though their biological parent does not have that right.

Getting to and from Public School

Depending on how far you live from your child’s school, your child will either walk or take a bus. See the following examples:

  • Elementary school – grades primary to 6
    • If you live 1.6 km or less from the school, your child will walk
    • If you live more than 1.6 km from the school, your child will take the bus
  • Junior High/Middle School and High School – grade 7 to 12
    • If you live 2.4 km or less from the school, your child will walk
    • If you live more than 2.4 km from the school, your child will take the bus