• In order to be eligible to attend Pre-Primary your child must be 4-years-old by December 31 in the school year they start Pre-Primary. For example, if registering for the 2023-24 school year, your child must be 4 by December 31, 2023.
• Your family must live within the English boundary of the school that offers this program. 
• If you are unsure whether you live within the boundaries of a school offering the program, verify your neighbourhood school.
• Pre-Primary does not have waiting lists. All families who live in the English boundary of the school serving the area (neighbourhood) in which they reside will have a space in that school's Pre-Primary program.

Before the first day of school, you will receive a phone call from the Lead Early Childhood Educator at your child’s Pre-Primary program to provide you with all necessary information about the Pre-Primary program.

In the meantime, please see some helpful information:

• Morning and afternoon snack: Snacks will be provided twice per day in our Pre-Primary Program; we will serve a fruit and/or vegetable with every snack plus another food group. Please let the Lead Early Childhood Educator know if your child has any diet restrictions.
• Lunch: Please provide a lunch for your child daily. We will have lunch around noon in a family-style dining atmosphere. If you plan on sending a frozen meal we ask that you preheat this at home and place into a thermos. Unfortunately, we do not have a microwave in the Pre-Primary program environment.
• Extra Clothing: Your children will be experiencing lots of fun/messy play while in our program. Please ensure you have minimally one full change of clothes. Ensure your child is prepared for outdoor weather at all times as we go outside twice daily. If we do not have enough gear to change a child we will call home/work to ask for clothes to be brought to school or to pick up the child.
• All other supplies and materials are provided by the Pre-Primary program. We do not require families to purchase materials.

Most programs are offered in the neighbourhood elementary school, except for the following exceptions:

Some schools offer the program in an off-site location. These schools are:

Please note, these exceptions are subject to change year over year.

Pre-Primary is a fully inclusive program that welcomes all children. Early Childhood Educators(ECE) will work alongside families to learn the unique and special story of each child. The goal is always for child success. 

To support responsive programming for all children, it is extremely important that parents/guardians share with the school information related to their child’s learning styles, cultural backgrounds, strengths, challenges, interests, personal care, and/or medical diagnosis.

For answers to frequently asked questions, click here. 

For each site, there is a Pre-Primary Supervisor and Pre-Primary Assistant Supervisor that supports the program. To  ensure your child's needs are met, the Pre-Primary team works in  collaboration with many service providers, including: 

• Nova Scotia Early Childhood Developmental Intervention Services
• Nova Scotia Hearing and Speech
• IWK Infant and Preschool Rehabilitation Service Clinics (for physiotherapy and occupational therapy)
• IWK Early Intensive Behavioural Program for preschool children with Autism Spectrum Disorders. 

Did you know that ECEs, in consultation and collaboration with families, can submit referrals for additional services for children requiring more support?

• Nova Early Childhood Developmental Intervention Referral
• Nova Scotia Hearing and Speech Referral 
• IWK Infant and Preschool Rehabilitation Service Clinics Referral 

Our SchoolsPlus Team can also support you with the self-referral process.  

Bridging home and Pre-Primary: Meaningful Connections

Families are children’s first teachers! Talk to your child’s Early Childhood Educator (ECE) about how they practice a play-based approach. You may also want to ask how your family can encourage learning through play at home.

Questions you may consider asking your child's ECE:

• How will the pre-primary program prepare my child for school?
• How can I as a parent add to the pre-primary program’s information and understanding about my family’s culture?
• My child needs some additional supports in order to participate in activities with the rest of the children, how do you plan for that?
• How do early childhood educators expand children’s opportunities to learn through play?

In Pre-Primary, we focus on children’s social and emotional learning styles.

Here's what that looks like:

• Supporting your child’s relationship building
• Supporting your child’s confidence
• Supporting your child’s communication skills
• Teaching your child to identify and express emotions
• Teaching your child about feelings
• Making the most of playtime
• Teaching your child to become independent
• Nurturing your child’s social and emotional development

Want to learn more? For more information on social and emotional learning in the Pre-Primary Program, click below:

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