When my kids were babies and toddlers, I basically had a part-time job I didn’t apply for: tracking down Baby Time and Story Time schedules across every branch in town. Each branch runs them on different days, at different times — almost always mornings — so I’d map out my week around which library was…
Here’s the part of Canadian music education that made me sit up as a parent: the exams my daughter takes with her private violin teacher can count as high school graduation credit. Not extra-curricular. Not “looks nice on an application.” Actual credit, the same as passing a Grade 10, 11 or 12 course — through…
My younger daughter started the violin in Grade 5, in a free school strings program. By the end of that year she said the words every parent half-hopes and half-dreads: “I want to learn more.” So in Grade 6 we found her a private teacher. And almost immediately I started hearing two letters I didn’t…
If you’re raising kids in Canada, sooner or later you’ll think: “Every kid here seems to play an instrument. Should mine?” I had the same question. What I didn’t know at the time was how much of it the school takes care of — and where a parent actually has to step in. I have…
When my second child turned three, I kept hearing the same thing from other parents: “Honestly, it’s barely worth going back to work once you factor in daycare costs.” I believed it. Full-time care felt completely out of reach, so I only sent her to a preschool program for three hours a day — and…
Hi, I’m Annie — I’ve lived in Canada for over 10 years, and all three of my kids have gone through the Canadian public school system. This post is based on my own family’s experience. When we first moved to Canada, I kept hearing the same two words over and over at school registration: French…
I still remember walking my daughter into her Grade 1 classroom for the very first time. She didn’t speak a word of English. School had just started in September, and I already knew the days would get shorter and rainier soon. I was terrified. I’m originally from South Korea, and back home, the school system,…
The first fall my kids were in a Canadian school, an email showed up in my inbox: “Please book your Parent-Teacher Conference time.” I assumed I’d have to call the office and ask for a slot, the way I would have back home. Instead, the email had one link — a shared Google Sheet. I…
The first time I heard the words “show and tell,” I was standing at pickup, half-listening to my daughter’s friend announce that she was “bringing a toy next week.” I remember thinking: bringing a toy where, exactly? Is that allowed? Nothing in the school’s supply list had mentioned toys. Nothing in my head had a…
When I first tried to figure out when to register my kids for elementary school in Canada, I felt lost. Was there a deadline? Did I need to apply online, or show up in person? I ended up visiting a school district office with a stack of visa papers in my hand, only to be…
