Early childhood

The program “Franc départ” is an initiative of the B.C. Ministry of Education, implemented by the Conseil scolaire francophone. Its mission is to provide a variety of free activities at schools, in French, for Francophone children* aged 0 to 5 accompanied by an adult (either a parent or another person responsible for the child).

We would like to thank the government of British Columbia and the Ministry of Education in particular for its financial contribution.

Find out the brochure of the program !

Activities examples :

Organized activity
Activities planned by the educator that promote social learning and involve the families.

Circle
Children and adults gather to sing, dance, tell and listen to stories and take part in games.

Free play time
Parents and children have an opportunity to discover a wide range of educational toys together.

A learning environment where:

The parent is recognized as their child’s first educator.
French is used in a living, stimulating Francophone environment that fosters the child’s language acquisition.
Play is central: the child and adult learn about each other while exploring together. The transition to kindergarten is facilitated through activities that introduce the ideas of reading and writing.
Each family is unique and helps enrich the program, providing an opportunity to develop a social network and break down isolation.
Parents and children can familiarize themselves with the school environment, get to know school staff, and learn about services offered in French in the community.

1,2,3, allons-y (1,2,3 off we go)

This program is an initiative of the government of British Columbia to help prepare preschool age children for school. The government is committed to ensuring the children’s success when they start kindergarten.

The Ministry of Education provides funding to school boards to organize activities or events for preschool age children and their families through the schools. These activities and events must promote literacy and numeracy and encourage children’s development through play.

Tiens-moi la main, j’embarque (Hold my hand, I’m on my way)

The goal of this innovative program is to provide 4-year-olds with all the tools they will need when they start kindergarten, and to help prepare them for the school environment. Since parents play the primary role in their child’s life, they are given an appropriately prominent role in the project.

The program starts with a Direct Assessment, an individual evaluation of participants in the program “Tiens-moi la main, j’embarque!”, to evaluate four key areas in the children’s development:

self-awareness and awareness of their environment
cognitive abilities and skills
language and communication
development of fine and gross motor skills

After the Direct Assessment, a profile of each child’s development is created, and based on the strengths and needs identified, interventions are put in place to equip them and provide them with stimulation in preparation for the beginning of school. For more information on the Direct Assessment, click here.

During the program “Tiens-moi la main, j’embarque!”, children and parents are invited to participate in monthly group meetings led by a qualified facilitator. These meetings give children a taste of how much fun it is to learn in French!