Sherwood Park, AB. — In addition to STEM Kindergarten, Elk Island Public Schools (EIPS) is piloting a full-day kindergarten program for French Immersion at École Parc Élémentaire.

Students in the program will attend kindergarten for a full school day, every day. Students will follow the regular French Immersion curriculum from Alberta Education but will have more opportunities to go in-depth into the French language.

“This full-day kindergarten program will be a truly immersive experience,” says Tandy Atchison, the Principal at École Parc Élémentaire. “Students will be immersed five days a week—hearing, speaking and reading French on a daily basis. Accessing the French language in this way will boost their literacy skills at an early age, setting them up for success in and outside of school.”

To ensure the program is self-sustainable, families must pay an additional cost for the full-day program as Alberta Education only funds a half-day kindergarten program. Normally, the program fee would be $350 per month—however, because of the Official Languages in Education Programs Grant, EIPS can offer the program at a subsidized cost of $75 per month for a total of $750. Parents and caregivers will be able to pay the fee annually, quarterly or monthly. The monthly fee covers staffing costs, field trips and consumable supplies to support the programming.

Families residing within EIPS’ Division boundaries may apply to attend full-day French Immersion kindergarten at École Parc Élémentaire. This program will need to have sufficient registration for it to be offered for the 2025-26 school year.

Families can register their child in the program as part of the 2025-26 Kindergarten Registration process that opens 9 a.m. on February 1. Different to regular kindergarten programming, parents and caregivers must apply for this program by February 28. If there are more applicants than spots available, a random selection draw will take place. Families will be notified of their child’s acceptance into full-day French Immersion kindergarten after March 1, 2025.

Elk Island Public Schools is one of Alberta’s largest school divisions, serving approximately 17,950 students in 42 schools. We are proud to be an integral part of our communities, including Sherwood Park, Fort Saskatchewan, Vegreville, Strathcona and Lamont counties, and the western portion of the County of Minburn.

RELATED INFORMATION
EIPS French Immersion

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For more information, media can contact:
Laura McNabb, Director, Communication Services, EIPS 780-417-8204 cell 780-405-4902