Friday January 20, 2023 | LANGFORD, BC [Update January 24, 2023: so far there are 814 children registered for Kindergarten — Nature K and French Immersion, and part-way through Regular Kindergarten registration which is open to 3 pm Jan 27, 2023. Associate Superintendent Paul Block says that is a bit low for Regular Kindergarten, but there are still three more days for registration.]
Sooke school district news | by Mary P Brooke | Island Social Trends
The popularity of Nature Kindergarten and French Immersion Kindergarten proves strong for the 2023-2024 school year in Sooke School District (SD62).
The 29 schools in SD62 are located in Langford, Colwood and Sooke.
The registration for Nature K and French Immersion K was available online January 9 to 13, for a September 2023 start. Filling up the available seats is done by lottery, as there are almost always more registrants than available spots.
Children who turn age 5 years in 2023 (i.e. born in 2018) are eligible for Kindergarten for a September 2023 start. Across BC, there are 853 hours of instruction for each Kindergarten child through the academic year.
Waitlist Nature K:
Nature Kindergarten (aka Nature K) is offered at two elementary schools: Sangster Elementary in Colwood and Saseenos Elementary in Sooke. There are 20 seats at each school for the Nature K program. After the Jan 9 to 13 registration period, these are the waitlists:
- Sangster Nature K (in Colwood) had availability for 20 students; 24 are waitlisted. (45 families attended the required pre-registration info session)
- Saseenos Nature K (in Sooke) had availability for 20 students; 2 are waitlisted. (32 families attended the required pre-registration info session)
Prior to the opening of registration, parents were required to attend one of the one-hour Nature K info sessions (one held at each of Sangster and Saseenos, whether the child would be registered at one or the other).
Waitlist French Immersion:
A total of 144 French Immersion Kindergarten seats are offered in SD62, across three schools: John Stubbs (in Colwood), Millstream Elementary (in Langford), and at Ecole Poirier (in Sooke). After the Jan 9 to 13 registration period, these are the waitlists:
- John Stubbs (in Colwood) had availability for 80 students; 8 are waitlisted.
- Millstream (in Langford) had availability for 24 students; 4 are waitlisted.
- Poirier (in Sooke) had availability for 40 students; currently no waitlist.
Regular Kindergarten registration coming up:
Online registration for SD62 Regular Kindergarten starts at 8 am on Monday January 23 and runs to 3 pm on Friday January 27.
===== RELATED:
Fingers crossed for Nature K & French Immersion Kindergarten registrations (Jan 10, 2023)
SD62 Kindergarten registration for Fall 2023 starts in January (Dec 29, 2022)
===== ABOUT ISLAND SOCIAL TRENDS:
Island Social Trends Editor Mary P Brooke has followed the news of School District 62 since 2014, attending nearly all SD62 board and committee meetings since 2014. | SD62 NEWS ARCHIVE
Ms Brooke has been the editor of a series of publications on the west shore since 2008: MapleLine Magazine (2008-2010), Sooke Voice News (2011-2013), West Shore Voice News (2014-2020) and now Island Social Trends (online since mid-2020). | FREE ENEWS | PREMIUM SUBSCRIPTIONS
Mary Brooke was a SD62 school trustee candidate in the October 2022 election (Belmont Zone — Langford, Colwood, Metchosin, Highlands). She is the mother of four now-adult children who attended schools in SD61, SD62, and SD72.