Сhildren are immigrants. Are they scared in their new country?

Elena has been thinking about immigrating to Canada for a long time and has had a difficult journey. Elena has 3 children: Sofia, 3.5 years old, Eva, 9 years old, and Jacob, 15 years old. Of course, as a mother, she was worried about the difficulties of adapting her children to school and Canadian society.

The children knew about the plans to immigrate to Canada and took the news of moving with joy. After their arrival, the eldest went to school, and the youngest is still at home.

How do children overcome the lack of the English language?

Elena says: "The little girl does not speak English, but now she can say a few simple phrases. For example, she names objects, fruit, and vegetables in English in the game. Soon she will go to additional classes for kids, and her language skills will be developed faster.

My middle daughter started learning English in Ukraine only last year, she studied Dutch in the Netherlands. In Canada, she had to learn English and French again. Despite the difficulties, Eva enjoys learning.

My son, on the other hand, doesn't have any difficulties. He additionally studied English at a language course in Ukraine and was the best student in his class. So there are no barriers to communication.

How does adaptation in school go: communication with peers and teachers?

The older children were assigned to different Catholic schools. The children were assigned according to their year of birth. In Ukraine, they would have gone to the 3rd and the 9th grades, but in Canada, they were enrolled in the 4th and the 10th grades. According to the middle daughter, she was very warmly welcomed in her class.

The administration assigned a girl to Eva, who is a year older and speaks English and Ukrainian. And the boys have even begun to learn Ukrainian so that they can communicate. The teachers try to help and support her in any way they can.

In addition, they started the program "Swim to survive" with the children. Parents filled out the appropriate paperwork, and the school took care of everything else.

My son made friends right away in the first days, both from Ukraine and from other countries. They also have different fairs and interesting festivals at their school. They often go on excursions.

For example, on Halloween, children and teachers dressed up in different costumes and taught lessons with a similar theme.

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In middle school, the teacher duplicates to parents what the children have passed and their homework through a mobile app. The Department of Education uses School Messenger to notify parents of news.

They have not yet attended any additional classes. They do their homework easily and do most of it at school. The oldest does his homework through Google Class, and the teachers send progress reports to his parents in the mail.

Organization of school life

In case of illness or bad weather, children may not go to school, but learning continues online. If the child does not have a tablet or computer, the school will provide it.

Every month parents receive in the mail a mini-newspaper for the last month and plans for the next month. For example:

• information about book fairs;
• sports competitions;
• planned excursions;
• a calendar with various events for the new month.

Elena notes that she is very surprised by teacher-student equality. If there is a pyjama party at school, the teacher also comes in pyjamas. Every child here is an individual.

How much does it cost to send children to school?

You don't have to pay dues at school. If there is a day with lunch, such as Pizza Day, you have to pay for your child's pizza through the Cash Online app.

In Ontario, you can get an allowance for children. The amount depends on the number of children in the family and the parents' incomes. The average is about $690 CAD per month. My eldest child was given a certificate for $300 CAD to buy uniforms with the school logo on them before he started school. Children were also given a one-time allowance of $200 CAD each for tuition, supplies, or equipment for the 2022-2023 school year.

We're working on a full-length interview with Elena, where she'll share her tips on getting off to an easy start in Canada, the challenges of visas, and the move itself. In the meantime, subscribe to our YouTube channel so you don't miss out.

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