Kindergarten Registration

DISTRICT KINDERGARTEN REGISTRATION PROCEDURES FOR 2012/2013

Applications for all Kindergarten programs (including regular English, French Immersion, Montessori and Fine Arts) for the 2012/2013 school year will be accepted starting Monday, November 1, 2011.  Catchment students applying for registration between November 1, 2011 and January 31, 2012 will be given first consideration over those who apply later.

Fill out the student application form (fillable pdf) and bring it to your neighbourhood school when registering your child(ren). it contains a helpful checklist with the documents you'll need to bring with you to the school.

• For further information about Kindergarten registration procedures, see the Frequently Asked Questions

Should there be more applicants than available space in any program, a lottery will be held to determine the order of student placements for the program.  This process will replace the previous first come, first served procedure and eliminate the need for families to arrive early on the first day of registration.  

Students not selected from the draw will be added to a waitlist to be maintained by the school. Waitlisted students, in the interim, will be placed at a neighbouring school that has the available space, resources and staffing to accommodate them. 

Should a Kindergarten space become available at the catchment school during the school year, the student who is next on the waitlist will be offered the opportunity either to return immediately to the catchment school or to stay at the current school for the remainder of the school year.  Kindergarten waitlists will be maintained for the following year. 

(Please note that there may be different waitlist criteria for specific district programs such as French Immersion.)

Students born outside of Canada, must first register with their parent or legal guardian at the District Reception and Placement Centre (DRPC) before they can be accepted into the catchment school.  More specific information about registration procedures can be found on the general registration page.

Applications received after January 31 will not be considered until all in-catchment students who submitted an application prior to January 31 have been placed.  Late applicants, including siblings of in-catchment students already enrolled in the school, will be added in time-dated order to the end of the school’s in-catchment waitlist. Late in-catchment sibling applicants registering after January 31, however, will have priority consideration over other late in-catchment applicants.  This process will allow schools and families to recognize the importance of registration timelines and the schools’ effort in accommodating families who want to keep siblings together at the same catchment school.

Schools are expected to provide parents with written notification of their child’s status by mid-February of the current school year.  The letter should include either an offer of a space in Kindergarten or an indication of the child’s position on the school’s waitlist.

All families who submit a Kindergarten application prior to January 31, 2012 will be given notification of the school their child will be attending by March 30, 2012.  This includes waitlisted students who were unable to secure a spot during the lottery process.

Vancouver schools will begin accepting cross-boundary applications from February 15 to March 1, 2012. Families who submit a cross-boundary application during this time will be informed of their child’s status by March 30, 2012.

Cross boundary applications
Parents may apply cross-boundary to another school, but these applications will only be considered after all in-catchment applicants have been placed.

Vancouver schools will begin accepting cross-boundary applications from February 15 to March 1, 2012. Families who submit a cross-boundary application during this time will be informed of their child’s status by March 30, 2012.

Families should visit their neighbourhood school and pick up a cross boundary application form. On the form families are asked to indicate other schools to which they have submitted a cross boundary form.

If the requisite space and facilities are determined to be available, cross boundary applications will be accepted in the following priority:

• Students enrolled as residents during the current school year or accepted on a cross boundary application during the previous year;

• Siblings(when other siblings are attending the school concurrently); Students enrolled in on-site childcare programs, or whose childcare needs are provided within the attendance area;

• Students whose residence falls within the attendance areas of other Vancouver schools;

• Students whose residence falls outside the Vancouver School District

• Applications will be time and date stamped upon receipt at the school.

Families may only accept one cross boundary offer. Once a family agrees to accept an offer, their application for cross boundary at other schools will be nullified.

Waitlists will be established for cross boundary students not accepted, to be maintained until September 30.

Families can submit a cross boundary application after March 1; however, schools do not have an obligation to formally inform parents of their status. Cross-boundary applications submitted after March 1, 2012 will be processed on a first-come basis, accounting for space, program and staffing availability.

Unlike siblings of in-catchment students who will be concurrently attending the same school, siblings of cross boundary students do not have priority consideration for acceptance. Cross-boundary applications for a school other than their neighbourhood school will be accepted from February 15, 2012 through March 1, 2012.