School in Canada
In Canada, the individual provinces are responsible for the school system. That is why it is not uniform. It’s like in Germany, where the federal states decide on school matters. However, the differences in Canada are even greater than ours. In some Canadian provinces you start school at 5 years old, in others at 6 years old. Elementary school can last for six or seven years. Elementary school is followed by high school, first three years junior high school, then senior high school for two to four years. There are no intermediate exams during the transition. The schooling lasts a total of twelve years.
What all schools have in common is that they are all-day schools. So the students don’t come home until the afternoon. In addition, everyone goes to school together, there is no division according to primary school.
Classes are in English or French, depending on the province. Even kindergartens are often bilingual. If you like, you can take part in a so-called immersion program at school: The lessons are then not in the mother tongue, but in the other language. Actually quite practical, right? In some provinces many students take part in the program, in others, especially in the west, only a few.
In primary school there are grades 1 to 4+. 4+ is the best grade. At the secondary school, students receive percentage points. So 100 is the best grade here. School uniforms are not common in Canada; students only wear them in private schools. Every student has a locker for their school supplies. It is not the teacher who comes into the classroom, but the students go to the teacher in his room. So the students change rooms every hour.
The school year in Canada starts in September and ends in late June. So July and August are summer holidays.
Children in Canada
How do the children live in Canada? Many children play sports. Ice hockey and lacrosse are very popular, but so are soccer and basketball, and girls also dance. Many families have pets, often several.
Young Canadians enjoy pancakes with maple syrup, toast or cornflakes for breakfast. At lunchtime there is only a snack, in the evening a warm meal. For example, Mac and Cheese is often prepared, i.e. cheese macaroni. Those who go to school get something to eat there at noon. In most schools, classes start at 8:45 a.m. Sports courses often take place beforehand. So you have to get up early in Canada, a country located in North America according to topschoolsintheusa.
School only ends in the afternoon, so it takes up a lot of space in the students’ lives. Many of them stay at the school even then, as more activities are now being offered. It can be a choir or chess or working in the school newspaper – and of course sports. In addition to lacrosse and ice hockey, these are often cheerleading, softball, curling, rugby or canoeing. If there is still time after school, games are played, the children meet up with friends or pursue their other hobbies. Watching TV and playing games on cell phones or on a game console are also very popular with Canadian children.
Because the country is so big, almost every family has a car or several cars. At the age of 16 you can get a driver’s license and then the child often gets a car too. By the way, you drive on the right in Canada, like with us.
Boys born in Canada are particularly often named Liam or Jackson. William, Lucas and Noah are also popular. Girls are particularly often called Emma, Olivia, Sophia, Zoe or Emily. The most common surnames are Li, Smith, Lam, Martin, Brown, Roy, Tremblay, and Lee.
How do Canadians live?
When you think of Canada with us, you most likely imagine large forests and a lot of solitude. In fact, large parts of Canada are barely or not at all inhabited. Still, most Canadians live in a city, 82 percent. Life there is not that different from ours.
There are single-family houses, but also large skyscrapers in which people live. You shop in the supermarket, there are streets and lots of cars. The winters in Canada, however, are really long and cold. Every child in Canada has thick winter jackets and warm boots! Of course, there is no snow all year round. The summers are actually quite warm in many places!
Canadians are considered extremely friendly people. So you hear “Sorry” all the time, similar to the English. Even if someone steps on you, you apologize not only when you did that, but also when you were kicked. Smiling and greeting other people exuberantly are simply part of everyday life in Canada.
For shopping there are normal supermarkets and huge shopping centers. The most famous supermarket chains are Walmart and Safeway. Shops are usually open between 10 a.m. and 6 p.m., large shopping malls are open until 9 p.m. Thursdays are often open longer while the shops are closed on Sundays. Everything similar to ours.
In contrast to ours, the prices in Canada are quoted without VAT. So it comes at the checkout. The largest department store chains are Hudson’s Bay and Simon.
As in major cities in the United States, street sales take place regularly in Canada. Then the goods can be bought much cheaper than before, for example clothes, shoes, furniture or household appliances.