<p>When we lived in Ontario, our kids were in elementary and middle schools. A difference at that time was that giftedness (I noticed your screenname) was considered under the same legislation as all other Special Needs. This was a very different understanding than in the U.S., and protected the delivery of gifted services much more in Canada by law. I don’t recall if that was PRovincial or national law.</p>
<p>Districts (at least in Ontario) had to provide in some way for services. Regretfully, as we left Canada in 1994, there was already a pullback in how they defined delivery of those services. Still, they had to do “something” for gifted children; it just became more watered down in 1994 for Ontario.</p>
<p>I would suggest you find out if Giftedness is in any way covered under the Special Needs Education laws that cover public schools in Alberta, and take it from there. That’s not a complete answer to your inquiry, but just the little piece I know from experience. </p>
<p>Also, when we moved to a new city within Ontario (from Ottawa to a Toronto suburb), we had to prove with all kinds of testing documentation that our kids were gifted AND receiving services already. So be prepared with any test results, letters, descriptions of how your former school applied differentiated education to your children, curriculum documents - whatever’s in writing, gather it up. </p>
<p>If there’s no curriculum document already written, perhaps the dean of your current private school can write a letter describing how education is delivered with differentiations of curriculum for your gifted children. In other words, you may have to prove the children are accustomed to receiving a gifted or enriched curriculum thus far in their schooling. </p>
<p>For us, this helped the transfer. Without all our documentation, they would’ve put the kids into regular settings in September until such time as they could test, resulting in at least a half-year delay in placing them into the available gifted programs. The documentation I presented got them in from the start, which was a better transition for them in a new school district, new city. </p>
<p>If you have advance notice, perhaps you can find out what I.Q. tests are administered in that district, and arrange for same to be administered and all done, before you arrive?</p>
<p>ETA: Biggest schooling difference for me, moving from U.S. to Canadian metropolitan areas was this: Canadian schools are funded and administered by Province, not by local property taxes and a local school board. That meant more equality and universality of schooling across the city and province. </p>
<p>Before I arrived, I wanted to know which neighborhood or suburb to buy housing, in order to find “best schools.” I was told, “That’s a very American question.” Later, when I worked in Ottawa public schools as a substitute teacher, I saw again that schools were not much different across the city, in richer and poorer neighborhoods. Perhaps that will also be true for you in Calgary. It takes off a lot of pressure as to where you will decide to live within (or nearby) Calgary, if school offerings are more-or-less even handed. </p>
<p>I hope you find good schooling for your family! Good luck with the big move.</p>
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