École St-Charles School

Infobox Education in Canada
name= École St-Charles School


imagesize= 90px
motto=
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streetaddress= 4331 Ste-Anne
city= Montreal
province= Quebec
postalcode= H9H 4G7
areacode= 514
phone= 626-0480
fax= 626-5522
email= [e-mail]
url= http://stcharles.lbpsb.qc.ca/
schoolnumber=
schoolboard= Lester B. Pearson School Board
affiliation=
superintendent=
trustee=
principal= Marie-Josée Coiteux, 2008–
viceprincipal=
administrator= Pauline Sciortino, 2006–2007
schooltype= Public Elementary
grades= Kindergarten, grades 1 to 6
language= English and French
area=
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founded= 1965
enrollment=
enrollment_as_of=

École St-Charles School is a non-denominational, early immersion, [ [http://www.lbpsb.qc.ca/~stcharles/page%202%20Message%20.htm Official website, Principal's message] ] French and English speaking educational facility located in Montreal, (formerly Pierrefonds), Quebec, Canada with an enrollment of approximately 430 students, in grades kindergarten through grade 6. It operates within the Lester B. Pearson School Board and has functioned as an elementary school since it opened its doors to students in 1965.

History

St-Charles began as an English speaking, Catholic school under the auspice of the Baldwin-Cartier School Commission, built to accommodate West Island population expansion at the beginning of the 1960s. Prior to opening, other established schools like École Sainte-Geneviève (formerly Saint Anne School), located in Sainte-Geneviève, Quebec, served the needs of the English-speaking community. At the time, the school offered both kindergarten and grades 1 through 7, and was the only building in the immediate area, surrounded entirely by farmland until [http://stthomasabecket.org/web/index.html St. Thomas à Becket Parish Church] was constructed next door. Indeed the school offered Sunday services to English speaking parishioners until the church was completed in 1969. In 1968, the school initiated its “Cycle” program, where students rotated classrooms, to prepare students for the eventual Secondary school curriculum that followed.

ArchitectureSt-Charles was built as a simple box-design over a two-story "reflected plan" — meaning that one side mirrored the other — along an axial core. Constructed entirely in concrete, it featured a large gymnasium at the center, a cafeteria that overlooked it from an enclosed gallery and administrative offices situated below. It employed conventional classrooms that faced SE and NW, and was sheathed in a unique array of pre-fabricated window louvers that covered the entire façades of both exposures. Stylistically it was considered radical for any structure located on the West Island at the time. Built on a high ridge overlooking the town of Sainte-Geneviève located to the north, it was easily visible from the nearby region, particularly because it was painted entirely white and stood out vividly from the picturesque, sparsely-treed landscape that surrounded it. In 2002, the school received a retrofit when the louvers on the south side of the building were replaced with conventional windows.

St-Charles School

At present the school boasts a full, early immersion program [ [http://www.lbpsb.qc.ca/~stcharles/our%20programs.htm Official website, Programs page] ] for all graders, and rotates the curriculum from one cycle to the next.

CYCLE 1 Students enrolled in kindergarten, and grades 1 and 2 receive estimated instructions of 85% in French and 15% in English.

*French is the Language of instruction in Language Arts, Mathematics, Fine Arts, Sciences & Technologies and Social Sciences.
*English is the Language of Instruction in Religious & Moral Instruction, Physical Education and English Language Arts Enhancement.

Cycles 2 and 3 Students enrolled in grades 3, 4, 5 and 6 receive estimated instruction of 43% in French and 57% in English

*English is the Language of Instruction in Language Arts, Mathematics, Religious & Moral Instruction, Physical Education and Personal and Social Education.
*French is the Language of instruction in Language Arts, Fine Arts, Sciences & Technologies and Social Sciences.

The school also offers a comprehensive music and physical education program, and day care services.

Trivia

* Before Rue Ste-Anne was linked to the school property, St-Charles' address was listed on Rue Harold.
* In the early days, the school was surrounded by apple orchards to the east.
* Television and radio personality Steve Anthony, know then as Steve Gomes, was a student here.

Photos

Footnotes

External links

* [http://stcharles.lbpsb.qc.ca/ Official website]
* [http://sketchup.google.com/3dwarehouse/details?mid=d54c1abeaeb202b762a79003068f0176&prevstart=0/ St. Charles can be viewed as a 3D model on Google Earth]