“This is a school that has always welcomed children from all over the world.”

At Carson Grove Elementary School, the names on the cubbies range from Brandon to Aryadeep and Rhianna to Araf. In the library at the centre of the school’s 1970s era open-plan design, the books are labelled DL for dual language. Not for English and French, but for English and Bengali, Farsi, Russian or Urdu. Home to students from 40 countries, this small east-end institution has welcomed newcomers to Canada for decades.

Irene Cameron has been the principal at Carson Grove for five years. When the Syrian crisis started to make the news, she knew her school of just over 200 students would receive some Syrian children eventually — she just didn’t know when or how many.

“Between April and June of 2016, we welcomed 110 Syrian students, so we grew to 330 in just a few months,” says Irene. “That was daunting.”

All four of Ottawa’s school boards quickly scaled up their existing newcomer reception programs in 2016, assessing the children, assigning them to schools and reassuring the parents. But none had as many arrivals in as short a time as Carson Grove.

“The welcoming part was easy, but the large numbers were a challenge,” says Irene. “We had to start new classrooms and hire extra teachers. Most of our teachers are well versed in teaching ESL and working with new Canadians, but they also had to deal with the practicalities of fitting in more chairs and tables and finding more materials. Everyone pitched in. Looking back, I don’t know how we did it, but everything seemed to work.”

Carson Grove PS welcomed 110 Syrian children between April and June 2016.

“Some of the Syrian children had never been to school,” Irene says. “When they arrived, they were so excited, but at the same time, we knew that there was a lot of angst and anxiety. They were wondering what would be expected of them.”

One unexpected challenge was a health and safety requirement that most of us take for granted: the fire drill. “Even with practice and lots of explanation, this was really frightening for many of the children. Their reaction to the siren going off was very sad for us to see,” shares Irene. “For most of the children, it took a long time to feel safe.”

The students at Carson Grove are so used to welcoming newcomers to the school, that the influx of Syrian students didn’t faze them. “The children that are already here just want to take care of them so much. And I think that’s because that’s what was done for them too. It’s really amazing to watch children helping children.”

Irene has long fostered strong ties to the community, and there was no shortage of organizations stepping up to help welcome the new arrivals.

Christie Lake Camp hosted two camp weekends for families from Carson Grove — they went swimming and canoeing, rode mountain bikes and had campfires. A group from Mont Tremblant took the older students for a ski day. A local business collected 45 pairs of skates so the students could make use of the school’s outdoor rink, and the Rag and Bone Puppet company put on a free show about puppets coming to a new country. Local mosques and Muslim associations banded together to raise $12,000 to fund field trips, concerts and science projects at Carson Grove.

“We are so blessed to live in a community that is so generous and kind,” says Irene.

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All four of Ottawa’s school boards work closely with settlement agencies and community partners to make the transition into school smooth and the welcome as warm as possible for newcomer students and their families.

Family Reception Centre
Ottawa-Carleton District School Board
Conseil des écoles catholiques du Centre-Est
Conseil des écoles publiques de l’Est de l’Ontario