Our Lady of Fatima School is a Class 1, Independent, English and French Immersion School accredited in British Columbia under the terms of the Independent School Act.

As a Christ centered community, we at Our Lady of Fatima School, strive to foster a safe, respectful, and inclusive environment in which all students can develop morally, intellectually, socially, and physically. We are called to be witnesses of faith and to serve God in the very important mission of evangelization. We recognize the uniqueness of the individual and that learning is a life-long journey that embraces all members of our community: teachers, students and parents. “Love one another as I have loved you”

VISION STATEMENT 

At Our Lady of Fatima School, we:

• Appreciate and celebrate cultural diversity
• Are respectful of others and their rights and responsibilities
• Are committed to best teaching practices and quality instruction to achieve optimal results for our students
• Believe that learning is a life- long process for students, staff and parents
• Believe that all students are able to achieve academic and personal growth and success
• Will provide an environment in which every individual is cared for spiritually, morally, intellectually, physically, socially and emotionally
• Will provide, in partnership with parents, a quality education so that all pupils are able to reach their full potential within a caring, secure environment
• Will provide a stimulating learning environment with a technological orientation across the whole curriculum, which maximizes individual potential and ensures students of all ability levels are well equipped to meet the challenges of education, work and life
• Expect that the students leave Our Lady of Fatima School with a set of spiritual and moral values – honesty, integrity and good judgement
• Expect that the students will have a strong self-esteem and high personal expectation
• Expect that the students have tolerance and respect for others
• Expect that the students are fully formed in Christ and will go out into the community to serve and lead

PRINCIPAL’S MESSAGE

Our Lady of Fatima School was established in 1947 and has provided education for the children of Roman Catholic families since that time. In the early days the school was operated entirely by Our Lady of Fatima Parish. Today, although the parish is responsible for the school’s capital costs and provides a subsidy each year, school fees and partial funding from the Ministry of Education cover the school’s operating costs. The school’s education committee aims to keep fees as low as possible and financial aid is available for Catholic families who contribute to their parishes.

Catholic schools form the largest part of all independent schools in British Columbia and the Catholic schools of the Vancouver Archdiocese comprise the largest part of that group. Independent schools comprise 10% of all schools in British Columbia. Even though the number of school age children in British Columbia is declining, resulting in the closure of public schools across the province, the overall independent school enrollment is increasing every year.

When French Immersion schools were first formed in British Columbia in the 1970s, Our Lady of Fatima School was part of that movement. In 1992 we began an English stream to accommodate those Catholic families who wanted to enroll their children in the mainstream English curriculum. The school is now a completely dual stream school with both French Immersion and English classes at every grade level, from Kindergarten to Grade 7. The school follows the prescribed British Columbia curriculum with the addition of the Archdiocesan religion curriculum.

Our Lady of Fatima School provides a faith-based education in both French and English. All our teachers are fully qualified and licenced to teach by the Ministry of Education and the British Columbia College of Teachers. While the school and its teachers expect students to strive for excellence in the classroom, we also recognize that not all children learn in the same way and at the same rate and we endeavor to help all children to succeed. The school has a policy of accommodating children with special needs and to include those children within the regular classroom setting. In addition to the classroom program the school has a learning assistance center operating under the direction of a learning assistance coordinator.

School masses take place twice a month, alternating Thursday and Friday, and student led para liturgies are celebrated for all the major liturgical seasons. Grade 2 (First Communion and First Confession) and Grade 7 (Confirmation) are important sacramental years. A varied extracurricular sports program is available to the students. Our sports teams compete against other Catholic schools under the aegis of the Catholic Elementary Sports Commission. Cultural events and performances are also a major component of school life at Our Lady of Fatima School. The school employs a full-time physical education teacher and a full-time music teacher.

Kindergarten registration for both the English and the French Immersion program begins early December and remains open until both classes are filled. Registration for Grades 1-7 begins in mid-March.

L’école de Fatima fut établie en 1947 en vue de donner une éducation chrétienne aux enfants des familles catholiques. Au début, l’école était soutenue entièrement par la paroisse Notre-Dame de Fatima. Aujourd’hui, bien que la paroisse soit responsable des frais d’entretien de l’école, et qu’elle la subventionne tous les ans, les frais de scolarité et certains fonds provenant du ministère de l’Éducation en couvrent les frais d’opération. Le comité d’éducation de l’école vise à maintenir les frais d’inscription le plus bas possible. La paroisse offre également de l’aide financière à toute famille catholique qui contribue à la paroisse.

Les écoles catholiques forment la plus grande partie de toutes les écoles indépendantes de la Colombie-Britannique. Les écoles catholiques de l’archidiocèse de Vancouver viennent au premier rang. Les écoles indépendantes représentent 10% de toutes les écoles de la Colombie-Britannique. Bien que le nombre d’enfants d’âge scolaire accuse une baisse dans notre province, le nombre d’inscriptions dans les écoles indépendantes augmente tous les ans.

Lorsque les écoles d’immersion en français virent le jour en Colombie-Britannique au cours des années 70, Notre-Dame de Fatima en faisait partie. En 1972, une section anglaise fut ajoutée en vue de servir les familles catholiques qui voulaient incrire leurs enfants dans ce programme. L’école comprend maintenant les deux sections avec des classes d’immersion en français et des classes en anglais à tous les niveaux, du jardin au grade 7. Outre le programme religieux de l’archidiocèse, l’école enseigne le curriculum prescrit en Colombie-Britannique.

L’école Notre-Dame de Fatima offre une éducation en français et en anglais qui repose sur la foi. Tous nos enseignants ont les diplômes nécessaires, reconnus du Ministère de l’Éducation et du British Columbia College of Teachers. L’école et ses enseignants s’attendent à ce que les élèves visent l’excellence dans la classe tout en reconnaissant que tous n’apprennent pas de la même façon et à la même vitesse. Notre tâche consiste à les aider à réussir. Notre école a une politique qui vise à aider les enfants qui ont des besoins spéciaux et à inclure ces élèves dans les classes régulières. En plus des programmes réguliers, l’école a un centre d’aide aux élèves qui ont des difficultés, dirigé par un professeur auxiliaire.

Deux fois par mois, les élèves assistent à la messe . Les élèves préparent eux mêmes des para liturgies pour célébrer chacune des principales saisons liturgiques de l’année. Les sacrements occupent une place importante pour le grade 2 (première communion et première confession) et pour le grade 7. (Confirmation). Les enfants peuvent également participer à un programme de sports extra-curriculaire. Nos équipes sportives sont en compétition avec d’autres écoles catholiques sous l’égide de la Catholic Elementary Sports Commission. Les événements sociaux et les spectacles ont aussi une grande place dans la vie scolaire à Notre-Dame de Fatima. L’école emploie un moniteur de culture physique et un professeur de musique, tous les deux à temps plein.

L’inscription au Jardin pour les programmes d’immersion en français et en anglais commence début décembre et reste ouverte jusqu’à ce que les deux classes soient remplies. L’inscription des grades 1 à 7 commence à la mi-mars.