Those at Westpark School are gearing up for another year, with the start of the school year only about a month away. While minor renovations have been taking place throughout the summer, there's also a sense of excitement surrounding the expansion of their French language program. Pastor of Education Ministries Lydia Stoez says they previously only had French lessons between Grades 4 through 8, with French offered as an elective in the high school grades. However, she says this fall they're expanding the program to the younger grades.

"We're really excited about the new French program we're bringing into the school. It's going to be Kindergarten through Grade 8. We're bringing in early years French."

Westpark's teachers will be utilizing a teaching method known as Accelerative Integrated Method, or AIM. The method combines physical actions with the language being taught, with the goal of having the children better retain the information.

"It's very much based on education theory and research that's been done that shows you learn better when you're moving. It's linking kinaesthetics with language acquisition. It's really exciting to be using that kind of stuff that's on the forefront of education research."

Stoez says students may also notice a few changes to the appearance of their building when they return in September. She says on top of some minor renovations, they're completely redoing the reception area, and work has already been completed on their gravel parking lot, something that was necessary due after soft spots began to form in the area.