ISANS Certified as an Accredited Testing Centre

ISANS is now an accredited language test centre for the Canadian English Language Proficiency Index Program (CELPIP) and the Canadian Academic English Language Computer Edition (CAEL CE) tests. Proof of English and/or French language proficiency can be a requirement for education, regulated professions, immigration applications, and Canadian Citizenship. As Nova … Read more

Communication Strategies for OSCEs

Are you a doctor or a pharmacist looking to improve your chances of passing the Objective Structured Clinical Examinations (OSCEs)? This 8-week, online course will help you improve your communication skills for  the OSCEs! You will study for 8 to 10 hours each week: up to 3 hours in online … Read more

ISANS hosts TESL NS Fall Conference

ISANS was host to the Teachers of English as a Second Language (TESL) Nova Scotia (NS) Fall Conference on Saturday, November 17. More than 100 EAL teachers and program administrators came together to network and share their knowledge and best practices for inclusive teaching. The conference included four keynote speakers, … Read more

Newcomers learn to camp

Friday was a beautiful day to learn to camp! More than 60 newcomers in language classes at ISANS took part in the Parks Canada Learn to Camp program at Westmount Park on July 13. Learn to Camp teaches participants the knowledge and skills needed to plan and camp outdoors, giving … Read more

(Aya Al-Hakim/CBC)

ISANS using literacy app to accelerate refugee children’s English reading skills

By: Aya Al-Hakim, CBC News April 28, 2018. Children from newcomer families are learning to read English letters and words faster by using a literacy app at Immigrant Services Association of Nova Scotia (ISANS) children’s centres. Squiggle Park is a reading game created by a Halifax start-up in 2015 to help accelerate kids’ reading skills in only 30 minutes of weekly play. The app has been used since February as part of a pilot program sponsored by Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada.  

Squiggle Park & Early Childhood Education at ISANS

ISANS is known for its extensive list of services for newcomers, including settlement services, language classes, employment counselling and job-readiness programs, support for immigrant business and much more. Our Early Childhood Education (ECE) team are some of the many staff working behind-the-scenes to make sure newcomers have access to these … Read more

English at the Kitchen Table

By Crystal MacMillan, TESL NS Newsletter, 2 May 2017. With the small hands of toddlers grabbing at pencil and paper, a baby crying in the lap, and a senior family member in need of help, a young mother studying English at home certainly has her struggles. The learning environment is … Read more

Care For Newcomer Children In Action: Syrian Newcomers

By CMAS (Childminding Monitoring, Advisory and Support) All hands on deck: How one CNC program coped with the influx ISANS Care For Newcomer Children (CNC) Program is no stranger to welcoming newcomer families with open arms. When approximately 100 Syrian refugee families arrived within the same period, the staff had … Read more

Speaking the same language

By Moira Donovan, The Coast, 02 February 2017.  The Mellis are just five out of thousands of Syrian refugees who came to Canada over the last year. The Melli family think about their journey in terms of routes. There are the one they took to flee their apartment in a … Read more