With deep gratitude and respect, we are honoured to be learning and unlearning on the ancestral and unceded lands of the xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam), Sḵwxwú7mesh Úxwumixw (Squamish Nation) & səlilwətaɬ (Tsleil-Waututh Nation).

Sir John Franklin Elementary School was established in 1911 and is situated in the furthest northeastern corner of Vancouver on the ancestral and unceded lands of the xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam), Sḵwxwú7mesh Úxwumixw (Squamish Nation) & səlilwətaɬ (Tsleil-Waututh Nation). It is a warm and welcoming school community set within a diverse, stable and long-established neighborhood.

Upon entering the main entrance of the school students and visitors will see our Welcome Board where staff photos are proudly displayed to welcome visitors to the school. With a staff of 35, comprised of both full and part-time teaching and support staff, we enroll approximately 214 students from Kindergarten through grade seven in 11 classrooms. The student body is diverse including 29 students with diverse Ministry designations which identify their diverse learning need In addition, our classes include 52 English Language Learners (ELL) at various stages in their English language acquisition. Our Indigenous students make up 8% of our total student body and add significantly to our population. Currently, we are home to a District Program - The Excellence in Social Emotional Learning (ExSEL) program provides an integrated and supportive classroom setting for students who require intensive support in Social Emotional Learning and Executive Functioning. This program houses less than 10 students and dovetails nicely with our school community of learners. We are phasing out the Intensive French program with 2023-24 being the final year with IF for grade 7 students. We did not have an IF intake at grade 6. Franklin is a part of the Templeton family of schools.

Franklin has a diverse population who speak 23 different languages in addition to English. The English language is the most common language spoken with 73 % of our families identifying this as the language spoken at home. It is followed by Cantonese (7 %), Spanish (4%) Vietnamese (3%) and Dari (2%) as well as a host of many other languages. Our community of passionate learners demonstrates excellent verbal-linguistic skills, has effective communication skills, and celebrates and honours multiple intelligences. Our students are learning how to make friends, how to be kind, to try hard and to enjoy playing, working and expressing themselves in creative ways. We offer many leadership opportunities to students including peer leaders, big buddies, Equipment Monitors, and an Environmental Group. The grade 7 class leads student-centered assemblies where we celebrate our student’s strengths. We offer many diverse athletic opportunities for all students such as dancing, rollerblading, gymnastics, and pickleball. The intermediate students have opportunities to participate in extra-curricular sports teams, including cross country, volleyball, basketball, badminton and track and field.

The staff at Franklin are extremely professional and work collaboratively on various projects and programs. To meet the diverse needs of our learners, Franklin is an Early Intervention school which means we target the learning needs of the youngest learners through reading recovery. Our music teacher has a dedicated music room, and all students receive weekly music blocks and collaborate to perform in several performances throughout the year. We have many teacher-sponsored before-school and noon-hour clubs: such as Student Council, Band, Volleyball and Badminton clubs.

Franklin embodies a strong sense of community, fostered through open learning areas and gathering spaces. Post-COVID, parents are beginning to frequent the playground and the hallways before and after school, children walk and cycle to school and annual celebrations put on by the Parent Advisory Council include the Halloween Extravaganza and the Family Dance these events have been bringing the community together for years.

For the past 40 years, the Franklin Preschool has been operating on-site, offering programming to 3 to 5-year-old children. Before and after-school care is being offered by the YMCA, which is a great service to the community. Collaboration among these stakeholders is critical to supporting the students and the community.