What to Bring

The following lists are our suggestions of essential items to bring. Most students travel with just one suitcase and a carryon backpack.

Niagara and Calgary

  • Comfortable summer clothes for class and excursions
  • Backpack for school days and excursions
  • Sports clothes
  • Running/walking shoes
  • Hat
  • Bathing suit
  • Personal items such as toiletries, including sunscreen
  • Any prescription medication you may need, enough for the length of the program
  • Small personal electronics, with chargers
  • Small gift for your homestay family, if you choose

Calgary

  • Warm fleece or other jacket for evenings, and trips to the mountains (it can get chilly, even in the summer!)
  • Sturdy walking or hiking shoes or boots

“I really enjoy the experiences gained in working within the CIS program. The students we teach expand our understandings of our own pedagogy, in working with a cultural background so distinct from our own."

Ron Kitcher
Teacher

“The program offers students an unforgettable opportunity to see a different part of the world, while developing their English language skills, as they experience Canadian culture through classroom activities, excursions, and interactions with their homestay families.”

Jeremy Thorpe
Teacher

"It is very rewarding for me, as an educator, to witness the growth in the students’ language skills over a short intensive period of time. The base of vocabulary they arrive to Canada with serves as a good testament to their English training in their own school system."

Ron Kitcher
Teacher

"I think the activities that are embedded within the program provide the students a solid means of showing much of the Canadian lifestyle, in terms of day-to-day recreation, but also other features that require the use of larger spaces, that are not as prevalent in their home country. These, in combination with the homestay experiences and dietary differences from home, provide the students with a truly well rounded experience."

Ron Kitcher
Teacher