Elementary · Coquitlam West · SD43 District Montessori Site
Updated October 2026 · Craig Johnston, REALTOR® V99960
A Coquitlam REALTOR®'s straight read on the SD43 district Montessori site — what's actually inside the program, how the K-and-Grade-1 entry works, and what it means to buy inside the regular Baker Drive catchment versus applying for Montessori from anywhere in the district.
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What should you know about Baker Drive Elementary School?
Baker Drive Elementary School — Baker Drive Elementary School is an elementary school in Coquitlam, serving grades K–5 in the Coquitlam West · Como Lake · Ranch Park edge area. The SD43 district Montessori site — Montessori entry at K and Grade 1. Address: 885 Baker Drive, V3J 6W9. Phone 604-461-5323.
Verify your exact address
Check whether your address is actually inside the Baker Drive Elementary catchment.
SD43 catchments are set by address, not by neighbourhood name. Enter your street in the district’s official School Locator to see the schools that serve your home. This is the authoritative source.
Verified school facts · SD43
School type
Elementary
Grades
K–5
District
SD43 (Coquitlam School District)
Address
885 Baker Drive, Coquitlam, BC V3J 6W9
Phone
Website
Administration (2025–26)
Joe Jamieson (Principal)
VP: See the SD43 2025–26 administrators listing for the current VP roster.
Enrolment
225 students, School Year 2025–2026. See the Enrolment Snapshot below for the by-grade breakdown.
School hours
Confirm the current year's bell schedule directly with the school office at 604-461-5323.
Local representation
School Trustee: SD43 Board of Education contact → · MLA: Coquitlam-Maillardville
In-catchment registration
Cross-catchment / school of choice
Catchment locator
SD43 District Montessori Program
K and Grade 1 entry only. Apply through the SD43 Programs of Choice window in January. SD43 Montessori application info →
School details verified against the SD43 school page (June 2026). Bell schedules, administrators, and program details can change year to year — confirm the current year directly with the school office before relying on any specific number.
Enrolment snapshot
Real, sourced enrolment figures for Baker Drive — cross-referenced against the published School Guide enrolment profile for this school so you're not relying on a guess.
Current enrolment
225 students
2025–2026 school year
Grades served
K–5
Standard English program + Montessori (K–1 entry)
Enrolment by grade
School Year 2025–2026
Kindergarten figure backed out from the total headcount (225) since grades 1–5 alone total 194; the enrolment-by-grade source consulted does not publish a separate Kindergarten count for Baker Drive. Cross-check with the school office before relying on any single grade's count for planning purposes.
Enrolment cross-referenced against the School Guide enrolment profile for Baker Drive Elementary (schoolguide.vtco.app), retrieved September 2026 (School Year 2025–2026).
What this school is best known for
Baker Drive Elementary is unique inside SD43: it's the district's designated Montessori site. Montessori is a program of choice — entry is K and Grade 1 only, applications close the first week of January, and late submissions go on a wait-list. Beyond Montessori, Baker Drive runs a standard K–5 English program with a tight, well-staffed feel (225 students total).
Programs & academic profile
Baker Drive is the SD43 Montessori site. Entry is K and Grade 1 only. Applications open through the SD43 Programs of Choice window — typically the first two weeks of January for the following September. Applications submitted after the deadline go onto a wait-list. See sd43.bc.ca/Programs/Montessori.
Standard BC elementary curriculum for in-catchment students who are not in the Montessori program.
District-wide, under SD43's Aboriginal Enhancement Agreement. Indigenous Support Teachers and Child & Youth Care Workers, scholarships, land-based learning, and the All Nations Canoe Event, serving grades K–12 across SD43.
District-wide, grades K–12. Full-year (10-month) and summer options, with ESL and Culture Programming and a Teacher Training Program; qualifying secondary students can access AP and IB coursework.
School volleyball program for senior elementary students.
School basketball program for senior elementary students.
Local running event for senior elementary students.
SD43 district track meet entry.
School-day intramural sports across grade levels.
Catchment, feeders & cross-catchment
Coquitlam West, on Baker Drive off Como Lake Avenue — bordering Como Lake and the Ranch Park edge. The Montessori program is district-wide, so families from any SD43 catchment can apply for the K/Grade 1 entry.
Baker Drive is a K-entry-point school — there is no prior level feeder. The Montessori program draws cross-catchment applicants district-wide.
It depends on the address. SD43's School Locator sends 1090 Falcon Drive (Baker Drive catchment) to École Moody Middle and Port Moody Secondary.
SD43 allows cross-catchment enrolment when space permits, allocated by lottery with in-district and sibling priority. SD43 cross-catchment policy →
Catchment lines run down individual streets and can put one side of a road in one catchment and the opposite side in the next. Always verify a specific address with the SD43 school locator before relying on any boundary statement.
Extracurriculars · sports · clubs
Programs change year to year. Confirm the current season's club and sport list on the school's Programs / Clubs page.
Inside the catchment · housing read
The Baker Drive catchment sits in Coquitlam West, off Como Lake Avenue, with Westwood Plateau and Ranch Park to the east and Como Lake to the south. The catchment trades on a small-school feel, walkability to local parks, and a steady mix of older detached homes on quiet streets plus newer infill. Montessori applicants buy wherever fits the family — the program is district-wide.
Local knowledge · disclosure
Disclosure: Craig attended Baker Drive Elementary as a student (grades 4–7, when SD43 used a K-7 / 8-10 / 11-12 grade structure). Today the school is configured as a K–5 elementary and is also the SD43 District Montessori site. He still lives in the Tri-Cities and works the local market.
Frequently asked questions
Baker Drive is the SD43 District Montessori Program site — one of the only Montessori-program-of-choice sites in the district. It also runs a standard K–5 English program with a small-school feel (225 students total). For families specifically wanting Montessori at the elementary level, Baker Drive is the SD43 public option.
The SD43 District Montessori Program. Entry is K and Grade 1 only. Applications open through the SD43 Programs of Choice window in early January for the following September. Submissions after the deadline go onto a wait-list.
Through the SD43 Programs of Choice process — see sd43.bc.ca/Programs/Montessori. Application window is typically the first two weeks of January (for example, January 8–14, 2026 for September 2026 entry). Entry is K and Grade 1 only.
Coquitlam West / Como Lake area — on Baker Drive off Como Lake Avenue, bordering Como Lake to the south and the Ranch Park edge to the east. Verify any specific address through the SD43 catchment locator.
Two pathways. (1) Apply for the District Montessori Program — Montessori is district-wide, so any SD43 family can apply. (2) Apply through the SD43 cross-catchment / school-of-choice process for the regular K–5 English program — placement depends on capacity.
Depends on the address; for 1090 Falcon Drive, SD43's locator gives École Moody Middle, then Port Moody Secondary. Confirm the current SD43 catchment for your specific address.
225 students — a notably small SD43 elementary, which is part of what makes the Montessori cohort feel close-knit.
SD43's School Locator lists Joe Jamieson as principal.
Volleyball (Fall) and Basketball (Winter) for grades 4–5, the Como Lake Relay in April for grades 4–5, the District Track Meet in May for grades 3–5, plus a school-day intramural program.
Kindergarten through Grade 5.
Continue your Coquitlam school research
Main hub
The full SD43 schools guide for the Tri-Cities.
Hub
Ranked guide to the top Coquitlam SD43 schools.
Programs
Every SD43 French Immersion entry point.
Private
Independent schools serving Coquitlam, Port Moody, Port Coquitlam.
Sources & methodology
School facts verified against the SD43 Baker Drive Elementary school page, the SD43 2025–26 School Listings (administrators) PDF, the SD43 Board of Education / Trustees page, and the SD43 school locator. Catchment, registration, and cross-catchment information from SD43's cross-catchment policy page. MLA riding (Coquitlam-Maillardville) confirmed via Elections BC's official electoral-district lookup tool for this address. Enrolment (225 students, 2025–2026 — by-grade breakdown in the Enrolment Snapshot above) and confirmation that Indigenous Education Support and the SD43 International Student Program are offered at this school were sourced from the School Guide browse-map tool's profile for Baker Drive Elementary, retrieved September 2026. SD43 relaunched its website in 2026 — the previous SharePoint-style URLs on this page (school page, locator, registration, cross-catchment) have been updated to the district's current URL structure as part of an ongoing sitewide link-rot sweep. Real estate commentary is the professional opinion of Craig Johnston, REALTOR® license V99960, working under Royal LePage Elite West and serving the SD43 Tri-Cities market.
Page reviewed and dated June 2026; enrolment and program details refreshed September 2026. License V99960 · BCFSA-regulated. Confirm school program details with the school office before relying on them for an enrolment decision.
A long-time Tri-Cities resident and licensed REALTOR®, Craig knows the catchment streets, the boundary risks, and the homes that come up inside the Baker Drive Elementary catchment before they hit the public market.
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Thinking about the move, not just the school?
If you're weighing a move into this catchment, the hard part usually isn't the school — it's the timing and the tax math: when to sell your current home, how the property-transfer-tax works on the next one, and how to buy into the right catchment without overpaying. That's the work I focus on across the Tri-Cities. Start with the move-up guide, then get a no-obligation read on what your current home could sell for today.