Sally Simpson

Awesome news Pomerz
How lucky are you......finally!

pomerz

Hi All,
Drew a blank posting on the main site but can anyone advise us please?

When does new term start in Australia (Sept here)

And does anyone have kids who have started secondary school in the UK and then moved to Oz....How did they find the difference in lessons tough or not so tough

And finally waiting lists for schools is this the norm or is it just the posh public schools

Any Help apreciated.....almost in touching distance of the house sale here but hiccups are begining so stress levels high

Sally Simpson

Hi Pomerz!
New school year starts late January. Google term dates for Perth schools as exact dates vary from state to state.
My eldest settled very well. Youngest had more adjustments to make as went from small village school to large primary & he was having a lot of in-class support but none here, his needs are not severe enough apparently.
Certainly in QLD, if you live in the catchment area for a particular state school, they have to take you wether they have room or not.

lolylew

hi pomerz,

schools starts back on 1st feb in perth.
yes, my daughter was in high school in the uk, we put her into a private school here & in her oppinion she thinks the teachers are crap here (bear in mind thats an opinion of a nearly 14 year old!)
she thinks the lessons are easier, yet in a few subjects shes not getting as good grades in the UK she was in top sets for everything
shes made loads of friends and is happy in that aspect but just doesnt rate the teachers
i have to agree in some aspects, i do think its a few particular ones, and in february she'll move up to the senior section of the school so hopefully that will solve the issues?!

i think it is hard because you do comare the aussie schools to the uk ones - all i have to think is they do have aussie doctors and lawyers etc, so it cant all be that bad?

my sons in the primary section of the school and i have no issues - infact he has much more homework than her!

we managed to get the kids into the school ok, but i suppose it varies from school to school - and i think sally's right, i think if you go public they have to fit you in? bear in mind aswell if you go public you generally have to live in the catchment area for that particular school.

not sure if thats helped you in any way or confused you even more

lisa

hereshoping

Teaching in the Oz system I have to say that the academic level is certainly lower here than in the UK, by about a year in secondary science I'd say. However there students do start school a year later so that is probably to be expected. Also expect less emphasis on academic achievement and more on the development of life skills such as group work, presentation skills etc.

Many of the teachers are c**p unfortunately, the teacher training here is not good - only 45 days in school and only about 1/2 of that actually teaching.

lolylew

oh well at least i'm not just imaganing it!
the teachers seem to focus more attention on the 'correct' school uniform more than the teaching!
they even get the boys to pull up their trousers to make sure they have blue socks on and not black!

we've just had our kids end of term reports - and my daughters was all fairly average with a few limited efforts! (i was horrified ) - in england she had all goods and excellents, then enclosed with the report was her NAPLAN test results (i presume like english SAT's) and she got all above averages, the teachers just dont make sense?

slightly frustrated to say the least, but what can you do?

pomerz

Thanks All.

Apologies also for the slow reply its been tricky with no tinternet for 2 weeks since the move into rental.
The house sold and the money is in the bank ready for the move which is now definately January 2011 which seems an age away but this is when we will come.......

Looks like we will need to look into schools further so thanks for the advice it was all very usefull so thanks again.

For all of you experienced guys out there can i ask how you planned your arrivals as we will not have anyone we know there and will be building up plans from now on as to what to do and where to go....

Did anyone choose to
1. Find a Job
2. Find a School
3. Find a long term rental


What were the priorities in the first month as we plan to buy a car on arrival short term rental then a longer term rental in an area with a decent school and then onto employement (Rach Hardresser me Baker)?

Anyone have any planning thoughts of entry down under please?

Hope everyone here still looking is fit and well and still loving it

Cheers Matt Rach n Olly

Sally Simpson

Hey Matt!
I had a job before we arrived.
We had 2 weeks short term accom provided on arrival by employer. We then went into another short term place for 6 weeks as we had not found a long term rental & OH was having to go back to UK as his father had died.
Sorted out school once we had arrived but before we had long term rental. The school had places though so were not fussed about where we lived. This is most definitely not always the case & you can be asked for rental agreement as proof of address incatchment area.
We had researched areas as much as poss prior to arrival but drove around a lot to see for ourselves. Would not suggest that anyone arrange longterm let over the internet as there are some real dives that look good on the internet as they often use old pics!

Feeling much more settled almost one year in although memories of how distressed I was last Christmas have me dreading this one just ever so slightly!

Nice to hear from you Matt & glad that all is now progressing ok for you

lolylew

yeh, like sallyclaire, my OH also had a job before we came over permanently.
we came over to validate last october and he had an interview set up for when we were on our trip - luckily they offered him the job and then flew us all back over this january....so also like sally claire christmas was a little stressfull to say the least

as regards to schools, the company were putting us up in temporary accommodation for 3 months so we didnt know where we were going to be, i didnt want to be putting the kids in one school only to move them again a few months later! so i decided on private schools as you dont have to be in the catchment for your children to go there. since then we have found somewhere to live which is in walking distance for the kids to get themselves to school

really good news on selling your house, bet you cant wait for 2011!

lisa

Sally Simpson

Hi Lisa!
How is it going? Are you enjoying life here in Aus? Feeling settled?

Clara W

Wow what have I missed. So much positive news! It's been great reading back and agreeing with everything everyone says. (Uniforms and rubbish teachers!)

Funny how experiences can be the same planning, trying, arriving and adjusting! The best advice I was given is:

Just because you have arrived it doesn't mean your journey is over!!!

We have been here 18 months now and it has flown by and thankfully got easier. I remember this thread being my life at one point and for the last 18 months not had time to learn or contribute as I would have liked. I caught the sun relaxing the other weekend for the first time since being here now that is a change for the better for me!

We are loving WA and my only regret is that we didn't come sooner! Yes it's been hard work and full on (not always easy being on your own with a teenager) but now we are living!

Good luck everyone
CX

Sally Simpson

Hey Clara, good to see you
Lovely to hear that things are going well for you but definitely fit in some chill time!

lolylew

hi sally

yes things are great here thanx, feeling really settled and happy mum and dad are over visiting at the moment aswell so having a lovely time

how about you?

lisa

gere

Hi fellow july applicants

I hope you are all doing fine in OZ.

I am July 2007 applicant, and I (and my family) plan to move to OZ early next year. Sydney is our destination, I am also thinking about the Gold Coast. I know Sydney and we love it. Do you happen to live on the Gold Coast, what is life over there?

Thank you.

pomerz

[QUOTE=Clara W;8058994]Wow what have I missed. So much positive news! It's been great reading back and agreeing with everything everyone says. (Uniforms and rubbish teachers!)

Funny how experiences can be the same planning, trying, arriving and adjusting! The best advice I was given is:

Just because you have arrived it doesn't mean your journey is over!!!

Hi All
How very rude of me posting a question then not returning to thank you all oops sorry!!!!!

Thanks for all the feedback we have read and digested.

The planning is beginning we have a rental here in Plymouth and will depart for Northern Perth either just before Xmas next year or the first week of Jan. I know we were the slowest to get the darn visa but a year cashing in on good salaries makes sense

School is the thing at the moment and id love to pick your brains Clara especially as you are in our proffered location of Quinns! We have started to google the privates and some of the other high schools in the North of Perth and have began to form some opinions however they all look good on paper!

Oliver will be year 8 (starting in Jan/Feb 2011) is currently at a Grammer and doing well so a reasonable school is a requirement if at all possible

We would like to wish you all Merry Christmas and ask you post your Christmas experiences here as the thought of December in warm sunshine seems as alien as Tiger Woods and his car crash having nothing to do with any dodgy dealings at the moment lol

Take it easy

Matt Rach n Olly