paddyo

Tubbs, just to confirm, are you saying that you get a bill for the fees and DO NOT have to pay up front?? I was led to believe you paid up front ($4500 plus admin) which is a bloody big amount when you have just stopped paying Kindy.

Rosscarbery

My understanding is that you have to show your local school proof that you have paid the $4,700 ( I think that's the current amount) before they will enrol you. You definitely pay it as a lump sum upfront. That money doesn't go directly to the school and they will still ask you for the same "parental contribution" that everyone pays. With a child that age it may not cost you much more to go private (in theory you should still pay the $4,700 on top but none of them seem to enforce that). I know some popular local schools near me won't give "out of area" places to kids on a 457; your designated school has to take you though.

Reception in the UK is play based and they are still following the foundation curriculum, kindy here in NSW is not - that's what pre-school is for. Your child may or may not be "ahead of the game" but I wouldn't assume it. We have definitely had English people arrive at our school with that attitude to be in for a bit of a rude shock when the teachers call them in to talk about how their child can catch up.

paddyo

Ok, so who do you pay it to then?? It really is an awful amount of money to pay upfront!

Gibbo

The Department of Education.

Tubbs2Oz

Sorry about that, I did say that I was "guessing" for a fee paying person. I should just keep quiet. We're lucky enough to have a PR visa I don't think we could have afforded to pay the fees. The main point I was trying to make was that fee paying or not makes no difference to whether you're accepted at a school.

paddyo

ok mate, your intentions were honorable!!! lol

paddyo

Ok, I will look at all this, do you have any shortcuts to obvious references I can refer to?

Organised Woman

The Northern Beaches area around Sydney is a great area to live, particularly if you have children - but it's expensive - akin to living in the smarter 'burbs close to London (Chiswick, Putney, Richmond for example) - plenty to rent, but we're talking £600k for a very modest little house on a small block of land, cheek by jowl living! However, it's half an hour to the city via a fantastic ferry ride from Manly, or the bus (no trains to the northern beaches) or drive - it's nothing LIKE the M25 and greater London traffic jams although the Aussies complain the traffic's bad (and petrol's incredibly cheap still here) so driving into the City is feasible if you have a job with car space. Don't move to the Western Suburbs - you won't like it!

emma75

reception maybe play based here but my son who is still four and one of the youngest in his class can read and write and that is just from being at school since september and he is not the brightest in his class by any means. He has homework every week and we read every night. So if we come to Oz in June time for example the kids over there would be into their fourth month and he would have already completed a whole school year, so i have no worries about him playing " catch up". He started pre school (kindy) at 2 years 6 months as all the children do, and started school not really able to recognise a number or letter, I guess all kids are different but he wont be the slowest in his class im sure of that. My 8 year old son is luckily very bright and keen to learn and again i am sure he would slot in too

paddyo

Its not a competition, kids will be as good as they can, Oz kids are no brighter than UK kids and vice versa. Do not worry about the standard of entrance for your younger son, whatever height or low it is he will soon get with it, kids at that age are very good at moulding with others.
You are obviously a very proud parent Emma, and rightly so, just go with the flow when you get here, it will all be fine.
My only comment about your youngest is that if he starts school straight away, he MIGHT be the youngest there and maybe even physically smaller as most of the others MAY have started in the year they are 6. Its not too much of an issue at that age, but, if you stay longer than your 457 3 or 4 years, as he gets older and into team sports he MAY be at a slight disadvantage. Its a long term view but worth considering, just be objective about it and have a holistic view.
On the other hand of course, in that area there may be a lot of kids starting school there in the year they are 5 so all will be good!

emma75

I know its not a competition, No the point i was trying to make is that i dont think the move will affect their education the ages they are. Also if my youngest doesnt start school until he is 6 hes got off to a good start here by doing his first year, thats all. What are you going to about your son?

paddyo

I think you are right Emma, kids are very resilient and the ages they are will make the move/change easy for you and them. Going back the other way (if you do) in 4 years time may affect the oldest more as that is when he will be in his pre teen puberty years and having experienced changing schools at 13 it was bloody horrible for me!.
With regards to Calum, really not sure Emma, I think he is ready emotionally, socially and academically but its the age/physical gap I am concerned about if he starts now.
Unfortunatley we are in an awkward predicament that our 457 ends March next year when he would of started school by January then anyway, so instead of enrolling him for just 2 months we may end up having my wife and him going back to UK before me to start him in UK school half way through their school year. But.........if we get an extension to my 457 then we are going to move to a bigger place in May this year then put him in school anyway and see how it goes. He will cope fine, its us who will do all the worrying if we have done the right thing!!

Tubbs2Oz

There is a complete mixture of kids in my sons year, some who will be 6 soon and others who are yet to turn 5. Surprisingly most of the ones managing well with the reading sight words are not the ones turning 6. My son's birthday is December so there was no choice for us, but he is probably the shortest in the class, he's not worried. I will also send my younger one in the year that he turns 5 so he'll be one of the youngest, but I know that he'll cope fine. A friends son who's almost a year older is much bigger physically but she says he's not ready emotionally/developmentally.

Emma, I think that there really is no choice for you. If your son has already started school in England he'll go nuts at home. I know that mine did and that was just from a half-term.
The thing that I will say also is that they won't hold him back. If he can already read and write he'll be given books from the higher year groups for reading and extra writing work so that he won't be bored. They seem to be very good at flexibility!

emma75

more like i will go nuts if he is at home! he is a little live wire, bless him! thanks for your advice. This week is crunch time for us when we will be finding out whats going on for sure re dates etc, have got this far before so am a bit nervous! will keep you posted!

Thanks for the advice and info too Paddyo!

Emma

paddyo

no worries, good luck in the move!!