Expat Teens
 

Hi everyone,
Myself, partner and 2 teenage boys are currently making plans to move to ontario on a temporary work visa with a view to apply for permanent residency.
We are originally from London (England) and have been living in France for 2 years, so we've done the emigrating thing once already.
My sons are keen on the next move but are worried about leaving friends behind and making new ones and of course what life is like for new teens in Canada.
we would love to be in contact with any families with teenagers who live in Ontario, so they could share their experiences as expats kids and family life in Canada. My son are 13 & 14 yrs old
I would be grateful for any help given.
Thanks you
Yvette

Re: Expat Teens
 

Hi,
My name is Gregg and I am 14 and I live in Ontario.
I read your post about your sons and I would just like to say that it will be hard for the first week or two but your teacher in school will introduce and if the kids are anything like the ones at my school they will crowd around you and ask what part of Britain you are from.They seem genuinly interested in your accent, they may ask you to say a bunch of things, but they won't laugh at you.
All you have to do is just talk to as many people as you can and if you have any worries then talk to a teacher or me.
Everybody gets the yellow bus to school, and that's where you'll meet people who live by you because everyone gets the bus at the same time, everyday. Your teacher will most likely ask someone that goes on your bus to show you where your bus comes at the end of the day, and the bus driver may let you off at your road for the first day or two.
If you have any further questions, then contact me on Brit Expats.

Re: Expat Teens
 

Hi Gregg,
Thanks very much for your response. When the boys get back from school this afternoon (half day on wednesday) I'll show them your post I'm sure they will want to get in touch with you.
Thanks again.
Yvette

Re: Expat Teens
 

hi
i agree with "nemesis " i found it harder than my two , although mine are 18 and 16 , Matthew my 16 year old goes to high school.
i found it was like starting with a 4 year old , when we registered him and the principle said , " right , lets get you started Matt " tears welled up and i had to quickly leave as i am sure he wouldn't want to see me crying.

they introduced him to all his teachers , and a boy was asked to show him around and wait for him outside lessons. it was like bees round honey , questins all day , no one was horrible and by the end of the week he was going to the movies and bowling. it took a couple of weeks to adjust to school life here but friends wise , he has loads , people are genuinely interested in you , they also make you say things as we sound strange.

tell your boys not to worry , speak to everyone but there is always someone who will chat to you. he was waiting for a bus to go into the mall as we had yet to get cars and a boys introduced himself from his english class by saying " heh english kid , where you going " they then introduced themselves properly as matt recognised him and now they are good friends.

good luck.

Re: Expat Teens
 

Thank You again for the response. Yes I think your right, us parents never stop worrying about our babies whether the're 2 yrs old or 52, the kids always seem to adjust much easier than we do. So far every thing we've heard has been positive so fingers crossed.
Also we're still considering areas in Ontario, I see you live in Newmarket we haven't looked there, why did you choose it? We've been looking at Belleville can anyone out there tell us anything about Belleville?
Many thanks
Yvette

Re: Expat Teens
 

We moved to Belleville, from NE England, last June and have never looked back since! We live ten minutes drive from the centre of Belleville but have a house surrounded by countryside / fields.It is perfect for us! We wanted to have space around us (and have a large pool in the garden) but within minutes have acces to all the large shops, or to the waterfront etc. We have a fourteen year old son who really enjoys going to Bayside High School. He talks with excitement, for the first time in his life, about what they are doing at school... and has made loads of really good friends. I feel that people value family life above all else here and bring up their children to have great respect for others. The crime rate is also a joke in Belleville!!!! We listen to them, on the radio news, naming and shaming a naughty youth who threw an egg at someone's house! What a hoot!!! If you want to know more pm me!
Dawn