gsnichol

I have the pleasure of working in the AZ education system but at the top is better than the bottom... I know a teacher who had to teach in essentially an un-airconditioned shed with no equipment and the kids had to bring their own pencils. She resigned after two weeks.

jumping doris

We moved to the US last year..to Pittsburgh,PA. We have three daughters who were 10, 14 and 16 when we moved. So we have one middle schooler and two at the high school.
Firstly just moving to a new country is huge and very unsettling. When it actually happens it isn't always as exciting as you might anticipate.

We chose a good school district and we are very pleased with the education our daughters are getting. For our eldest and youngest the schools are superior to their schools in the UK and we were in a good school area there too. Our middle daughter was at a UK grammar school and initially here she found some subjects a bit too easy but this year she is taking all IB and honours classes and is finding it more challenging, which is what she wanted.

The youngest settled easily, the two at high school found it harder. I think it was just the unfamiliarity of how a US high school works and different terminology. For example in maths they were asked what level of calculus they were at
They found the first semester here hard, getting to grips with a new curriculum etc but now they wouldn't like to go back to their UK schools.
Obviously they missed their friends but the kids at their schools were really friendly and they quickly made friends.
One year on I am still amazed at the facilities at the High school here and the level of help and support they have had. Another example... my daughters are not good at maths and because the high school is big they have been able to move them around in Maths groups until they have found one that is right for their level. For the first time ever my eldest understands maths.

There are loads of after school clubs (85 at the last count and that doesn't include the sports teams).

But and it's a big but...we pay HUGE property taxes. As soon as they are all through school we will be moving somewhere cheaper!

I don't know if our school district is the exception rather than the rule.

David Richardson

I wouldn't rule out private schools (except maybe the absurd fundy Christian ones). Many Catholic schools ( Private and Diocesan) have good endowments and give reasonable or 100% scholarships. Same is true of Methodist, Episcopal and others. Some have a quite light religious touch. If you can pay something, you may be able to live in a more affordable area. Consider the long term - better the ed in middle and high school, better the college they can get into. Better the life/career choices they can make. Some private uni's give very high scholarships if the kids have the grades .

Sally

Have you looked at this site? We found it quite helpful

http://www.greatschools.net/modperl/go/FL

(you do have to pay to get full info)

Jerseygirl

My daughter attended private school in NJ. None of the schools we looked at gave scholarships. None of the uni's will either if you have been privately educated...unless of course you can throw, kick or hit a ball.

AmerLisa

Florida has some of the worst schools - don't move there.

Ray

Rubbish ..some of the finest Grand Wizard and Imperial Wizard
were educated in Florida ....

AmerLisa

Ahhhh yes, I forgot about the Redneck School of KKK Wizardry!

Rodney you plonker

Your kids might just surprise you and adapt quicker than yourself. I have worked in many foreign language speaking countries and I have seen kids learn the language before the parents. In my experience the adults have to study and learn the language, but the kids just seem to pick it up.

Also, as you know, kids can be very cruel to each other, in the USA I think it is the middle school that can be the toughest for children (especially for girls), just because of the age.

If you want my advice, don't burn your bridges in the UK. If you have a house, don't sell it, rent it out and rent a home in the USA when you get here etc. etc. That way you can always fall back to the UK if it doesn't work out in the states.

Good luck.

David Richardson

Our experience was different. After Catholic school, my eldest son went to Cornell with a decent amount of scholarship ( true, he was a place kicker in HS and was recruited but with very good grades). Now he's in Law School where he got $75,000 in scholarship over 3 years. He borrowed the rest on his own.My youngest was in dramatic arts in the same HS and is now a voice major in Chicago having got a 50% scholarship there. We purposely applied to northern schools as they want diversity and I'm sure a southern school wants the same. Believe me, I'd like nothing more than to have our public schools be terrific for all but it hasn't happened .......

Bob

depends on the uni and the type of scholarship, some aren't sports related but academic or financial based, so even going to a private school you could get those scholarships....benefit to a private uni though, those scholarships aren't used to off-set any federal grants/loans that one might get, unlike a state school.

Giantaxe

Too bad you won't be able to get reasonably-priced insurance on it in FL though

Anyway, why buy in FL at the moment? I can't see any economic reasons for doing so, although I do realise there are non-economic factors involved in such a decision.

krizzy

My FL Ins is a lot cheaper than my MA one...
I got my house new in FL a few years ago...at $157k...for a 4 bed 3 bath...2200 sqft..it was a bit of a bargin...the cost of living was a big factor for us when buying...and also having long time friends living in the area...job offers were also easier to get than on Cape Cod where we live now...

We looked at many different place before thinking of FL..but it was one of the few places where hubby could simi retire....and where we could live on a low income...

Giantaxe

"A few years ago" is probably the operative phrase here. Tougher to justify financially a house purchase in a lot of FL these days given the much higher prices and the state of the real estate and property insurance markets.

Old William

$157k will barely buy you an uncleared 1/4 acre lot in most of FLA these days.

And as for insurance...when we reinsured our place they question was "what part of Florida?...Well we only insure 1 or 2 counties there now." And neither of them are in the south. Infact a lot of people we know in PBC and Broward are now either completely uninsured or paying premiums for house insurance of over $1500 per month that wont cover flood and wind damage at all. And guess whats most likely to trash your house in FLA?