This is to any parents out there who can identify with how confusing it is dealing with the US school system after living in the UK. My son is in 6th Grade and my daughter is in 8th Grade so will be starting High School this year (even though she started High School three years ago in the UK and is miffed about this! LOL)

I am totally confused about the classes my daughter will take in high school here in Hawaii. I have talked to the school counsellor who was really nice, but not very helpful. I feel like a complete idiot because I was a high school teacher in the UK and should know how to sort this out, but it just all seems so strange. I don't even really know how to explain exactly what I am confused about - it is just all so foreign! (sorry!)

Did anyone manage to find out if their children could gain credit for languages studied in the UK? At high school in England my daughter did 2 years of French and 1 year of German. She now studies NO languages at all until Grade ...... 10 I think! I asked about this and got different answers from the school - they also don't understand the UK grading system about using Levels instead of Grades Arghhh!!! :scared:

The other thing stressing me out is the Science Project my son has to do - I am frantically searching US websites to find out how to help him.... I never did one and don't think UK schools do anything similar....

Any insight (or just sympathy at this point) gladly received!!

My eldest daughter is only 12 so I can't really help with the high school stuff, sorry! There was a post about this not so long ago, if you do a quick search you should come up with some answers. She was also moved down a year when she started school here, didn't go down too well either!!! She is just finishing 6th Grade now. With regards to the science project, is the school doing this right now?? It seems a lilttle late in the school year to be doing a science project.....our science fair was completed before xmas. I did a search for science fair projects and we ended up doing "How bacteria grows", small cost for some petri dishes etc, but she ended up getting an honourable mention, this was competing with all grades, so for a first timer she did well, just try and make your back board appealing to the eye and try doing something a little different, www.school.discovery.com/sciencefair has some good ideas. Good luck and welcome to BE!!!!

Can't help with the High School part, my kids are still at Elementary level.

I've seen books in Barnes and Noble with literally hundreds of different science projects to try out. It might be quicker to get a book to flick through than scroll through web site after web site. They will be in the education section, along with how to pass your SAT's, GED, get a college scholarship etc.

Hmm that's strange. I'm a yank and at my school we started doing languages in 7th grade. I think most schools around here start in 9th grade at the latest. What else did you want to know about?

Hey! I like your name! LOL Where in Yorkshire are you from?

Why not call your son's science teacher or school district? My children are still in elementary school, but their school district gave each student a handbook and the science teacher at their school had a mini-seminar for parents and students to show what was expected for the science fair. Hope that helps!

I have two children in US schools, one is just finishing elementary school and going to Intermediate School and the other is just finishing middle school and going to High School in September. We have been here 3 years and neither of them have been given a science project so I can't help you there.

When we first came here I spoke to both Principals at the respective schools and both of them were extremely helpful.

I went to see my son's guidance counsellor to discuss what subjects he should take in High School and I explained that I didn't have a clue about High School over here. She was really helpful and explained everything to me so I suggest maybe going to the guidance counsellor at your daughter's school or even making an appointment with the Principal. Principals over here seem to be far more approachable than headteachers in England.

I think my biggest shock was when my son started Middle School here. He had just completed his primary education in the British school system going from Year 6, then going straight into Grade 6 in the US. They seem to do a lot more testing here (also call a lot of them 'quizzes').

The surprise was the science 'labs'. Well, they didn't have anything like the ones in the British schools....no bunsen burners or those high tables with gas taps for doing chemistry experiments. The pupils just get to watch the teachers perform an experiment rather than having a go themselves.....takes a lot of the fun out of the subject if you ask me. Actually, when I think back, they didn't really do much at all in the field of chemistry, and science certainly isn't divided into the subjects of physics, biology and chemistry as I remembered it.

He he....I remembered blacking out once when we had to do a dissection on a bulls eye at school...had to go out of the room LOL! I don't think they do this (dissections) in American schools?

Anyway, here's a couple of websites to assist with the project:

http://www.thebeehive.org/school/

http://cybersleuth-kids.com/ (click on the main subject headings)

Hope this helps!

Can completely sympathise with your daughter, as my eldest was 15 when we arrived here. As to credits you need to get your daughter's old school to email or fax over details of the classes your daughter has taken already and what was covered in those classes . At first my daughter wasn't given any credits and was put back to freshman year. Being the determined little blighter she is, she wasn't having all of that, especially as she was way ahead of most of her fellow students. Your daughter should get credits for any of science she has done, language, English and PE.

As to language, they should be offering a language from freshman year but as they probably only require 2 credits to graduate (it will vary from state to state), often they chose to start in their junior year.

The only problem with transferring credits over from the UK, is that they get 0 grade point averages which could ultimately affect the college she attends. My daughter got around this by doing dual credits, taken at the local community college whilst at high school and AP classes which are weighted differently from normal credits.

Good luck to your daughter and son, hope they settle down quickly and with not too many problems.

jjmb, great advice with the extra course at the local college. I was going to suggest the same thing.

Also, if your child, yorkshire_lass, is quite proficient at a language already, there are tests she can take. You generally have to pay for these (but the schools may have them rather than having to go to a college to take them) but it would be worth it because they will then count either towards high school or college depending on her level. But as jjmb, they don't get the GPA to go with it. They can also be tested in other subjects to see where they are. Sometimes you have to be very determined to get these things done because you may find your school district will not be forthcoming in letting your daughter be tested. However, one thing I have found over here, moving around from one level of education to another is much easier than it is in the UK. For example, if your daughter is in Freshman year for everything and the English teacher finds that her abilities are way above everyone else, she can help you get your daughter moved either up a year or into the accelerated programs. However, you have to be active yourself in asking for these things.

Also, if you are getting nowhere with the school, either go to the school district head office and see if someone can help you there, or go to the local community college or state university and speak to someone who deals with international students and transcripts. It makes a huge difference when someone understands two different systems and can explain to you what they are and what you need to know for your daughter's future. You never know, there may be a British Professor at the Uni who has children in school there. This helps too.

Each state is different and approaches teaching differently. Our school district is very similar to the same school district my children went to in Nottingham. Both my 8th grader and 7th grader have done hands-on in science and my daughter (7th grade) has done different dissections including the bull's eye. They watched the frog disection but it is all more than what my husband and I did when we were that age in school. We didn't start dissection until we were in the last year of O levels (now GCSEs). Also, my 5th grader has started basic languages and they start properly in 7th grade. Some schools start even younger than this and begin extra languages in 1st grade.

There are different accelerated/gifted programs for kids. You can ask for your school to test your daughter to see if she should be in them. Getting info from their old schoo in the UK will help a lot with this.

Good luck

not sure if its the same in all schools but my daughter is going to High School in September and has been told that any lanquage she did at home, provided she takes a test to prove she has the knowledge, then she will be given extra credits for them, even if she doesn't continue with those lanquages.. sounds a bit weird to me, I have to say but like you I'm confused with the whole thing, we have just put in a request for my daughter to stay back and do 8th grade again (her idea) she doesn't feel ready for high school yet and has been struggling with some subjects, whereas back home she was always very bright..

Have you seen this recent thread on US schools:
http://britishexpats.com/forum/showthread.php?t=301466

I also concur with Ben's suggestion to find a British professor (or professional ) to help you find your way through this maze. We were helped tremendously by an English (i.e. British...) teacher at our son's high school who was able to set them straight on what a Grade A Maths GCSE actually means.

You will probably find that you will have to fight to get 'credit' for what your kids did in the UK. And you'll soon find out that credits is what it is all about here... To get proper credit, you need not just the grades, but a detailed description of the syllabus covered by the course that the grade relates to. (Though in your case this may be less relevant, given your children's ages.)

Woodsey, my eldest is a bright lad and did very well in the UK system. We moved to NJ first then onto NYstate. He decided he needed a break and took the chance to move back a grade. It has nothing to do with a child's ability, especially when they are older (they have the accelerated classes which do more advanced learning than even the next year up!) but more to do with helping them settle in. It was the best thing we ever did for our son. He settled extremely well and made lots of friends. If he had continued in his school year he would have had to learn new things, taken some big tests and study for things he knew little about (social studies) which would have stopped him from joining in with clubs and sports and making new friends, which is important for kids.

Don't look at the step back as an academic thing but more as a social mixing exercise.

With my son's birthday being in August he was the very youngest in his year at school in the UK. When we first got here we talked with the principal of his school and even though academically he should have started 7th grade we felt it was better for him to mix with kids of his own age so he dropped down a grade. This worked well for him and he managed to catch up on several things that he didn't learn in the UK, US history being one. He will be 14 in August and is going to High School with children who are all the same age as him and he is really looking forward to it. At first I was worried about dropping him down a grade but I am so glad he did it now.

My daughter however was moved up a grade. She should have started kindergarten when we came here but because she had already attended Nursery and Reception classes in England and could read and write she missed kindergarten and went straight into 1st grade. Her birthday is in January so she is 5 months younger than the next youngest child and has had no problems fitting in socially with the other children.

So it all depends on the individual child and I think fitting in socially not just academically has helped my children.

Absolutely, definitely agree! My sons had completed Year 8 in the UK and initially the counsellor insisted that Grade 9 was the place for them. But we quickly realised that this was all wrong for them - not so much academically, but socially. At that age, children who a year older can be on a different planet as far as their interests and activities are concerned.

My boys were much happier after they moved 'down' to their own year group. And it certainly hasn't hindered them academically. The flexibility of choosing courses is one advantage of the American system.

Thank you for all of your replies, there is a lot of helpful stuff in there. I called the school today and spoke to a guidance counsellor. He was again friendly but totally unhelpful. When we arrived months ago my daughter had to fill out forms that were choosing options for high school. The school told me that her forms would go out later than the other students' because the teachers had yet to assess her ability. Since then I heard nothing. My question to the counsellor was - have her forms been filled in and does the high school have them? Answer was: 'I don't know' ......... long silence ..... waited for something like "let me take your number and check up and get back to you" but no - nothing!!! Okay........ so I asked how I can find out, he didn't know!!! OMG what is wrong with these people!!!! He couldn't even offer to find out if the high school even knew my daughter was coming in September???

Anyhoo.... I called the high school who were great and told me they have all of her forms and are expecting her. Great!! One of my concerns though is that we have never been invited or to visit the high school. I remember in the UK when choosing schools we attended open evenings and tours of the school etc. Nothing like that seems to happen here. Is that just Hawaii or USA in general? Also it seems as if I have to send my daughter to the nearest high school unless we pay for a private school... is that how it is in all states?

Oh and before I go...... is it not required for schools here to have discipline policies? My daughter was in tears today because she was made to sweep the floors of the music rooms during a lesson (when she should have been being taught! what is wrong with lunch or after school detentions?) This was in front of all the other pupils too and she was totally humiliated. She was caught chewing gum - I gave her a talking to about that, she should not have been doing it, but she is the shyest, quietest kid you could ever meet and has straight A's and has not been in trouble at school before. I was livid that this teacher had chosen to make her do this, expecially during learning time, and I went to talk to him. As soon as I said who i was and why I was there he brushed me off with a 'yea she was chewing gum' and walked away. Never in my years of teaching would we have dismissed a parent like that!! He was downright rude. I was so angry, I told him to turn around and talk to me and asked if it was school policy to make children miss lessons and sweep floors for chewing gum, he said it is up to the teacher how to discipline the child. I went to the office and asked to see a copy of their discipline policy, they looked at me like I was from mars and they didn't have one. I went to see the principal but he was too busy, left my number but he didn't call me......... argh!