Urgent help for school for the kids

[iris_ali78]

Even pass the interview and not got a spot? This is ridiculous. Did anyone heard of Zenith kingdergarden? Is it good? At this moment the only solution for me is to call them one by one to check if there is space or not.

 

[penguinsix]

The "interview" is basically an assessment, especially at younger ages, of whether or not the child is ready to enter school, follow instructions, and, very importantly at some places, able to speak and understand English. As such, 'passing' the interview is quite common, and I don't think you are even put on the wait list if you do not meet the assessment criteria. So when there are 70 kids on the wait list, that means there are 70 kids who have passed the assessment. How they rank on the wait list is different with each school (sibling priority, debenture, passport, time of application, child of staff, etc).

We were told that last year at CNDIS they barely got passed the sibling and staff priority list until later in the Summer.

International school places is a serious problem here for many. You can find them, but it's going to take a lot of leg work and phone calls if you are entering the admissions cycle late in the game. You should be on track though for a '12-'13 normal admissions process, though still up against the numbers.

 

[NHYM]

Even pass the interview and not got a spot? This is ridiculous. Did anyone heard of Zenith kingdergarden? Is it good? At this moment the only solution for me is to call them one by one to check if there is space or not.

Try the Korean international school in the English section. My 8 year old did 2 terms there and they may have places for your year 1. they do the british nat tonal curriculum, downside is there is quite a bit of homework but it's better than tutors which is hideously expensive. She now got a place at the school of my choice.

 

[Roger]

Try Local System

If your kids are 3 & 5, you could put them in a local kindergarten so that they will learn Cantonese and Mandarin and written Chinese, which believe it or not are ALL essential for living here (especially for the low end tasks like talking to a repairman or asking about things in the shops). This will help them when it comes to accessing the school system for which there are NO waiting lists. But hurry! Your 5 year old needs to have their forms filled in this term if you want to choose a good school. Pentecostal Gin Mao Sheng Primary School in Fanling is a good one as is its sister school Yu Leung Fat, the former one having a strong support system in place for non-Chinese speaking children or parents. The latter will have if such children join. The 5 year old will have pretty good Cantonese by the time she starts school if you do this and your 3 year old will be fluent. Just make sure the kindergarten doesn't use them as extra English teachers

 

[randzki]

i have an impression that foreign kids will find it difficult to adapt to local school system. my wife and i are also facing the same dilema. our 4 yr old daughter will have to go to P1 next year. and we have to decide as soon as possible wheather local or international schools. IS are very expensive while local schools are too chinese for us. we realized we'll not be of any help with her homeworks, as an alternative we have considered these schools;

SEKPS - Main

http://www.pokokps.edu.hk/

Chiu Sheung School, Hong Kong - Home

we live in hk island (quarry bay) i also work near the area.
does anyone know these schools? any alternatives? your opinions/ suggestions are highly valuable.

thanks

 

[howardcoombs]

I put 3 kids thru local school systems and they are now fully trilingual (Cantonese, Mandarin, English).

No, its not easy and you wont be able to help with their Chinese homework but you can hire private tutors for that and they will do fine as long as they are normal (no learning difficulties) kids.

What does "too chinese for us" mean exactly?

 

[Roger]

I would suggest you put them in a Cantonese-speaking kindergarten so that they'll learn the language and then use the local system. Don't be too concerned, young children learn languages very fast. That way you'll equip them with the necessary language skills to live here. The 5 year-old may face more challenges, but the 3-year-old will be absolutely fluent by the time primary school comes round.