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View Full Version : Education I need help finding a school for my children aged 2 & 6 in South Tenerife



shirley43
07-12-2013, 13:43
Hello,

Im looking for some advice on schooling in tenerife South???/
I have 2 children ages 3 and 6, we are moving to tenerife from UK and i have looked at Westgate & Callao Learning Centre but find that for 2 children the fees are quite high :-(
Im scared that the move to Spanish education system (kids dont speak any spanish) will just be too much for them both .... Is there a happy medium or something i am overlooking ??

Thanks In Advance

bonitatime
07-12-2013, 14:27
Two other options
Echeyde which is all Spanish all day and you only pay lunch and activities. The junior school is outstanding and the ethos if the schools is really great.
Luther king finances similarly (I think) and teaches a fair amount of English.

We did varying options (my youngest has very forthright independant ideas)
But if I was to start again I would do Echeyde kn juniors and the best local high school I could get into. Los Olivos would be mine but there are various

shirley43
07-12-2013, 15:58
Two other options
Echeyde which is all Spanish all day and you only pay lunch and activities. The junior school is outstanding and the ethos if the schools is really great.
Luther king finances similarly (I think) and teaches a fair amount of English.

We did varying options (my youngest has very forthright independant ideas)
But if I was to start again I would do Echeyde kn juniors and the best local high school I could get into. Los Olivos would be mine but there are various

Hi thanks for your quick reply .... I definitely want them to go to a school where English is taught also, i know english will always be the language at home but i feel for literature etc they also need English taught as school so an All Spanish speaking school is no no !!
I have been told a little about Luther King and have sent an email to them for some more information..
My greatest fear is my kids being flung in a room with nobody else who speaks their language, this would scare me as an adult let alone a child :-(

Did your kids settle into Spanish Quickly & Easily ?? x

TenerifeTeddy
08-12-2013, 01:07
Discounts are available at Callao Learning Centre for children from the same family.

If you choose a Spanish school but are worried about maintaining the children's level of English, there are three classes a week at Callao Learning Centre from 4.30 - 5.30. These cost €10 per child per session and the children learn English at their own pace.

bonitatime
08-12-2013, 10:34
Mine grew up here up within The Spanish community. But i have seen children of The age of your two adapt very quickly.
We made an effort for them to have extra English and German(my other half's mother tongue) and they are tri lingual
More than anything it depends if you think you will stay. If this is a test then I would try one of the English schools if not I would go with the Spanish system and extra lessons.

shirley43
09-12-2013, 17:10
I think we are decided on Luther King ... I'm concerned about the school bus idea, my youngest will only be 4 and I feel concerned about him taking a school bus!! Does anyone use the school bus system with children so young ??

Tom & Sharon
09-12-2013, 17:29
I think we are decided on Luther King ... I'm concerned about the school bus idea, my youngest will only be 4 and I feel concerned about him taking a school bus!! Does anyone use the school bus system with children so young ??

I thought Luther King was full, with a waiting list. Am I wrong?

shirley43
09-12-2013, 17:42
I thought Luther King was full, with a waiting list. Am I wrong?

I have been emailing Luther king for information ect but they have never said it is full, I will def be asking 2morro thank you

shirley43
10-12-2013, 17:44
Luther king is current full I can be put on a waiting list :-/
Any ideas what I should do until I can get the kids in there?? Or anyone know how long roughly the waiting list is ??

Tom & Sharon
10-12-2013, 19:12
Shirley, have you checked out whether or not your children are entitled to a place in a Spanish state school anyway?

From your previous forum posts, it doesn't sound like either you or your husband will be working and paying into the Spanish system. I may be wrong, but I didn't think you were entitled to educate your children in the state system in that case, and that you would have to pay for private education.

Does anyone else know if that's correct or not?

shirley43
10-12-2013, 20:35
Hi Tom & Sharon,

According to Tenerife state schooling website all children that are resident in Tenerife are entitled to free Spanish school system from the age of 3. Or anyone from any nation can send their child to a private Spanish state school for a fee !!
Do u think I'm reading the wrong info ??

Also I hope to find a part time job so will be contributing although my partner is paid worldwide

Xx

Tom & Sharon
10-12-2013, 22:23
Hi Tom & Sharon,

According to Tenerife state schooling website all children that are resident in Tenerife are entitled to free Spanish school system from the age of 3. Or anyone from any nation can send their child to a private Spanish state school for a fee !!
Do u think I'm reading the wrong info ??

Also I hope to find a part time job so will be contributing although my partner is paid worldwide

Xx

I don't know Shirley, that's why I'm asking.

If you look around on the Internet, it does say that every child resident in Spain is entitled to schooling. But then it also says that every resident is entitled to healthcare, but this isn't true. Every fiscal resident is, but it is possible to be a non fiscal resident, like we are. Are you going to be fiscally resident and your husband pay tax to Spain? If so, you will be fine. But if not, you may have a problem?

Just something for you to check out. Relocation is a logistical nightmare, as you will find out. Bureaucracy in Spain is a nightmare, and non straightforward cases don't always fit into a box.

I'm not saying you won't be entitled, you just need to be sure you are. If you're just "giving it a try" it may not be practical for you to change your country of fiscal residency for a short time, and therefore be entitled to healthcare and education.

Welcome to Spain ;)

shirley43
10-12-2013, 23:29
Hi,
I knew we weren't entitled to healthcare but have seen on some websites they said any EU citizen is, this again confused me .... I'm beginning to see that absolutely nothing with this revolution is going to be straight forward!!

Why do they make everything so confusing in Spain ???
My partner definitely doesn't want to be fiscal resident as at the moment he is tax exempt with his job and we do not want to be paying the high tax to Spain!!

Him and the kids are in a private health care scheme world wide but this does not cover me as we are not married so this is another thing I will need to look at for myself,!

I feel the schooling is the main priority if I could get this sorted I could then focus on a place to live!! We are sure it's a move for life but you never know what will happen so the plan is to take a year to get sorted and settled in where we want to be etc, we hope within that year we can meet people get advice and figure out if it really is the right move!!

I feel rather lost online, that's why I joined this group as the website have so many conflicting views and statements :-(

Thanks for your help
Shirley x

Tom & Sharon
10-12-2013, 23:50
Shirley, think logically about what you're saying. You don't want to pay tax in Spain ( or anywhere ) but want the Spanish to educate your children for nothing? I don't blame you, but if you do think logically, they probably shouldn't be entitled to schooling. It's different in UK because they're British, but Spain may not look at it so favourably.

I honestly don't know, I just think you shouldn't just assume that they'll be entitled. If they're not, then private education is your only option.

It needs for you to check this out completely. You'd be amazed how many people arrive in Tenerife to start a new life, without really checking everything out properly.

Never make the mistake of assuming that things work the same as they do in the UK. They don't!

shirley43
11-12-2013, 00:10
I said I did not want to put them into state school, I just thought that wingate was quite expensive therefor I was asking the forum for advice on a happy medium!! I want my kids to learn about spanish and english languages history and values ....... I have looked at 4 different schools thanks to the advice of helpful people on this forum and all 4 have been Fee Paying so I never once said I wanted anyone to educate my children "for nothing"
My partner is rarely at home so will use Tenerife as more of a holiday home, therefor won't be paying taxes to Spain!! I have already said previously that I WILL BE paying taxes to Spain, and that all of us would have private health care set up!!

All I'm looking for us some helpful advice and information from people that have been in my shoes, yes the Spanish system is very confusing and never stays the same for any period of time hence my asking fr help, I'm sure everyone relocating wants help let alone someone with 2 young kids to think about, I feel like u have just nipped at every comment I have posted !!!

Tom & Sharon
11-12-2013, 00:28
I said I did not want to put them into state school, I just thought that wingate was quite expensive therefor I was asking the forum for advice on a happy medium!! I want my kids to learn about spanish and english languages history and values ....... I have looked at 4 different schools thanks to the advice of helpful people on this forum and all 4 have been Fee Paying so I never once said I wanted anyone to educate my children "for nothing"
My partner is rarely at home so will use Tenerife as more of a holiday home, therefor won't be paying taxes to Spain!! I have already said previously that I WILL BE paying taxes to Spain, and that all of us would have private health care set up!!

All I'm looking for us some helpful advice and information from people that have been in my shoes, yes the Spanish system is very confusing and never stays the same for any period of time hence my asking fr help, I'm sure everyone relocating wants help let alone someone with 2 young kids to think about, I feel like u have just nipped at every comment I have posted !!!

Sorry. Not trying to upset you, just trying to alert you to the pitfalls. I'm not trying to imply that you want to educate your children for nothing, just pointing out the logic which the Spanish system may apply. If Spain does have any logic!

bonitatime
18-12-2013, 16:11
The bus has a "cuidadora " who will keep children under control

jilly
27-01-2014, 11:11
Hi interested as to if you have made your move to Tenerife and sorted schooling for your children...I myself have tried before to make the move...twice...and gave up and came home as I found all the paper work ..schools etc to daunting...I want to try again so any advice...if you made it...would be appreciated..seems to be far more help and good kind helpful advice around these days than there was 10 years ago when I first went over..clueless...! X ps I hope you have made the move! X