Moving from Australia to UK

[user1497736821]

Dear all,

This is the first time I posted on this forum. I am really looking forward to hearing some advice from you. My son (born in April 2011) is going to move to the UK this October. He just started kindergarten in Australia this February when he was 5 years and 10 months old (Children in Australia start school at 5). I contacted the Country Council about admission to primary schools for him and they said as my son is 6 years and 4 months old in October, he will have to join Year 2. We were shocked to hear that . Because it means that after just 8 months at kindergarten in Australia, he will have to go straight to Year 2 in the UK. It is so horrifying to us. Moving to a new country will be very stressful experience for him and he has to skip Year 1 and go straight to Year 2.
Anyone having any experience with such situation? Could you please give me some advice? We are extremely worried now.

Thank you very much

I'm not sure I can give much advice, but depending on the school, you'll probably find he has more support in the classroom for a while because he will be behind. It would be good to get the curriculum online and see if you can give him some support in catching up while you have a few months. if you are arriving in October, he will miss the Aussie summer hols and the uk summer hols both. Be prepared to make time give him some time 'off'. My kids were always exhausted by the end of the school year and needed hols. You will do most of the Aussie school year and then without a break go straight into the near start of the uk school year.

If this all sounds ab it stressful, you may find more leeway with private schools.

Best of luck!

Thanks a lot for your reply, peripateticparents.

We will try to give him some more preparation in the coming months. But making him skip Year 1 to go straight to Year 2 is still so overwhelming. Private schools may be a good solution but it is not affordable to us. In UK, even if we, parents, insist our kid to be placed in Year 1, the council do not allow to do that, don't they? Do you think there is any way to go around?

Hi there. We had to do this with our daughter who started Prep in QLD (equivalent of reception) at 5 and a half years old rather than starting reception in the UK at 4 years and 1 week - late Aug birthday. We returned to the UK in Jan this year and she jumped from year 3 to year 5. We went private for this reason and it was a good decision. I'm sure state schools would have been supportive too but the smaller class size has been v beneficial and she has fitted right in. Doing some reading eggs at home will be a huge help and other online maths games etc.

Hi OP,

I'm pretty sure the council won't let you swap years unless there is a 'special needs' reason. Else many parents would be 'insisting' that their child should be higher/lower etc. Having said that, we exited the UK school system about a year ago and are currently homeschooling from various countries, so I'm no expert.

As ifink suggested, reading eggs is good (an online learn to read program which will often give you a month free to try it - try signing up to their promotional emails if you can't get it just by going online). they also have a maths section called mathseed. My 5 year old uses it and it has been very good.

Have you explained to his kindergarten teacher what the expectations will be when he moves? She/he may be able to support them a bit extra beforehand too.

The thing about year 1 is that it's the first time they really move away from the carpet time, and learning through play, choice time etc approach, to more structured learning. In our schools for my DC this has been done gradually over the first two terms of Y1 to help the children slowly move into the rhythms of sitting longer at the desks and concentrating on subjects. I think the issue is not so much the learning he will miss from year 1 as the change in tempo, it might be quite a shock for him to arrive mid-term in year 2 without the transition and you will need to prepare him for this aspect to make sure he stays positive about school.

I'm not sure what the best approach is, but think speaking to your son's current school is a very good first step, hopefully they will have some practical support and ideas

Hi we moved from NZ to the UK in 2012. In NZ (which is similar to AU) My DS aged 10 had two years left at NZ Primary school, then would attend intermediate school for two years, then high school at 13.

Upon return to England, he started year 9 UK Primary and had one year at Primary before preparing to start High school. The NZ and AU school system is very different to the UK and after assessment, they estimate that at Primary level, the NZ education system is about two years behind the UK. It evens out eventually but not until High School.

One thing that he struggled with was his handwriting. In the UK, children are taught handwriting skills very early on, whereas in NZ it is not a priority. My son did not know how to join his handwriting and the teachers were shocked by this and he had to learn pretty quickly.

His teacher in NZ was fantastic and aware of the differences my son would face, allowed us to pass on his direct email address to the new UK teacher.

I would just accept the differences in the education system and prepare your son as much as possible. Having good communication with the teacher/school is vital as well.

Good luck

Sorry just realised the age of your DS is much younger!

There is a bigger focus on learning through play in NZ and he will find the UK school system much more faster paced, but as a PP has said they will recognise that and offer extra support via teaching assistants. Try not to worry but as a PP has pointed out, the timing is crucial as you need to make sure he gets a long break. We ended up with two winters back to back and it was exhausting!

To ifink: Thank you for your kind reply. We encourage him to do reading eggs and mathelatics every day at home. And he is already well ahead of his classmates. But I think when he joins Year 2, he will still be behind others. I am just worried that he will feel disheartened.

To peripateticparents and Thingvellir: Thanks a lot. We have discussed with his teacher in Australia about our situation. She has supported us by giving him more homework on reading eggs and mathelatics to help him go more quickly to Year 1. And you are right, we need to talk to our son about the new life, new school in the UK. It will be a huge change for him.

To AndieNZ: Thank you for sharing. In Australia, my kid was taught writing pretty early but it is not really focused on. Maybe I need to help him with this a little bit during this summer. We intend to give him 2 weeks break before he goes to the new school I know it seems short but we both have to go to work and have noone to help us take care of him.

Hi user, I think it is quite usual for children to arrive from other countries and be 'behind' - as barely any other country starts formal schooling as early as England! So one thing to reassure you, the school will have experience with this kind of situation. Your son has the advantage of at least knowing the language - many children arrive not speaking English on top of not having started school yet.

Another thing to reassure you: In my opinion, Year One is very very tricky to get right in schools here, and for many children it is a bit of a waste of time. I know this will be controversial. I have formed this opinion from my own, very able child's experience in Y1 and from volunteering in a Y1 classroom. The range of abilities - and the range of how ready the children are to do 'formal work' - is huge in Y1. Very able children are often let down because in contrast to the play based, often child-led reception year, now they have to sit and complete worksheets that are too easy for them, and don't have time or opportunity to follow their interests and discover things by themselves, by play, as they IMO should be doing at that age. And very many children in Y1, be they able or academically struggling, find the 'formal work' thing hard. More often than I'm happy with I have seen a child put in front of a worksheet a) not knowing what they are meant to do and b) even if they did know, they did not have the skills necessary to access that kind of work. So they sit and wait until someone gets round to helping them. This sitting and waiting is the reality for many Y1 children and it makes them bored, lose confidence, turns them off from school and learning. It's not just a waste of their time (they should be playing and learning through play), it is positively counterproductive. I know some schools/teachers do better than this, but I hear a lot about schools that are very similar to this. And with the further cuts in education that are coming, there will be even less funding for 1-1 support and such. For my second child I am seriously considering sending her to school for reception, then HE for Y1 (and perhaps Y2, depending on how she is developmentally) before sending her back to school when she is developmentally at the stage where she is ready to learn in a school context.

So what I'm saying is, do not worry too much about skipping Y1! See it this way: While many/some of your child's future classmates are, right now, sitting at desks waiting for someone to come round to help them, or sitting at desks waiting for something interesting to happen because the learning objectives they are supposed to be working towards are things they knew how to do a year ago, and learning the sad lesson that school is boring or that they are obviously 'too stupid for school' - your child is, developmentally appropriately, playing, exploring, following their own interests, and probably learning more than you can tell.

Your son will be 6 1/2 when he starts formal schooling and that is IMO a great age for it. He will find learning to sit still and listen and do 'formal' work so much easier than most 5 year olds do. And unsurprisingly, average 6.5 year olds are capable of learning to read, write and do sums much faster than average 4 or 5 year olds. Chances are he will catch up in no time at all, and may go on to outperform many of his peers as he had that crucial extra year of child-led, play based learning that English children are cheated out of.

Thank you for your informative reply, brilliotic. I feel a little encouraged after reading the replies.

It seems primary education in UK is still standardized, rather than customized to each child's needs. My son now is learning in a class in which Kindergarten and Year 1 kids are mixed. Therefore, there is no standard teaching for the whole class. The class is divided into several groups and teaching is instead customized to each group of kids of the same level. Are the kids in the same class in the UK all forced to sit and work on the same tasks?

Good teachers will be able to differentiate, of course. There will be wide ability gaps in any class, even if they are all born within a year of each other. They will work on the same subjects, but a good class teacher will know who struggles with what and differentiate accordingly.

Realistically, you stand zero chance of getting him placed out of year in a state school; it's beginning to happen a little more in reception, but only for summer born children who then start at just over 5 rather than just 4, and in most cases requires some evidence of immaturity. Some councils will allow on request but few, and even then only in reception.

Schools in U.K. go up to Yr 13 whereas they only go up to Y12 in Australia hence the age differences as mismatch. My son was educated in Aus from K-2 and then came back to Y3 because we started him early to keep him in sync. A good school should be able to accommodate any ability and if he is bright he will catch up. In our experience Kindy in Aus was more like Y1 here anyway - much more formal than reception is here. Reception is like the last year of pre school in Aus.

OP, my DS is August born and really struggled moving into Year 1 and again into Year 2 because of the more "sit at a table and write" focus even if they're in small groups.

My DS culdn't have coped with a move from Foundation (kindergarten equivalent) into Yr 2. Are there other online boards for expats who have tackled this? Maybe ask the school if he can go part time until Christmas and have a tutor at home / work to practise handwriting etc. away from school.

I have a friend in Aus and it's been interesting to compare her DS's experience with mine. It's a big jump. And no, you won't be able to get your son into Yr 1 - we wanted DS to be held back a year but couldn't. It's to do with secondary schools refusing to take them out of year so going from Yr 5 to Yr 7 (secondary). The British system is really inflexible.

Private probably isn't the answer though as, with tiny classes and often parents with high expectations, he'd be in a small class with children who are doing more advanced work work e.g. spellings than their peers in the state sector. My son gets unwell and unusual (yr 3); a friend with a DD of the same age but privately education, has laboratory. It can be a big jump.

Have a look at the year 1 national curriculum online and try to teach him a few of the key skills. Other than that you'll just have to see how it goes. I'm a teacher and if it's any consolation I've taught lots of kids who came to school 'late' and they usually catch up pretty quickly. Just talk to the teacher after the first couple of weeks and see what you can do to help. The year 2 ITAF might be worth looking at but remember it's what they need to know by the end of y2 so he won't need to know it yet.

In our state primary there have been cases where children have been allowed out of year because of coming from abroad with different cut-off dates etc. So it is worth asking at least. It needed an Educational Psychologist recommendation but the out of year was then carried forward to Secondary school without difficulty too. In the case I'm thinking of though the child was older year 5/6, and very young in year. Given your ds age, I would expect a decent primary school would feel they had enough time to make up the ground so may not support it. My feeling would be without any additional needs and some additional work at home he probably would catch up fast.

I wouldn't even try to get him into year 1. 99% of state schools would say no (a rough guesstimate!) Also would that even be the best thing for the child when he realises he's a year older than everyone else.

OP, although there is a national curriculum in UK schools, teaching is absolutely customised to the child. My children both attended primaries with mixed year groups and the teachers and TAs were brilliant at managing that. Work is set in small groups and differentiated.

As others have said, the issue might be more about your child being ready for the structure of a Y2 classroom than whether he is academically able. My ds found the transition from KS1 to KS2 really hard as it was so much more formal. He had a lovely time in Y2 with a fabulous teacher who believed in learning through play (so there are some non-formal Y2 classrooms out there! ). KS2 was very different. But he coped.

I hope your move goes well. Children are resilient and I am sure your son will settle in.

Another option to explore is whether a small (often village) school might suit him. Due to smaller intakes some only take 15 (or fewer) pupils a year. Around here they are generally arranged so that reception are on their own and yr1/2 are combined. This means that for the year that he is settling in he would be around peers who have also just moved from a play based curriculum. The disadvantage is that at the end of the year he would be going into yr3/4 but hopefully by then he will have settled. The teachers of mixed ability classes are used to teaching and differentiating for a wider range of learning needs.

Having said that children arrive here with little or no English and yet still integrate, catch up and thrive so your son who does speak English at least has some advantage over them.