shelley71 Posted January 17, 2014 Report Share Posted January 17, 2014 I am so glad I found this forum! I have read through some threads and did gather some information. We have three girls that all go to a private Catholic School here in the U.S.A. I am worried how they will adjust in school in Australia. I was so excited to tell them about this opportunity. All my girls are quite disappointed! I guess, this is normal to feel scared, worried about uprooting them from everything they know here. My girls are 13, 9, and 6 years old. I have researched the schools and found a catholic school in Mandurah that seems like it would work. We haven't visited yet and I am solely learning things online ahead of time. Can anyone give me their experience with how your children have adjusted being the "new student" from another country? Especially if you have a teen? Any advice that you can give would be greatly appreciated! Thank you in advance! Shelley Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mitchogen Posted January 17, 2014 Report Share Posted January 17, 2014 Hi shelley we moved from the UK to Perth last July and I have a now 13 yr old and a now 12 yr old. They were so happy before and didn't want to leave. But they have both settled so well. In a matter of days met friends and have a good social side here. They are so happy and already they have both told me they don't want to go back to the UK do that tells you everything. Have you checked out s school close to us called Emmanuel in success. I have heard good things. And I think it might be catholic too. Good luck with your move and remember kids are very versatile and resilient. They put a lot of pressure on your shoulders about their feelings but sometimes parents know best when it's s good move. Lisa Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shelley71 Posted January 17, 2014 Author Report Share Posted January 17, 2014 Hi shelley we moved from the UK to Perth last July and I have a now 13 yr old and a now 12 yr old. They were so happy before and didn't want to leave. But they have both settled so well. In a matter of days met friends and have a good social side here. They are so happy and already they have both told me they don't want to go back to the UK do that tells you everything. Have you checked out s school close to us called Emmanuel in success. I have heard good things. And I think it might be catholic too. Good luck with your move and remember kids are very versatile and resilient. They put a lot of pressure on your shoulders about their feelings but sometimes parents know best when it's s good move. Lisa Thank you for your reply Lisa! It's great to hear your positive experience! I will check out the other school as well. I am a little overwhelmed by all the options. Yes, I agree that kids do put a lot of pressure on parents. Ugh! I am going to hold off talking about it with the girls today.-- My girls are interested in soccer and I can't find that much information. I know its called football too. I am finding more information for boys. I must be looking in the wrong places or its not as much of an interest in Australia for girls as it is here. All three love soccer! I am hoping to find girls clubs for them. Thanks again for your help! Shelley Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zebradeb Posted January 27, 2014 Report Share Posted January 27, 2014 Thank you for your reply Lisa! It's great to hear your positive experience! I will check out the other school as well. I am a little overwhelmed by all the options. Yes, I agree that kids do put a lot of pressure on parents. Ugh! I am going to hold off talking about it with the girls today.-- My girls are interested in soccer and I can't find that much information. I know its called football too. I am finding more information for boys. I must be looking in the wrong places or its not as much of an interest in Australia for girls as it is here. All three love soccer! I am hoping to find girls clubs for them. Thanks again for your help! Shelley Hi Shelley, don't worry about the soccer side of things.. check out Perth Glorys website, they have a successful womens team and I'm sure if you email them directly, they will tell you all about their development programs and what is going on In your area http://www.footballwest.com.au/ Good luck with the move, it will be actioned packed for sure. My children didn't want to go, until they went and now they are looking forward to going back. I'm sure they will be fine. My advice would be to look around a few schools and let them choose, that worked for mine! They now feel part of the adventure and somewhat in control of the decision making process. For schools check out http://www.myschool.edu.au/ but remember, nothing substitutes a visit yourself & to get a good feel for the place. All the best Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kerry267 Posted January 27, 2014 Report Share Posted January 27, 2014 I can only reflect what everyone else has said. We moved last July and have a now 14 year old who was very happy in the UK but prepared to make a go of it here too. She was petrified on her first day of school but now after a few months has settled in so well. She has a nice group of fiends and spends her days at the beach or in the pool. What a life! She has also said she doesn't want to go back to the UK. I'm not sure where you are un the US so I'm not sure how the lifestyle in Perth compares to there. My daughter attends the state school in Woodvale which we have been impressed with, they have a soccer program there and I know that this is for girls too. I think there is generally a greater emphasis placed on sport here anyway. Good luck with the move, I'm sure they will settle in well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shelley71 Posted January 27, 2014 Author Report Share Posted January 27, 2014 Thank you so much for the help!! I didn't realize what Perth 'Poms' meant from UK and I admit I am a little embarrassed! Thank you for taking the time to reply and help out! This is some great info. to get me started. This site comes up every time I google & I have found such great information just reading threads. Anyway, my youngest daughter (6) is really excited to move now. Still working on my other two girls, I am hoping they will come around. Kerry267. Thank you for sharing your success about your daughter, glad she is doing well. Zebradeb, I appreciate the info. on the soccer as well!! We are moving for Seattle, WA area in the USA. West Coast. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lou8670 Posted January 27, 2014 Report Share Posted January 27, 2014 Thank you so much for the help!! I didn't realize what Perth 'Poms' meant from UK and I admit I am a little embarrassed! Thank you for taking the time to reply and help out! This is some great info. to get me started. This site comes up every time I google & I have found such great information just reading threads. Anyway, my youngest daughter (6) is really excited to move now. Still working on my other two girls, I am hoping they will come around. Kerry267. Thank you for sharing your success about your daughter, glad she is doing well. Zebradeb, I appreciate the info. on the soccer as well!! We are moving for Seattle, WA area in the USA. West Coast. It is a great site and source of info about Perth no matter where you're from and we're a friendly bunch on here too so keep asking away Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ali Posted January 28, 2014 Report Share Posted January 28, 2014 Hi and welcome to Perth Poms (you don't need to be a pom - everyone is welcome). My children were 11 and 7 when we moved, both have gone to state schools, we're lucky enough to have a good one on our door step. Australian schools are so used to children arriving from other countries, both my two settled really quickly (very different children), made friends and enjoyed life both at school and in Perth, my son is still best friends with the boys who the teacher asked to 'buddy him on his first day, and prior to arriving the principle set up my daughter (the eldest) with a pen pal prior to arriving. My daughter is 19 next month and starts her 2nd year at UWA and tells me she's glad to have had her teenage years here in Aus Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wallywombat Posted January 28, 2014 Report Share Posted January 28, 2014 Seattle??! Brace yourself....when the sun shines here......it does for days....for weeks!! We moved here from Vancouver, BC last March and haven't stopped smiling all summer. The winter was a bit of cop out and we actually found it miserable last year as it went on for months (we weren't expecting that)....but people say it was an unusual winter. But the great thing about the rain here is that it ignites the eucalyptus scents and you can actually make out cloud formations - it isn't a grey blanket in the sky. Good luck with the move! Thank you so much for the help!! I didn't realize what Perth 'Poms' meant from UK and I admit I am a little embarrassed! Thank you for taking the time to reply and help out! This is some great info. to get me started. This site comes up every time I google & I have found such great information just reading threads. Anyway, my youngest daughter (6) is really excited to move now. Still working on my other two girls, I am hoping they will come around. Kerry267. Thank you for sharing your success about your daughter, glad she is doing well. Zebradeb, I appreciate the info. on the soccer as well!! We are moving for Seattle, WA area in the USA. West Coast. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alienmigration Posted February 6, 2014 Report Share Posted February 6, 2014 Hi Shelley, we are in a similar situation! We too are moving from USA to Perth in about 6 months. I have the advantage though because I am originally from Perth which makes it a lot easier on figuring out where to live etc. My boys are 12 and 9. They have visited on numerous times over the years and LOVE Perth and can't wait to move there. They are so excited to be a "novelty", speaking with an American accent! The only pain for us moving from the States is that the school year is so different. Schools start the new year in February in Australia (as I'm sure you know) which means our kids will either be put back 6 months or go forward 6 months dependant on their ages. My 12 year old will have to repeat 6 months of Year 7 and my 9 years will fleet us to Year 5. There are a lot of Catholic schools in Perth. Have you looked at the website www.bettereducation.com.au? Good luck to you guys! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shelley71 Posted February 7, 2014 Author Report Share Posted February 7, 2014 Thank you for the post Wallywombat! We are actually in Bellingham.. we were practically neighbors! The weather has to be better than the constant down pour we get in the winter months. However, right now we have had a cold spell with record lows, but the most beautiful blue skies and SUNSHINE.. much better than the rain we typically get this time of the year. I have been looking at beautiful pics of Australia and it all seems like a dream right now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shelley71 Posted February 7, 2014 Author Report Share Posted February 7, 2014 Hi Shelley, we are in a similar situation! We too are moving from USA to Perth in about 6 months. I have the advantage though because I am originally from Perth which makes it a lot easier on figuring out where to live etc. My boys are 12 and 9. They have visited on numerous times over the years and LOVE Perth and can't wait to move there. They are so excited to be a "novelty", speaking with an American accent! The only pain for us moving from the States is that the school year is so different. Schools start the new year in February in Australia (as I'm sure you know) which means our kids will either be put back 6 months or go forward 6 months dependant on their ages. My 12 year old will have to repeat 6 months of Year 7 and my 9 years will fleet us to Year 5.There are a lot of Catholic schools in Perth. Have you looked at the website www.bettereducation.com.au? Good luck to you guys! Thank you Alienmigration! I appreciate your post! I have checked out the website. It has been so helpful. You must be so relieved to have your boys excited for the move. My girls have always lived here and they can't imagine it any different. They are finally starting to ask questions and seem a bit more excited about the idea. I have found several Catholic schools that I have checked out and state schools as well. I wish I could hop on a flight right now and check them out! There seem to be a lot of great schools all over perth area. I am most concerned about High School and how it compares to the USA and if my daughter goes through high school and wants to go to a university in the US.. as we would most likely would live in Perth for a few years... not sure, so thinking of all options and if its hard to go back and transfer from Australia back to the USA. -- Starting out.. I think one of my daughters (oldest) will have to repeat 6 months, and the other two girls would be ahead. Where are you living in the USA now? how long have you lived here? You must be so excited to go back! Good luck with your move! Wishing you the best! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alienmigration Posted February 8, 2014 Report Share Posted February 8, 2014 Hi again Shelley! Glad I could help. I'm very excited to be moving back but scared at the same time. I know how ridiculously expensive Perth is compared to the US and don't want to be a miserable sack sitting around whining about the cost of everything. We too are looking at it like a move for about 3 years and then we will re-assess so may be in the same boat re Colleges in the States. I believe you can sit the SAT's in Perth so I don't think applying to US colleges from Perth will be a problem. We are a US military family so we have lived in FL, HI, NJ & CA and are currently in Italy! My husband is leaving the military this summer. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
verystormy Posted February 8, 2014 Report Share Posted February 8, 2014 You havent mentioned what visa you will be coming on, but if it is a 457 (company sponsored) then be aware that there are school fees being introduced by the state government from January next year for people on 457 visas. These will be $4000 per year for the first child and $2000 for other children. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alienmigration Posted March 12, 2015 Report Share Posted March 12, 2015 Shelley, did you end up moving to Perth?? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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