# Info needed on a Tuscan move and childrens groups and education!!



## Dani E (Mar 10, 2011)

After having almost made the move to Italy a few years ago having owned a house in the North (timing to move permanently then was just not right) we have decided to take a good look around Tuscany to see how it would work for us now.

We have 2 young children, 16 months old and a 4 year old, and are hoping to come out in April to see what the possibilities are and would like some help to identify areas of Tuscany to focus on. We are looking for places that have a reasonable expat community with families.

We think there is a pretty good expat community around Lucca and so we were thinking of coming out there first and would like to make contact with any of the children’s groups to see what they are like and also to be able to talk to other parents who have young children educated in the Italian system to try to find out where the best local schools are (is there such a thing as Ofsted in Italy???). We are also interested if there are many extra-curricular activities for the children as, living on the outskirts of London, our kids have a very full life in that respect and we want to try to keep that up as much as is possible.

As much as we have identified Tuscany as an area with good expat communities, are there any other areas that we should be considering. We think we would rather stay towards the North as opposed to the Southern areas. 
Having spent a fair bit of time in Piemonte we know just how wonderful life in Italy can be, but before we make the jump we want to find out to what extent, on an educational level, our children will be affected. Life, we know, will be richer!!

Any input will be much appreciated and we hope we will be able to meet up with some of you during our trip in April.


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## La-Fiaba (Dec 12, 2010)

Hello! I dont have children myself, but my partner does and I have taught in Italian schools. I have to be honest and say from my personal experience I would not want my own children educated under the Italian system. I feel it is of a lower standard than the UK, the (even very young) children are expected to do a few hours homework a night (if Italian is not your first language you will struggle to help them), school organised extra curricluar activities are pretty much none existant, there is not as much 'discipline' as UK schools, summer holidays way too long (and full of homework of course!) and the system of being kept behind a year if you dont pass the end of year exams is in my opinion wrong. Plus they can leave school at 13/14 yrs old without any qualifications. All in all I would keep them in the UK, sorry!! 

I know that sounds really negative but it is my experience in schools around Rome & Arezzo. I don't know if things are different in Lucca. I know in Rome there is the american school, I have taught a few children from there and it seems a much higher standard than Italian state schools. I dont know of any private schools around lucca however. 

I really hope you find a good solution, if so let me know!


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## La-Fiaba (Dec 12, 2010)

double post - sorry!


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