# International Schools in Coimbra



## Aisling

Hi,

Can anyone give me information in relation to International schools in the Coimbra area I will need to send my 15 year old to an international school. But we hope to send our youngest to a local school as he will only be 5 and we think it will be good for him??

Thanks 

Aisling


----------



## Mr.Blueskies

Hi Aisling,

Your 5 year old will fit in fine at portuguese school but it is very possible for the 15 year old to do so also. I have been living here for 15 months now. Initially we were not sure if we would stay, so for the first school term my girl aged 13 went to the international school in Marinha Grande (we are on the silver coast)

She knew though, that if we decided to stay that she would be going to portuguese school from September, which she does now. She is certainly a long way from being fluent in portuguese. They do give her some 1 to 1 tuition. Can't say that I am a fan of the international schools to be honest and they will only learn portuguese as a language lesson there (one hour a day)
Also because all lessons are in english, they do not even need to speak portuguese. The important point in my opinion, is that when it comes time for college, then will not understand sufficient portuguese to go to college here and will need to return to ireland. If you all remain here this may be a sad time.

Just something for you to think about.


----------



## Mr.Blueskies

"Also, I do not believe that they have an international school in Coimbra ? Porto has several and may be the only option ? Silver coast and central portugal = 1 in Marinha Grande. After that, the only place where you will find them is in the Algarve.


----------



## John999

Hi Aisling
I do agree with Blueskies, you probably will have a problem finding the sort of school you want in Coimbra area. I have some information for you, I don´t think that is what you need, but this people might be able to help you finding some sort of solution
John999
International House World
IH Coimbra | School profiles | Recruitment | International House


----------



## Aisling

Thank you, you have answered my next question, in relation to college, i wasnt sure if they thought in portuguese and part english or what happened and your perfectly right we would be absolutely heart broken if our eldest had to return to Ireland to study. Our move is for all of us, to improve our lifestyles and also a different approach to life for our children and I don't feel Ireland is the best place for this. 

Would you recommend that we start getting our son portuguese lessons now while still in Ireland.


----------



## MASILVERCOAST

*Aisling*

Hi Aisling,

There are no international schools in Coimbra, and the closest location for you is Oporto, where they do exist.
Lisbon obviously has a variety of foreign schools, f.ex the Irish St. Dominic´s, English St. Julian´s , and the Frank Carlucci American school-
Torres Vedras also has an international school, but tuition is mainly in Portuguese.
Good Luck,
Marcus.


----------



## John999

If you can arrange that, that is a definitely yes. Year one in Portugal starts when children are 6 years old; in the UK they start with 5. Because Portuguese school will have to put him at the same school year he supposed to be over there, means that with 15 he would be at year 11 here, with 16 year 12, last year before university. Portuguese university access, (public school), is very hard to get. They classify the last 3 years grades, for the access. The same will happen with private Uni. But because you pay private the demand in grades is lower. Think you have to make some thinking about it before you make your final decision, and definitely, a lot of home work. The 5 year old will be just fine.
John999


----------



## MASILVERCOAST

School in Portugal starts at 6 yrs, but by then most of the kids have been attending pre-school from the age of 3. This in fact means that if you want to put your kids in a competitive private/public school, they will be lagging behind from day zero. My now 7-year-old daughter, who is in her 2nd year, is going through this very unpleasant process, as nobody warned us, and we had no clue.


----------



## Mr.Blueskies

Hi Aisling,

The best thing to do now, is to probably buy one of those "learn portuguese cd's" for a start. There is one that costs around €400 and where you are even corrected and given the correct pronunciation. This one is probably best because the spoken word is very different to the written word. Make sure though that it is not Brazilian portuguese which is different.

If you can come here around May/June time when your children have just started their school holidays, this would enable you to get your son some 1 to 1 private tuition for the three month holiday period which will also be beneficial.

Something else that is worth saying, is that I know several people who were initially drawn to Marinha Grande to be close to the international school. Next, several bought houses again close to this school. The important point is that within a 12 month period they had ALL decided to put their kids into the portuguese public school system. Those who had bought, were now confined to Marinha Grande, where others could now move on to their location of choice.
Most people just get one shot at it Aisling, so you can see how important it is not to get it wrong.


----------



## JohnBoy

Mr.Blueskies said:


> The best thing to do now, is to probably buy one of those "learn portuguese cd's" for a start. There is one that costs around €400 and where you are even corrected and given the correct pronunciation.


Are you able to identify the Cd's you mentioned without breaking any forum rules please.


----------



## Mr.Blueskies

Hi JohnBoy,

Just google Rosetta Stone and portuguese.


----------



## jellybean

Hi Aisling. We also moved here from Ireland and it's been the best move we've ever made. Love it here! I have a 14yr old who goes to the international school in Marinha Grande and is doing very well there. Yes, all the lessons are taught in English but most of the children are Portuguese and therefore speak Portuguese in their break times so my daughter is already picking up the language very well. 

We bought a book with accompanying double CD online before we came which only cost about £25.00 and it gave us a good grounding and I would have no problems recommending it. It covers both the Brazilian and European variants in grammar and pronounciation. Send me a private message if you'd like more info! Also, we have not installed Sky for British TV and watch Portuguese TV as much as possible. We have only been here for 6 months and can already follow the plot in soap operas. We also practise as much as possible when out and about which helps. The Portuguese do appreciate that the language is difficult so I've found them to be very patient and helpful when we are trying to express ourselves! Our neighbours are great too and always chat to us when we're out walking the dog or in the shops.

Whatever you decide to do, I hope you also find your move to Portugal to be everything you hoped it would be! I've never been happier )


----------



## Aisling

Thank you thats a great help Ill be in touch by a private message over the weekend, still trying to figure out how to do things on this Im not too sure but will have route around over the weekend.

Aisling


----------



## JohnBoy

Mr.Blueskies said:


> Hi JohnBoy,
> 
> Just google Rosetta Stone and portuguese.



Many thanks for that MrBlueskies. :clap2:


----------



## John999

If you have to travel from Coimbra to Marinha Grande Twice a day “there and back” you will be doing a few hundred miles a day. Make sure before you make your decision, “where to move”, you are a where of all the consequences
John999


----------



## JohnBoy

Mr.Blueskies said:


> Hi JohnBoy,
> 
> Just google Rosetta Stone and portuguese.


MrBlueskies - The only Rosetta Stone course I can locate is for Brazilian Portuguese. Do you know differently please?

Can anyone tell me if learning Brazilian Portuguese would pose any problems? Are the two so different? For example I understand that some words in general use in Spain are considered offensive in Spanish speaking South American countries.


----------



## jellybean

JohnBoy said:


> MrBlueskies - The only Rosetta Stone course I can locate is for Brazilian Portuguese. Do you know differently please?
> 
> Can anyone tell me if learning Brazilian Portuguese would pose any problems? Are the two so different? For example I understand that some words in general use in Spain are considered offensive in Spanish speaking South American countries.


John, the difference is mainly in the grammar - 

For example to say 'I am speaking' in Portugal you say 'Estou a falar' whereas in Brazil you would say 'Estou falando' . 

Also, in Portugal they use 2 different words for 'you' which are 

tu - for friends and family or 

você - for those you are less familiar with. In Brazil they use você for everyone.

Then of course the verb endings change depending on whether you use tu or você e.g.

I spoke is either - tu falaste or você falou!!!

Also in Portugal they use the article infront of names and pronouns e.g.

Estou a falar com o John (I am speaking with John) 

In Brazil this would be Estou falando com John.

Also, I am speaking with my mother in Portugal is

Estou a falar com a minha mãe

In Brazil is Estou falando com minha mãe

Also some words are different. The same way some American English words are different from UK English words e.g pants / trousers, candy / sweets etc.

In short, yes there are differences and if you learn Brazilian Portuguese you will still be understood - but you might not be able to understand THEM in return! So I think if you are coming to Portugal to live, you might as well learn how to speak the language the way it is spoken here - which is more complicated of course!


----------



## JohnBoy

Thanks Jelleybean. Reasons enough there to persevere with the national version. I do find learning a language very difficult and none more so than Portuguese. In the past I have been described as lazy but that is easy to say for someone who finds languages easy. I do not and my age is no help either. 

Thanks for your input and my apologies to Aisling for the slight thread drift.


----------



## jellybean

JohnBoy said:


> Thanks Jelleybean. Reasons enough there to persevere with the national version. I do find learning a language very difficult and none more so than Portuguese. In the past I have been described as lazy but that is easy to say for someone who finds languages easy. I do not and my age is no help either.
> 
> Thanks for your input and my apologies to Aisling for the slight thread drift.


De nada, Johnboy!

The pronounciation is different between Brazilian and European too so there's another reason! I used to find languages easy at school but now that I'm in my 40s it's a whole different ball game! My memory is completely shot and I find myself forgetting something I'd learnt just minutes before which is very frustrating! Still, I'm enjoying the challenge and feel I'm making progress!

Definitely try 'Teach Yourself Portuguese' by Manuela Cook - the book and the double CD. It's only about £25.00, and I found it easy to follow and great for beginners. It's available on Amazon and you can read other people's reviews too.

Boa sorte! (Good luck!)


----------



## Mr.Blueskies

Hi JohnBoy,

"I cannot add anything to what Jellybean has said and suggested !


----------



## siobhanwf

I did write to Rosetta Stone and asked was there likely to be a Portuguese "portuguese" version and they told me not in the foreseeable future


----------



## JohnBoy

siobhanwf said:


> I did write to Rosetta Stone and asked was there likely to be a Portuguese "portuguese" version and they told me not in the foreseeable future


That's a shame. My other favourite language course when I was in Spain was Michel Thomas but that's not available in Portuguese either. :Cry:


----------

