# Berlin British School vs other international schools?



## midoritori2014 (May 2, 2014)

Hello

We may be relocating to Berlin with our 6 1/2 year old.


My husband is British and I am American.


We are looking for an education that is:

-international. We have friends of the family from all over the world, my husband and i met in Asia, we speak Japanese with her. So this is important to us.
- we want an education that has a great deal of dialog in the classroom. Not just telling children what to do, but have them think critically, come up with their own conclusions. We want our child to learn through their own mistakes, and hopefully gain a drive for learning. 

Our child is currently at a montessori school, which we have liked, as it provides this kind of frame.

we would like a safe, nurturing environment, where kids have respect for their teachers and mannerly (as much as can be expected for their age! ).

Lastly our child is in the top 1 % in the country for math and science, and therefore we would like a school that continues to challenge her.

We would like to like in Prenzlauer Berg. 


So with this in mind, which international school would be a good fit?

Thanks so much!


----------



## Nononymous (Jul 12, 2011)

If I may be frank, you're setting the bar very high, with the risk of near-inevitable disappointment. It's a nice wish list though.

Someone in a recent post, either here or another forum, described private schools as "where the rich send their children when they fail". I think there's something to that. However, if being around the wealthy, snobby and never-satisfied is important to you, go for it. 

International schools make sense for short-term expats, particularly with older kids, where language and continuity of program are important factors. Having been through this to some extent ourselves (see previous posts) I would much rather my kid have a normal neighbourhood-based social life learning the local language. If you live in a "good" neighbourhood, you'll have a "good" local school. The alternative is a life spent on public transit, with rare and complex play dates, and possibly dealing with snootiness.

Giftedness - don't go there. Make no plans; don't advertize the fact; don't assume it matters, or that regular school won't challenge. We've been through this recently. Special programs are great for the basket-case Aspergers loons who can't function in a regular environment, but the "normal" smart kids resent sharing the classroom with the astronomy-obsessed nutcases and the hyper-achieving offspring of scary tiger moms.


----------



## midoritori2014 (May 2, 2014)

I am aware that a single school may not posses all of my criteria, but what I'm asking for is the best fit. Where we live currently, there are 4 schools that fit this, so I am just asking if there are any in Berlin that would be similar.

Also, we are hoping that whatever school we choose is not snooty. she currently attends a private school that is cheap comparatively, and there is no pretentious vibe.

So, really we are looking for something comparable there.


----------



## Tellus (Nov 24, 2013)

midoritori2014 said:


> I am aware that a single school may not posses all of my criteria, but what I'm asking for is the best fit. Where we live currently, there are 4 schools that fit this, so I am just asking if there are any in Berlin that would be similar.
> 
> Also, we are hoping that whatever school we choose is not snooty. she currently attends a private school that is cheap comparatively, and there is no pretentious vibe.
> 
> So, really we are looking for something comparable there.


Well, have a look for an Internat. Internate Berlin :: Alle Internate in Berlin im Überblick :: Das Internate-Portal
They provide intern, with accomodation, and extern education, means kids stay at home.
So monthly rates differ..


----------

