# Schooling in Italy



## debbie25

Hi, I am looking to move to Italy with my two children in the near future and would love some advice regards the education system over there. I am not set on location exactly although Tuscany is looking the favoured area at the moment. My daughter is 7 years old and is currently in year 2 at school and my son is 3 and due to start school in the Reception class this September. 

I obviously want to immerse myself in Italy as much as possible but I'm not sure what is best for the children in terms of sending them to an International school because of their lack of Italian at the moment or for them to head into a local school.

Hope this makes sense?

Thanks

D


----------



## sagio

debbie25 said:


> Hi, I am looking to move to Italy with my two children in the near future and would love some advice regards the education system over there. I am not set on location exactly although Tuscany is looking the favoured area at the moment. My daughter is 7 years old and is currently in year 2 at school and my son is 3 and due to start school in the Reception class this September.
> 
> I obviously want to immerse myself in Italy as much as possible but I'm not sure what is best for the children in terms of sending them to an International school because of their lack of Italian at the moment or for them to head into a local school.
> 
> Hope this makes sense?
> 
> Thanks
> 
> D


hi debbie

im in exactly the same situation as you are. we are moving over to verona in the next few months and im still struggling with what to do for the best. we are over in a couple of weeks so im hoping to go and see the schools so i can make a decision.i too have two children one 7 and the other 5 both already at school in the uk and i don't know whats the best for them with regards to putting them in a state school or international.

il let you know how it goes and if i find anything out that i think is of interest to you.

when are you looking at moving?

sarah


----------



## debbie25

sagio said:


> hi debbie
> 
> im in exactly the same situation as you are. we are moving over to verona in the next few months and im still struggling with what to do for the best. we are over in a couple of weeks so im hoping to go and see the schools so i can make a decision.i too have two children one 7 and the other 5 both already at school in the uk and i don't know whats the best for them with regards to putting them in a state school or international.
> 
> il let you know how it goes and if i find anything out that i think is of interest to you.
> 
> when are you looking at moving?
> 
> sarah


Hi Sarah

Thanks for your reply, i would be really interested to hear if you have any luck on your visit and fingers crossed for you. I'm looking to move by September so that I don't have to enroll my son in school over here. Can I ask why you chose Verona? Was it work related? A friend of mine has recently moved to Lucca and she is loving it already, so I was thinking of moving reasonably close to her so that I knew somebody, other than that my options are open as to where to live as long as it is within a reasonable distance of an airport where flights go to Manchester.

Thanks again for your reply and look forward from hearing from you again.

Debbie


----------



## jane.m

debbie25 said:


> Hi Sarah
> 
> Thanks for your reply, i would be really interested to hear if you have any luck on your visit and fingers crossed for you. I'm looking to move by September so that I don't have to enroll my son in school over here. Can I ask why you chose Verona? Was it work related? A friend of mine has recently moved to Lucca and she is loving it already, so I was thinking of moving reasonably close to her so that I knew somebody, other than that my options are open as to where to live as long as it is within a reasonable distance of an airport where flights go to Manchester.
> 
> Thanks again for your reply and look forward from hearing from you again.
> 
> Debbie


Hi Debbie
See you are thinking of Lucca as your friend is there. We also are thinking of Lucca with a 10yr old and 7 yr old twins, hubby speaks Italian but not the rest of us!! Does your friend have kids in school and how easy was that, enrolling them etc. We are arriving in June but school year will just have finished, so looks as though we might have to wait until September to enroll, unless we can find info in the meantime.
Jane.


----------



## sagio

debbie25 said:


> Hi Sarah
> 
> Thanks for your reply, i would be really interested to hear if you have any luck on your visit and fingers crossed for you. I'm looking to move by September so that I don't have to enroll my son in school over here. Can I ask why you chose Verona? Was it work related? A friend of mine has recently moved to Lucca and she is loving it already, so I was thinking of moving reasonably close to her so that I knew somebody, other than that my options are open as to where to live as long as it is within a reasonable distance of an airport where flights go to Manchester.
> 
> Thanks again for your reply and look forward from hearing from you again.
> 
> Debbie


hi again debbie....

we have like you been trying to decide on where we live.we were initially going to move to sardinia where my other half is from. we decided it wasn't the correct place for us being a young family.in our opinion not as many opportunities for the boys there. we have decided on verona as my OH has lived and worked there before and has secured employment there already.it also gives me more opportunity in trade i am in as i am self employed in the uk and would be hoping to do the same thing over there.

are you local to manchester....hope you don't mind be being nosey..it is just that we are in manchester.

are you planning a visit any time soon yourself?

i will be happy to share anything i find out with you!


----------



## Emmis

Hi,

Just read this post and as I have 2 little ones I wanted to let you know that we put both of them into public schools and were really happy with our choice. There is a lot of opinion over the quality of schooling but I found it to be superb. Also, wherever we've lived people always complain about their country's quality of education!

As for integrating the children I personally think the sooner they are integrated the better and easier for all of you. You can mix with both the expat and Italian community. Also if you're in a small city like Lucca you'll quickly get to know other expats and other people in the same situation as you. If you do end up in Lucca, let me know as we used to live just outside and might be able to give you some advice! It's a beautiful city, hugely loved by British people as it's unusually organised and clean by Italian standards! An Italian friend of mine from the south used to joke that the street cleaners in Lucca actually go around dropping bits of rubbish just to make it look like a regular Italian city!!

Go for it and love it! Let go of any preconceptions, be open-minded, don't worry too much about teething problems and you'll have the best life there. Your children will also grow up to be the most affectionate of any nation of children ever!


----------



## mariannem

debbie25 said:


> Hi, I am looking to move to Italy with my two children in the near future and would love some advice regards the education system over there. I am not set on location exactly although Tuscany is looking the favoured area at the moment. My daughter is 7 years old and is currently in year 2 at school and my son is 3 and due to start school in the Reception class this September.
> 
> I obviously want to immerse myself in Italy as much as possible but I'm not sure what is best for the children in terms of sending them to an International school because of their lack of Italian at the moment or for them to head into a local school.
> 
> Hope this makes sense?
> 
> Thanks
> 
> D


Hi, You won't be able to get into the local comune schools or state schools until you have residence.
Your 3 year old would do fine in an Italian private preschool since at that age they learn very fast and at least around here(florence)they are many people from the uk who have moved here in your same situation so they are used to it. 
For your older 7 year old, the Italian schools of course have about 80% of the curr. focused on the Italian language and if she doesn't speak any it will be impossible for her to sustain the school. In the florence area there are 2 international schools, one is very expensive and from my experience from some of the expat clients I have it is not very good, they don't teach the kids Italian well at all. There is also a Canadian school that I hear many good things about and there are some Italian private schools that would accept your daughter but would first evaluate her Italian and if it would be possible to take her in.
There is also a French school that is very good here but I don't know their policy on where you have to be with the languages.
You can find them all on the internet. Outside of Florence I am afraid I don't have much info on international schools.
Good luck!


----------



## debbie25

jane.m said:


> Hi Debbie
> See you are thinking of Lucca as your friend is there. We also are thinking of Lucca with a 10yr old and 7 yr old twins, hubby speaks Italian but not the rest of us!! Does your friend have kids in school and how easy was that, enrolling them etc. We are arriving in June but school year will just have finished, so looks as though we might have to wait until September to enroll, unless we can find info in the meantime.
> Jane.


Hi Jane

Thanks for your reply. My friend moved to Lucca only a short time ago, but her children are not a school age yet so she has a couple of years for them to learn Italian but then I believe she will be sending them to a local school. I would be really interested to hear how you get on with finding schools when you get their in June. Also do you have any information on websites for renting property long term in the area? Everything I seem to find from the UK end is short term rentals geared towards the holiday side of things.

Thanks

Debbie


----------



## debbie25

Emmis said:


> Hi,
> 
> Just read this post and as I have 2 little ones I wanted to let you know that we put both of them into public schools and were really happy with our choice. There is a lot of opinion over the quality of schooling but I found it to be superb. Also, wherever we've lived people always complain about their country's quality of education!
> 
> As for integrating the children I personally think the sooner they are integrated the better and easier for all of you. You can mix with both the expat and Italian community. Also if you're in a small city like Lucca you'll quickly get to know other expats and other people in the same situation as you. If you do end up in Lucca, let me know as we used to live just outside and might be able to give you some advice! It's a beautiful city, hugely loved by British people as it's unusually organised and clean by Italian standards! An Italian friend of mine from the south used to joke that the street cleaners in Lucca actually go around dropping bits of rubbish just to make it look like a regular Italian city!!
> 
> Go for it and love it! Let go of any preconceptions, be open-minded, don't worry too much about teething problems and you'll have the best life there. Your children will also grow up to be the most affectionate of any nation of children ever!


Hi

Thanks for your reply - it was lovely to hear such positive aspects about the city. I have been speaking to a friend of mine who has recently moved to the area as well and she also is really positive about it, so Lucca is definitely moving to the top of my list. I'm hoping to fly out soon to have a good look around and hopefully come to a decision so we can get packing over the summer! One of areas of concern is that I will be living over there on my own with my children so obviously choosing a safe and friendly area is of great importance to me. Also as you mentioned an expat community in the area would also be great (i'm an ex-Shell kid, so lived within expat communities around the world for most of my childhood & early adult life).

Any advice would be sooooooo welcome!

Thanks again.

Debbie


----------



## debbie25

sagio said:


> hi again debbie....
> 
> we have like you been trying to decide on where we live.we were initially going to move to sardinia where my other half is from. we decided it wasn't the correct place for us being a young family.in our opinion not as many opportunities for the boys there. we have decided on verona as my OH has lived and worked there before and has secured employment there already.it also gives me more opportunity in trade i am in as i am self employed in the uk and would be hoping to do the same thing over there.
> 
> are you local to manchester....hope you don't mind be being nosey..it is just that we are in manchester.
> 
> are you planning a visit any time soon yourself?
> 
> i will be happy to share anything i find out with you!


Hi again!

We are just outside Chester, heading towards Manchester.

I'm looking at going out really soon to have a look around so that hopefully we can get moving over the summer.

If I find anything out I'll let you know also!

D


----------



## Emmis

debbie25 said:


> Hi
> 
> Thanks for your reply - it was lovely to hear such positive aspects about the city. I have been speaking to a friend of mine who has recently moved to the area as well and she also is really positive about it, so Lucca is definitely moving to the top of my list. I'm hoping to fly out soon to have a good look around and hopefully come to a decision so we can get packing over the summer! One of areas of concern is that I will be living over there on my own with my children so obviously choosing a safe and friendly area is of great importance to me. Also as you mentioned an expat community in the area would also be great (i'm an ex-Shell kid, so lived within expat communities around the world for most of my childhood & early adult life).
> 
> Any advice would be sooooooo welcome!
> 
> Thanks again.
> 
> Debbie


Hi Debbie,

I can already tell you that Lucca is very safe!! There's a monthly magazine that you can get hold of called The Grapevine which gives info on all things going on in Lucca... and it's written in English. There's an icecream parlour on Via San Paolino, the street that runs up to Piazza San Michele from the bus station, that is run by 2 English people. They'd also be able to put you in touch with other expats. Oh and there's a clothes shop in the anfiteatro called Citizen Kane, which is run by a Scottish guy. And (!!) again on Via San Paolino there is a shop called Gong, selling Indonesian clothes and furniture, which is run by a really good couple of friends of mine - she's Italian and he's American. They are LOVELY and will so want to help you! She knows everything and everyone you need to know, from schools, to gynocologists, to churches to attend!

As for sending your children to schools I still stand by integrating them into Italian schools. I have English friends who sent their 8 year old, their 6 year old and 4 year old to Italian Elementare and Materna, and none of them spoke Italian, and they integrated really well... there were obviously initial teething problems but that was only due to them missing friends from the UK. You can find yourself a tutor to help out initially with homework etc. Obviously it's up to you, but there aren't any international schools in Lucca either. There is a British school in Pisa but I wouldn't recommend it I'm afraid.

If you're looking for other English speaking mums, I have a friend who lives just outside of Lucca in Nozzano. She's a single mum from the UK and is also really lovely!!!

Enjoy!!
xxx


----------



## Francisca Verdooren

We moved from Australia in Feb. and my daughter did not speak one word of Italian. We sent her to a course every day for 1 hour for 3 weeks so she could speak some basics. She is 10 and is now attending grade 4 in an Italian primary school. Although she still does not speak much, she can understand alot and is doing fine. It seems that the local Italian schools are academically better than the International schools and the schools are very helpful to "stranieri", I guess because they have so many people migrating from East Europe and Middle East and Africa and many other places. So although it may seem scary (like it did to me), my advice is to send the kids to a local Italian primary school.




debbie25 said:


> Hi, I am looking to move to Italy with my two children in the near future and would love some advice regards the education system over there. I am not set on location exactly although Tuscany is looking the favoured area at the moment. My daughter is 7 years old and is currently in year 2 at school and my son is 3 and due to start school in the Reception class this September.
> 
> I obviously want to immerse myself in Italy as much as possible but I'm not sure what is best for the children in terms of sending them to an International school because of their lack of Italian at the moment or for them to head into a local school.
> 
> Hope this makes sense?
> 
> Thanks
> 
> D


----------



## jane.m

debbie25 said:


> Hi Jane
> 
> Thanks for your reply. My friend moved to Lucca only a short time ago, but her children are not a school age yet so she has a couple of years for them to learn Italian but then I believe she will be sending them to a local school. I would be really interested to hear how you get on with finding schools when you get their in June. Also do you have any information on websites for renting property long term in the area? Everything I seem to find from the UK end is short term rentals geared towards the holiday side of things.
> 
> Thanks
> 
> Debbie


Hi Debbie
Yes we have found the same problem, short term tending towards expensive holiday rentals. Hubby leaves here on Tuesday, so he has just over 4 weeks before we arrive to find something!!! Fingers crossed.
The Italian consulate here in Brisbane have been helpful with info and paperwork for schooling so far, but will keep you posted.


----------



## debbie25

Emmis said:


> Hi Debbie,
> 
> I can already tell you that Lucca is very safe!! There's a monthly magazine that you can get hold of called The Grapevine which gives info on all things going on in Lucca... and it's written in English. There's an icecream parlour on Via San Paolino, the street that runs up to Piazza San Michele from the bus station, that is run by 2 English people. They'd also be able to put you in touch with other expats. Oh and there's a clothes shop in the anfiteatro called Citizen Kane, which is run by a Scottish guy. And (!!) again on Via San Paolino there is a shop called Gong, selling Indonesian clothes and furniture, which is run by a really good couple of friends of mine - she's Italian and he's American. They are LOVELY and will so want to help you! She knows everything and everyone you need to know, from schools, to gynocologists, to churches to attend!
> 
> As for sending your children to schools I still stand by integrating them into Italian schools. I have English friends who sent their 8 year old, their 6 year old and 4 year old to Italian Elementare and Materna, and none of them spoke Italian, and they integrated really well... there were obviously initial teething problems but that was only due to them missing friends from the UK. You can find yourself a tutor to help out initially with homework etc. Obviously it's up to you, but there aren't any international schools in Lucca either. There is a British school in Pisa but I wouldn't recommend it I'm afraid.
> 
> If you're looking for other English speaking mums, I have a friend who lives just outside of Lucca in Nozzano. She's a single mum from the UK and is also really lovely!!!
> 
> Enjoy!!
> xxx


Hi and thanks again for all of this wonderful advice! I'm hoping to pay a visit out there pretty soon so will have a good look around the places you suggest. 

Debbie


----------



## debbie25

jane.m said:


> Hi Debbie
> Yes we have found the same problem, short term tending towards expensive holiday rentals. Hubby leaves here on Tuesday, so he has just over 4 weeks before we arrive to find something!!! Fingers crossed.
> The Italian consulate here in Brisbane have been helpful with info and paperwork for schooling so far, but will keep you posted.


Oh wow! Best of luck, I look forward to hearing how it goes! D x


----------



## debbie25

Francisca Verdooren said:


> We moved from Australia in Feb. and my daughter did not speak one word of Italian. We sent her to a course every day for 1 hour for 3 weeks so she could speak some basics. She is 10 and is now attending grade 4 in an Italian primary school. Although she still does not speak much, she can understand alot and is doing fine. It seems that the local Italian schools are academically better than the International schools and the schools are very helpful to "stranieri", I guess because they have so many people migrating from East Europe and Middle East and Africa and many other places. So although it may seem scary (like it did to me), my advice is to send the kids to a local Italian primary school.


Hi

Thanks so much for your reply, I definitely think that the local schools seems to be the way to go from everyones replies! My daughter is a very easy going little girl who mixes well with everyone she meets so hopefully she won't have too much of a problem if I arrange for her to have some language tuition like you suggest. After having a few chats with her I think she is quite excited about learning a new language - she will probably learn it a lot quicker than me!

If you don't mind me asking, where abouts did you move to?

Debbie


----------



## Francisca Verdooren

You're welcome. We moved to Milan. You're right, you have nothing to worry about with your kids, it's actually quite amazing how well the kids adapt. My daughter was worried they would make fun of her because she doesn't know the language but she's had no problems so far and in fact she found her classmates quite helpful.....





debbie25 said:


> Hi
> 
> Thanks so much for your reply, I definitely think that the local schools seems to be the way to go from everyones replies! My daughter is a very easy going little girl who mixes well with everyone she meets so hopefully she won't have too much of a problem if I arrange for her to have some language tuition like you suggest. After having a few chats with her I think she is quite excited about learning a new language - she will probably learn it a lot quicker than me!
> 
> If you don't mind me asking, where abouts did you move to?
> 
> Debbie


----------



## jane.m

To keep you up dated, we are now living in Lucca. Husband found it much easier to locate resonably priced rentals when he arrived, more targeted to locals as opposed to internet rentals targeting tourism. So we have a resonably priced apartment about 1km from city walls, but hoping to move within the walls in the near future.
School hols till 15th Sept but school offices all open at some point during the day for enrolment purposes, seems to be we can pick which ever one we feel suits us, all have been very helpful.
So far so good!!!


----------



## debbie25

Hi Jane

Glad to here you have settled in over there. I was out there a few weeks ago and loved Lucca so just trying to find a house now. I'm bringing two dogs with me as well as two children so finding it a little difficult to find a place that is suitable for all of us but fingers crossed it won't take too long. Keep me posted on how things go with the schools.

Debbie x



jane.m said:


> To keep you up dated, we are now living in Lucca. Husband found it much easier to locate resonably priced rentals when he arrived, more targeted to locals as opposed to internet rentals targeting tourism. So we have a resonably priced apartment about 1km from city walls, but hoping to move within the walls in the near future.
> School hols till 15th Sept but school offices all open at some point during the day for enrolment purposes, seems to be we can pick which ever one we feel suits us, all have been very helpful.
> So far so good!!!


----------



## angela1

I have been reading your posts with great interest. I am considering relocating to Italy with my husband and 5 year old. Please do keep updating the forum with how you are all progressing.

Can anyone give me an idea as to monthly rental in the Lucca area? I would be looking for at least a 3 bedroom house. Also, I have not looked at/viewed rentals, although I live in a large Victorian house at present, it is very modern. Are there any reasonably priced high spec rentals around?

Also, does anyone know how good the schools in the Lucca area are? Any league tables or anywhere I can find what percentage go onto University?

All hints and tips will be greatly appreciated!

Regards
Angela


----------

