Immersion-type English School for toddler

Hello all.

I’ve trawled fairly extensively looking for some hints on this but couldn’t quite find what I was after, so forgive me if there is something apposite I’ve overlooked.

My situation: I went back to the UK with my elder son 2008-9 to put him in public (state) school there for the year and get his English up to scratch. I’d been working very long hours and barely seeing the lad, so - being at home with mum -his Mandarin was much stronger.

My ploy worked - he’s now fine in both (forgot his Mandarin but had it back within weeks of our return) but I now need to do the same with his little bruv. The elder had a year at TES before we went back to Blighty but, this time round, with my mum volunteering to stump up the cash again, I think something a bit lighter on the wallet is in order, ideally not a million miles from Beitou, where we live. It’s the same situation as last time, in fact, worse (he has almost no English). Once again, I’m working long hours and he is not around English enough. What I’m after is an an immersion school where english is spoken practically all the time, with a view to taking him to England for reception (1st grade) next year.

I saw Big Byte in Tianmu suggested on one thread but have tried e-mailing and phoning them to no avail. Not sure if they’re on a break/closed or what but could really do with some other suggestions.

Cheers.

A bit far from your place, but Happy Kids is an awesome school, and not too pricey. It is at Xinyi and Dunhua. My 4yo goes there. It is an awesome place. YOu can check out their website at http://www.happykidsschool.com.tw/, call, and ask for a tour. I think you’ll like it.

Thanks mate.

I had seen it praised on the aforementioned thread but was put off by distance. Now I think about it, I could probably take him on the way to work.

I’ll give em a bell. Cheers.

Just called them. They charge NT$105,000/semester, which is not that much cheaper than TES and still too much for me really. Will have to consider my options, though don’t seem to have many … :s

Thanks again for your help.

Not sure if this helps but my nephew is being raised primarily by grandma who used to be a kindergarten English teacher. Thus far (at about 3) his English is almost non existent. He does pretty well in Mandarin and is happiest in Tai Yu.

The reason I point this out is that my wife and her brother are completely fluent in English (apart from a dodgy US accent) and were presumably raised the same way. They both also speak Mandarin and Tai Yu fluently.

You may be worrying too early about your boys, and the younger one should learn from his brother right? Secret language that mum doesn’t get etc etc?

[quote=“ghostface”]Just called them. They charge NT$105,000/semester, which is not that much cheaper than TES and still too much for me really. Will have to consider my options, though don’t seem to have many … :s

Thanks again for your help.[/quote]

You will find that this is about what most quality English-only kindergarten/preschools charge (Hess, Giraffe, Big Byte, etc.). Happy Kids is in fact a bit cheaper than many of the above schools, and cheaper than a lot of horrible schools out there. If this is too much, you may want to look at the public kindergartens. No English, but affordable, quality Mandarin ed.

Happy Kids has courses available for kids until they reach high school. I suggest you take a tour and see what you think.

Thanks guys. Edgar: Yeah, you’re right. Long-term I don’t think it will be a problem but at the moment he actually relies on big bro to translate (an observed phenomenon with younger children even in single language environments). I just want to give him a little kickstart.

jw: Right. My point is, if that’s the case, i might as well send him to TES, which is not that much more expensive and has a great setup and the advantage of following the British system, which would mean a seamless transition to UK.

Hi,
We had our playgroup Christmas event at Child’s World, and I just came across this today and thought of this thread:

[quote]Child’s World International Preschool and Nursery, located on the foothills of YangMing Mountain in Tien Mu understands the needs of expat parents with young children who may be in an economical bind during this unstable economy.
We are NOW offering a FINANICAL ASSISTANCE PROGRAM for all eligible families with children, ages 14months - 6years old, HOLDING A FOREIGN PASSPORT that would like to attend an international preschool and nursery but find that the costs are far too expensive for your current budget.
Finanical assistance is based on need.
If you are interested in our new program please view our website and/or contact:
Child’s World International Preschool and Nursery
(886)2-2833-1231
childsworld.com.tw[/quote]
Not sure if it is the kind of school you are looking for or if you qualify for the assistance, but just thought I would pass this on to you.

[quote=“ghostface”]I saw Big Byte in Tianmu suggested on one thread but have tried e-mailing and phoning them to no avail. Not sure if they’re on a break/closed or what but could really do with some other suggestions.

Cheers.[/quote]

Big Byte’s preschool in Tianmu has closed. They still have another preschool near Da’an Park. www.bigbyte.com.tw

Guys,

Just come back to the thread. Thanks so much for the help. Will definitely look into children’s world.

Ta

James