British School Life

The kids started school last week.  The learning curve has been steep for all of us. When the kids attended international schools in Warsaw and Vienna, the curriculum and school day was very similar to that of the US schools.  It was not too difficult to get oriented.  But, this is not an international school.  While some international students board here, the majority of the school is British and the system is a bit different than in the US.

Junior School (Elementary School)

My youngest has it the easiest although she may say otherwise.  Her school has a Junior School that runs until Year 6 which is 5th grade.  Her school is similar to her previous school in that there is a similar routine. However, despite the common language, there are many different words they use which has her (and me) confused most of the time. 

There are also at least three clothing changes per day.  She leaves here in her uniform - a tartan kilt, blue blouse and cardigan - then she changes into her sports kit which they use for Games.  Games seems to be like PE here.  She is learning to play Rounders and Netball.  I wish I could explain it to you, but I have no idea what these games are.  They are definitely not basketball.  Then, there is a change into her swimming "costume" as they call it which includes her swimsuit and swim cap.  

The school day is much longer here.  She starts at 8:30 and is not finished until 4:30.  But there are some great perks to this Junior school. Students who are interested in music get to choose an instrument and have lessons within the school day.  She decided not to continue violin and opted to resume piano lessons and join the school choir. Further, all after school activities are free of charge except horse riding and tea (afternoon snack).  She signed up for horse riding and dance. Twice per week she stays for prep. Prep is what they refer to as homework.  You are "prepping" for the next days lesson. The activities extend her day further to either 5:30 or 6:15 depending on the activity. 

Senior School (Middle and High School)

Entering the Senior School is a big leap.  Some schools,like the one my youngest attends, have a senior school as well.  Kids just transition over.  

My oldest started the equivalent of 8th grade (Year 9) at a different school. His is only a Senior School and we chose it because we were impressed by what they offered and it is very close to our house which helps with those late nights. One of the big changes for him is the addition of Saturday lessons.  But as he is realizing, he has more free time for homework and activities because of Saturday school.  

He starts school at 8:30 as well, but his school day does not end until 6pm or 9pm depending on whether he stays at school to complete prep. He leaves for school in his charcoal trousers, white shirt, house tie, black blazer and dress shoes with his backpack and computer briefcase.  He looks like he is going to work rather than school.  In my opinion, he looks amazing and handsome. Here's hoping that we break the athletic short habit!

His day starts with a check in at his house.  Every student, day pupil or boarder, is assigned a house. This is very similar to Hogwarts, but without the sorting hat.  Houses compete against each other similar to Hogwarts as well.

He is a day pupil, but he has the option to board during the week if he wants to.  He has a captains bed assigned to him with drawers where he can unpack the plethora of clothing he has to change in and out of during the week.  There are rugby shirts, rugby shorts, tennis shorts, polo shirts, at least 4 pairs of shoes and a track suit. He brings everything to school on Monday and brings it home Saturday for laundry.  

The biggest shock to me when I saw his schedule were the classes he was taking.  I don't know about you, but when I was in high school, I took biology in 10th grade, chemistry in 11th and physics in 12th.  My son is taking all three of these subjects at the same time.  He is also taking Spanish, French, Theology, Textiles, cooking, digital literacy, history, geography, along with the usual English, Maths (that is how they refer to math which is more anxiety inducing when in plural) and PE. His school has a rotating schedule with alternate weeks A and B.  He typically has 3-4 lessons per day and then he has his saxophone lesson, wind orchestra or jazz band, rugby, and a rotating activity.  This week, it was Shakespeare on film.  He watched Henry V. Saturdays he has 3 lessons and then spends the afternoon playing rugby games until 4pm.

While his day is long and he was very overwhelmed last week with all the information and changes, this week has been smooth sailing.  He likes that free time is built in to his schedule for him to chill at his house or complete homework in the library or anywhere on campus.  His schedule resembles a college schedule.

He was also very happy to report that the other kids tell him that he is "clever" because he knew things like cell biology, energy, and more Spanish than they initially thought.  In fact, they put him in beginner Spanish and they noticed the first day when he was responding to questions in Spanish that he belonged in the advanced class.  

First day jitters aside, they both did very well considering all the changes and are settling into their routines.