Year Dutch Happy

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May 31st, 2009 admin Leave a comment Go to comments

Year Dutch Happy
Has anyone had any experience moving and learning a new langauge when they were a child?.?

We have moved from uk to holland and I have put my 11 year old into a local dutch school. Already we have been here 2 months and still my son is still struggling. He is clearly not very happy at the school he is at and I do not think the teacher is helping much. How long did it take you to settle into a new country and new language?

To be honest 2 months is not that long and especially at 11 years old. I don't have the experience personally, but one of my husband's friends is Spanish, his wife is Bosnian and they moved to NL about 2 years ago with a 4 year, 13 and 15 year old. All are doing really well now. The youngest is tri-lingual and the eldest (different mother) speak Spanish, English and Dutch well and are thriving at school

If the school that your son attends is not used to non-native speakers then they might not have the experience of understanding to help him. There are some schools that have remedial teachers (although normally this is in the younger years). You could also look to hiring a private tutor for home to help with Dutch lessons after school. This might help him with a more one-to-one basis schooling.

If I were you then I would ask for a meeting with his teacher and discuss your concerns openly. Ask for what her opinion is of your son's progress, what the goals are for him to achieve (and this is not just a achievement but also a time-line), and what experience she has in these cases. If you are not happy with the outcome of this then ask to meet the head of the school and ask the same things of him, and to make a plan for you both (school and home) to work together in helping your son. Don't be afraid to push (it's not typically British I know but you can afford to be more direct in these circumstances!)

Also make sure you discuss it with your son and get his understanding, his opinions, concerns and then keep him informed with what is going on to support him. My guess is that it is overwhelming for him as well and even at 11 kids can appreciate being treated like an adult in things like this, knowing that people are tyring to help him.

Good luck and I hope it works well for you.