We tried to contact schools in our district once we found a rental earlier this year, from the US. We really didn't get much response from anyone, and those we did said they couldn't really do anything for us while we were in the US, etc. So, we finally decided we would homeschool which we thought would give us more flexibility in scheduling family trips during the year.
We planned for that, and the kids got excited about not having to attend 'regular' school. We also bought some English Language Arts texts & Literature series, and also got some online mathematics codes to make sure we started that work when we got here and made the kids do
something.
During our second week in Budapest, we attended some Fulbright Orientation activities including some Hungarian language lessons. The language instructor asked about schooling, said she teaches at some schools and could make some calls for us. This was on a Tuesday I think. By Friday, they all had seats in a local public school.
The kids
WERE NOT happy about the change. We visited the school, a bilingual school with some classes in English, and the kids met their teachers and classmates. The classes are small, with only two classes per grade level. Luckily, many of the kids do speak English, as well as some of the teachers. They have a 'native English speaking' teacher too, who grew up in the US so she's been extremely helpful.
10 differences between the schools that we're used to and the one they attend now:
1. All 4 kids are in the same school - it's K-8 (or maybe 1-8). This is the only time they'll ever be in school together.
2. The enrollment process was very informal - we visited, said yes, they said ok and asked when we'd like to start. We didn't have to provide any paperwork, medical records, etc.
3. They have different schedules. Each grade level has two weeks - Week A & Week B. Each day in any given week is different than the last - no two days are the same. They have classes in different orders each day, and not every class each day.
4. There is not one set dismissal time. When they are done depends on how many lessons they have, which depends on the day of the week, which week it is (A or B) and what grade they are in. This means that the oldest is usually done somewhere between 1 and 2 hours after the others. What do the others do, you ask? Well, there is free play time in the playground until a specific time, then study hour until whenever we pick up (can be anytime between 2:40 - when study hour starts - and 5:30 or 6:00). Did I mention they are very informal here about this?
5. We are still trying to figure out when to pick the kids up, whether to make the oldest stay until his classes are done or pick him up early when the others are done. This is due to the fact that sometimes those classes are entirely in Hungarian and the trip from our flat to the school is a solid 30 minutes on two forms of public transportation. Picking them all up at once is the easiest.
6. The kids were told that for the classes in Hungarian, they could read a book of their own, do their homeschool books (my idea), draw, daydream, hang out in the library, whatever. So, basically, that's most of the day. Making them take their homeschool books to regular school did not go over well at all. Oh well. At least they're reading some good books. I'm trying to get them to read classics this year, so we've got some Animal Farm, 1984, Winnie the Pooh, Treasure Island and others on tap, as well as some they've chosen. One is reading the Maze Runner series now & one is reading American Girl books. Wait, what was I talking about? Oh, school. (I love reading! I'm easily distracted!)
7. The food! The school provides entirely home cooked meals for breakfast and lunch, as well as snacks all day. They provide carts of bread, rolls, fruit, milk and other snacks daily - all day- in the hallway for the kids to grab between classes when they're hungry. All this costs a whopping $1.84 per day, per child. I LOVE THIS. I love that if they're hungry at 2, they can go grab some bread and milk, or pears and grapes, or whatever and then not be so hungry they're unable to focus on their work.
8. Speaking of food - one strange thing is a lack of food periods. Now, all kids get breakfast, but they have to go get it when they can. If they're there early enough, they get it before school. 2nd graders go together, 4th graders go together only if they have PE as their first class, otherwise they have to go on their own before school. 7th graders go before classes start. 6th graders go between classes. Yes, they have 10 minute breaks between classes and that's when they grab their food. Informal.
9. No lunch period for anyone. They have two breaks during the day that are a little longer - 20 minutes. This is when most of the kids grab their lunches. I asked a teacher if that's when they eat and she said 'yes, or they can go during their lessons if they're hungry'. So, yes, if my kid is hungry, he/she can get up and to eat during class. INFORMAL.
10. When I paid for their lunches, they said I could pay for as many or as few days as I wanted, and just pay as I go. No accounts, no deadlines, no keeping track of it, just put the money in a drawer and let them know when I need to pay more. No receipts. So, so informal.
They have their first field trips this week and next. Wishing them luck!
