Preschool

O

oahu_2011

Registered User
I am new on geobaby. We are currently in HI but planning to move to HK in 2-3 months with a 12 mo daughter and a dog. I have so many questions but want to start by asking your feedback on preschool options. I have never been to HK so any tips are appreciated.
Things that I am looking for:
- Preschool that is considered a "feeder school" to good private schools.
- International focus so that if we decided to go back to the US, it would be an easy transition
- in the tung chung area

Thanks!
 
Good luck with the move, you have found the right social network to help you settle in!

I can't talk a lot about the US system but many schools here use International Baccalaureate which is a global education program and most universities take recognize the program...

Under Hong Kong law, a child can start Primary 1 in September if they are turning 5 by 31 December that year. And Pre-school in September if they are 2 years 8 months.

I can't talk about the Tung Chung schools as I live in Discovery Bay but do a search and you will find many playgroups and the like in TC that you could look into. My daughter went to Sunshine House which was a Canadian school curriculum and they have a campus in TC.

Finally, as soon as you confirm your living arrangments, put your kids on waiting lists for schools where ever you can as it is VERY hard to get places, even in the second tier schools and many third their too.!

Cheers
 
there are not many "feeder" schools. if you go to an ESF kindergarten you are NOT guaranteed to get into their primary schools (AFAIK).

there IS Hong Kong International School that follows an american curriculum, but it is nowhere near Tung Chung, rather it is on HK island, near Tai Tam.

There is also the American International School in Kowloon Tong, which is a little more easily accessible from Tung Chung.

You would have to check to see if these two schools have school buses to Tung Chung.

Something else you should note: school places are EXTREMELY hard to come by. Just because you choose a school does not mean that they will choose you. I would see if you/your husband's job offer includes any kind of school debenture to move you up the school places waiting list...
 
Thanks guys for the details! I am already worried that we would not get our first choice... I know we have time to prep but I guess it's a good idea to get our daughter on the wait list asap. Are there prepatory classes and schools that prepare kids to get into private schools? (kinder) I have heard that EFS and Canadian int'l national school are good. Any other tips that you have for a new comer like myself? Thanks again for your input!
 
you can't start school at ESF and Canadian until 5...before that like carang says the pre-school run by ESF does not guarantee a spot at the ESF primary school. i would see when the applications are due and try to get one in whilst you wait to get an interview.

you can consider IMS (international montessori school)- they have a campus in the mid-levels, which would be slightly closer than HKIS (tai tam - south of HK island) and canadian (also south of island)...mid-levels is more centrally located - i'm not sure about how the school bus would work out...i recall HKIS had one to Kowloon tong for people in the Kowloon side, but even they did not have a lot of buses catering that side of HK as most students lived on HK island.

if you drive, then taking the western tunnel you will arrive 10mins away from the mid-level area...if you take the train, there is a direct train to Central and you can take a taxi up should be closer than the rest of the schools. IMS is bilingual and quite popular too.
 
Canadian Intl has pre-reception class, so you can start from approx 3 years if you can get a place. It's very competitive to get in and there are interviews.
 
thanks to all of you for your helpful tips. with your tips and based om my initial research, i came up with the following list of pre-schools that i am considering for my daughter (13 monts old now). any comments on any of these schools?

- Greenfield (Tung Chung)
- Sunshine House Int'l (Tung Chung)
- Sun Island Education (Tung Chung) -- more geared towards non-international kids?
- Woodland (not in Tung Chung?)
- Int'l Mont. school (not in Tung Chung?)

Also, for schools like Canadian Int'l, are they accepting applications all year around? (i.e. for my daughter, she would not be ready until school year 2013, but could i still submit her application now to get on the wait list?)
 
HKIS (Hong Kong International School) is the #1 feeder into US Universities as it follows the US curriculum. It;s the equivalent of Punahou on Oahua (my husband is from Oahua and went there). Their primary school is in Repulse Bay and like Carang said their high school is in Tai Tam - both on HK Island. I am not familiar with Tung Chung area, but I believe most international schools are on HK Island - CIS, Canadian, Singapore, HKIS, Lycee, Swiss/German etc....All have very international student bodies. Many of these schools have year long (if not longer) waitlists, but of course people are dropping out all the time due to moves, change of jobs etc...I would appy now. We live in SIngapore now and applied 1.5 years ahead of our expected entrance date for his pre-k class at the American School. Hong Kong is the same way.

With regards to your list above. Sunshine House and Woodlands have a few locations around HK Island. IMS (internionational montessori school) is on HK Island too.
 
I believe that Discovery Minds (DMK) also has playgroup and kindergarten classes in Tung Chung. My son attends the DMK playgroup in DB (unaccompanied) and he seems to enjoy it. Would be worth checking their website.

http://www.dmk.edu.hk/tc/index.php

Totally second the suggestion to put names down early. We put our sons name down on a school wait list when he was 2 years old to start kindergarten this year when he is 3.5 and he is too late to get in this year. So in some cases the wait list is more like 2.5 years or more! Crazy.
 
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Super useful. With our move date in less than a month away, I will have to get my act together... I will probably want to get to know mommies in th TC area once we get settled...
 
Was going to suggest DMK too. A few of my friends send their kids there and they really like it. We won't be sending our son there though but when we asked, the head-mistress told us that they give priority to pre-existing students ie. if you send your daughter there for playgroup (parent / helper accompanied) or pre-nursery (unaccompanied from 2yrs up) they will automatically (?) be accepted for K1 (2yrs 8months up). I think it's a fairly new school so there isn't as much of a problem in getting in.

If you're going to consider the "local" route (such as Sun Island), there are also two other local schools in the area - Green Pastures and one that is run by Po Leung Kuk. These are Cantonese-speaking schools that teach English 2-3 times a week (half hour lessons). You can't apply to these ones until your child is at the age to start school in the following school year. So, if your daughter is to start in 2013, you can't apply until 2012 (normally October time). We'll be sending our son to the PLK one.
 
Hi all, i am also new to HK and my son is almost 1 and i am looking at a playgroup for him. I have been put on a waitlist for CityKids in Mid level. I am also starting to do my research for a Kindergarten for him, i believe they call it Preschool here? I am looking at ESF and Victoria. Anybody has any feedback on both schools pls? Also, can i ask your advise on how early do i have to put his name in, can i do it now if there is a long waitlist? I want to avoid any disappointments and would like my son to go to a good preschool that teaches him both english and mandarin and hopefully a third language as well, maybe French. Any thoughts to share please? :)
 
best thing to do is to call each school individually to ask about their admissions policy and timings, each school has their own policy. ESF is slightly different as they are a system of schools.

have you visited the schools to see which you think is best? if not, how did you come up with victoria and esf?
 
hi there thanks for your reply. I have been recommended these schools from other mummies who send their kids there, and i have gone online to check the information. I am planning for a site visit to the school but i dont want to appear too anxious as my son is barely one. In Singapore, some schools take enrollments as early as when the kid is 6 months! So im just checking on the application culture here and if i must be a super early bird in order not to miss out. :)
 
as i said, every school is different, you have to call each school individually. i do know that esf only accepts applications from the year before the child would enter.
 
it's been almost 3 weeks since we moved to TC. i went to sunshine house and greenfield in TC to do a quick tour. it didnt "click" for me and my husband but if i have to rank them, 1 = greenfield, and 2 = sunshine house. any thoughts out there?

also, i was interested in DMK especially after reading positive notes above... but when i phoned to enquire, the person was not so helpful and said i could not come to do the tour because the playgroup that i am interested in is full and i would be waitlisted. the person said that i should just submit an application so that the school could contact me when there is availability. ok... i guess i will do so.

any thoughts are appreciated. i want the school to prepare my daughter for international kindergartens.
 
I am in the same boat as you. I have submitted all my applications for K. I only heard back from 3 out of 5 for interviews when we arrive coming June. I will be in Kowloon Tong area.

Does anyone know about prepping kids for mock interviews? I heard about tutors you can hire to help prep the kids. It sounds so odd to me, but then all the schools are competitive even at preK levels.
 
Both of mine attended DMK at some point in their pre-school days. But not the TC campus.

I recommend it - as far as preschool's go it would be my top choice of the ones we have been too including two in australia, sunshine house, esf and a Montessori home-based (although I would kept them in that if I could have).

You could do a lot worse than DMK.
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