Originally posted by Sharon Duarte We are possibly moving to Brazil with my husband's company. We have a 13 year old that needs to go to High School there. Any recommendations? By looking at some websites the tuition is crazy and much of a muchness between the International Schools..anyone got the inside scoop? Thanks.

I'll be blunt. First, I'll ask a few questions:

* How much are you willing to spend on her education? Most Brazilian schools just suck. Hard. Usually (though not always,) more expensive schools mean she'll have a better education.

* Also, how's her personality like? Is she very organized? Or is she a curious person that is always wanting to create new things? Different private schools here have different teaching methods, so if she's more creative, she will hate the pressure of a traditional school. Conversely, if she's more organized, analytical and prefers to be told what to do, she might not adapt at a school that has a modern teaching method.

* Does she have any special needs? For instance, if she only speaks English, then she'll need to find a special school, most unfortunately. Either that, or you'll have to talk to the school principal to see what can you do about the situation.

* Where will you live? São Paulo is a big state, for instance, and if you will be living in Campinas, then suggesting her to go to a school in the city of São Paulo will be quite impractical. Espírito Santo is a much maller state with a lot less traffic, so if you're living in Vila Velha, I could perfectly tell her of good schools in Vitória – she'll arrive just in time if she leaves early to school.

If you think those questions are too personal and you prefer to search on your own, I suggest sites like this one, where you can select the state you'll live and it'll show you a few schools. However, do notice the list there is probably much smaller than the options available, and if you do so people here won't be able to indicate schools out of that list.

http://www.guiadaboaescola.com.br/

Regardless of what you choose to do, I suggest you ask the locals (bring the partner that speaks Portuguese with you, naturally) and visit the schools you want to visit on your own to make up your mind.

Edited by Megabyte - 06 April 2012 at 16:46

Originally posted by Sharon Duarte He,is a very good student, is very keen on soccer and plays on the best team for the best club. He only speaks english so he would have to go to an International School. We do not yet know where we are going to live....thought we'd find a school and live near it. Do most kids live near their schools? or do they commute? Are teh International Schools in the same area or are they all over the place? He is self motivated (he was in a Montessori School until 6th grade)

Sharon? You've got a beautiful name!

Anyway, yes, all kids live near where they study, so that's why I asked you this question. The only exception might be college, but they only move out if they live in rural areas where there's no college at all, or if they want to follow a career and the college course they want isn't available in the state they're living at.

About International Schools, you'll only find a few of them, and only in certain states. Unfortunately, they're not all over the place. Here's a list:

http://www.sk.com.br/sk-intsch.html

Edited by Megabyte - 06 April 2012 at 18:38

http://www.ear.com.br/v2/english/