North American school grade/class equivalents in France

[mstark]

I have just moved to Montpellier with my husband and 2 children, aged 13 and 10. School starts next week and I am not sure which school to enroll my 10yr old in - last year of ecole primaire or first year of college. His birthday is in January, and he finished grade 4 in a French immersion school in Canada at the top of his class. Does anyone know if grade 5 corresponds to last year of ecole or first year college? We met some people whose 9yr old is starting his last year of college, which makes me think we should put our son in college. This would of course be easier to have both children at the same school. Our daughter would be starting grade 8 in Canada. Do you think this would correspond to the third year of college (quatrieme)?

Thanks for your help,
mstark

[Lu_C]

I guess it may just come down to birthday - go to your Mairie and they'll be able to tell you.

Do it before school starts though otherwise you'll be backing and forthing between schools - not aa great way to start in a new school!!!


Good luck

Originally Posted by mstark

I have just moved to Montpellier with my husband and 2 children, aged 13 and 10. School starts next week and I am not sure which school to enroll my 10yr old in - last year of ecole primaire or first year of college. His birthday is in January, and he finished grade 4 in a French immersion school in Canada at the top of his class. Does anyone know if grade 5 corresponds to last year of ecole or first year college? We met some people whose 9yr old is starting his last year of college, which makes me think we should put our son in college. This would of course be easier to have both children at the same school. Our daughter would be starting grade 8 in Canada. Do you think this would correspond to the third year of college (quatrieme)?

Thanks for your help,
mstark

[Bevdeforges]

If you haven't already, go to the local mairie and get the children registered for school. (School starts most places tomorrow or the day after!) They will probably want to do an evaluation of your kids' French level before deciding what class they should attend. They often put the foreign kids back 1 grade - at least for a few months - until they see how they "take" to the school and the language. There are plenty of kids in the school who have had to "redoublé" a year (or two) by the time they finish, so age isn't always the best way to figure which class they should be in.

Just FYI, though, the Montpellier schools have an excellent reputation - Montpellier is one of the prime regions for teachers seeking transfers. The area is very cosmopolitan and they should have pretty good resources for helping your children settle in.
Cheers,
Bev

[Sal Rocco]

Originally Posted by mstark

I have just moved to Montpellier with my husband and 2 children, aged 13 and 10. School starts next week and I am not sure which school to enroll my 10yr old in - last year of ecole primaire or first year of college. His birthday is in January, and he finished grade 4 in a French immersion school in Canada at the top of his class. Does anyone know if grade 5 corresponds to last year of ecole or first year college? We met some people whose 9yr old is starting his last year of college, which makes me think we should put our son in college. This would of course be easier to have both children at the same school. Our daughter would be starting grade 8 in Canada. Do you think this would correspond to the third year of college (quatrieme)?

Thanks for your help,
mstark

Hi there, we too are Canadians living in Toronto and are seriously considering the possibility of coming to Montpellier next summer for one year with our 2 daughters who will be aged 9 and 11 next year and going into grades 4 and 6 next year. We would be curious to hear from you about your experience on schooling and housing etc. We have not yet made definitive plans regarding where to live but would like to be in the south preferably in a city along the sea. What schools have you decided upon? bilingual, private, public?? Are there neighbourhoods to stay away from and others to seriously consider in Montpellier? Why did you pick Montpellier? I look forward to hearing from you.
Simaddy

[mstark]

Hi, We came to Montpellier for work reasons. My husband is a biochemistry professor at UNBC and has a sabattical this year. He is doing research in a lab associated with the university here. Our children were in a French immersion school in BC and so we enrolled them in public schools here. Primary school goes to the equivalent of grade 5, and the college starts at grade 6. I don't know anything about bilingual or private schools. We are living just north of Montpellier in a small town called Castelnau le Lez. It is about 30 min to the beach from here. I don't yet know too much about the other neighborhoods. We decided it was too crowded for us to want to live in the middle of Montpellier, so opted for someplace a little smaller. So far, we are enjoying the Mediterranean life style, and the beaches are wonderful.
mstark

Originally Posted by Sal Rocco

Hi there, we too are Canadians living in Toronto and are seriously considering the possibility of coming to Montpellier next summer for one year with our 2 daughters who will be aged 9 and 11 next year and going into grades 4 and 6 next year. We would be curious to hear from you about your experience on schooling and housing etc. We have not yet made definitive plans regarding where to live but would like to be in the south preferably in a city along the sea. What schools have you decided upon? bilingual, private, public?? Are there neighbourhoods to stay away from and others to seriously consider in Montpellier? Why did you pick Montpellier? I look forward to hearing from you.
Simaddy