Homeschooling in Spain

[Missgabby]

Hello ,

I'm considiring to move to Spain (Valencia) with my family. I have a daughter (14 years) and a son (12 years). For the beggining I would like them to be homeschooled. I have thought it was illegal but I've contacted HSLDA and they have told me it is legal. I have also heard there is an American of Valencia. The only problem about that are the high prices.
I am kind of new with homeschooling so I would like to know how do you do it? Do you need any paper says your child has been homeschooled? Where do you buy the books ? I would really appreciate if someone could answer my questions.

Thank You.

[xabiachica]

Originally Posted by Missgabby

Hello ,

I'm considiring to move to Spain (Valencia) with my family. I have a daughter (14 years) and a son (12 years). For the beggining I would like them to be homeschooled. I have thought it was illegal but I've contacted HSLDA and they have told me it is legal. I have also heard there is an American of Valencia. The only problem about that are the high prices.
I am kind of new with homeschooling so I would like to know how do you do it? Do you need any paper says your child has been homeschooled? Where do you buy the books ? I would really appreciate if someone could answer my questions.

Thank You.

quite simply, at the moment, homeschooling is essentially illegal in most of Spain, so there is no support system & no official way of following that path


even the HSLDA website states that attendance at school is compulsory age 6-16 & goes on to say

Legal Status: In December 2010, the Spanish Constitutional Court handed down a sentence that leaves homeschoolers in an insecure legal position. In a case before the Constitutional Tribunal, the court denied parents the right to educate their children at home. It is still uncertain what effect this ruling will have upon homeschoolers in Spain.

every now & then a family will end up in court, sometimes the judge tells them to get on with it - but more often they get big fines & the kids have to attend school

I have heard that it's legal in Cataluña though if you were flexible on region


hope you don't mind me asking - what visa are you coming on? your flags indicate that you are US citizens

[Missgabby]

Originally Posted by Missgabby

Hello ,

I'm considiring to move to Spain (Valencia) with my family. I have a daughter (14 years) and a son (12 years). For the beggining I would like them to be homeschooled. I have thought it was illegal but I've contacted HSLDA and they have told me it is legal. I have also heard there is an American of Valencia. The only problem about that are the high prices.
I am kind of new with homeschooling so I would like to know how do you do it? Do you need any paper says your child has been homeschooled? Where do you buy the books ? I would really appreciate if someone could answer my questions.

Thank You.

Thank You for your reply This is my daughters profile so she and my son are american however me and my husband are european. But we have lived in America for 14 years.

[xabiachica]

Originally Posted by Missgabby

Thank You for your reply This is my daughters profile so she and my son are american however me and my husband are european. But we have lived in America for 14 years.

ah - so you don't need a visa


oh well, I guess you can't help the so many US citizens who want to get visas to live here


so - why Valencia?

[Missgabby]

We want to live in a less crowded city than Barcelona, but we still don't know where we'll end up, because we have to check a few places before we settle for good. We're considiring Valencia or Barcelona, because we would love to live close to the sea

[jojo]

I cant comment on home schooling as such, but my worry (having had children in Spain of a similar ages) is what then??? Would your children go on to further education?? College?? University?? Open university?? does homeschooling go onto degree level??

Jo xxx

[xabiachica]

Originally Posted by jojo

I cant comment on home schooling as such, but my worry (having had children in Spain of a similar ages) is what then??? Would your children go on to further education?? College?? University?? Open university?? does homeschooling go onto degree level??

Jo xxx

what then??

in Spain that would be a tough one - language issues if nothing else - even if there were jobs

from what I've read about homeschooled kids is that (in their 'usual' country) they go on to work or further education at uni just like other kids

[thrax]

Open University is not available at present in Spain. I'm guessing and someone correct me if I am wrong, but a slightly not legal approach might be to not register your kids on the padron or residency. Then they wouldn't 'exist' as far as the authorities are concerned but you'd have to have provate medical insurance for them. We have a 2 yr old who will start school in September next year. From the age of 5 he will continue to go to Spanish state school but we will also be teaching him at home (poor chap) since we want him to have a good English language and literature education which he won't get to the desired standard in Spain. As far as I know, all other subjects are more than adequately covered.

I think your real concern is probably that at their ages they will not have sufficient Spanish to be able to do well in state school. Your other (but expensive) option is an English speaking International school. One of my Spanish students currently studies in a Spanish school that teaches all subjects in English. I have seen much of her course work and frankly it is way ahead of anything I have seen in British schools. Some of the biology she is studying at age ten isn't covered in British schools until age 14. Her real problem is, she doesn't speak much English which is why I am teaching her.

[Missgabby]

Originally Posted by thrax

Open University is not available at present in Spain. I'm guessing and someone correct me if I am wrong, but a slightly not legal approach might be to not register your kids on the padron or residency. Then they wouldn't 'exist' as far as the authorities are concerned but you'd have to have provate medical insurance for them. We have a 2 yr old who will start school in September next year. From the age of 5 he will continue to go to Spanish state school but we will also be teaching him at home (poor chap) since we want him to have a good English language and literature education which he won't get to the desired standard in Spain. As far as I know, all other subjects are more than adequately covered.

I think your real concern is probably that at their ages they will not have sufficient Spanish to be able to do well in state school. Your other (but expensive) option is an English speaking International school. One of my Spanish students currently studies in a Spanish school that teaches all subjects in English. I have seen much of her course work and frankly it is way ahead of anything I have seen in British schools. Some of the biology she is studying at age ten isn't covered in British schools until age 14. Her real problem is, she doesn't speak much English which is why I am teaching her.

Thank You for your information

[anles]

Originally Posted by thrax

Open University is not available at present in Spain.

Isn't Open University equivalent to the UNED?