moving with kids to B A

[Nicole_Ramirez]

How did you get your US washer and dryer to work here? We can't get a big enough transformer here (In Bariloche) and blew out the washer. And none of the places we've called ahave any clue how to change the wiring. My husband bought an outlet for ithe dryer when we visited the states. Hoping that works.

 

[GuyinBA]

First, don't worry if your children between the ages of 4-7 do not know Spanish. They will pick it up after a few weeks. Older children will take longer. We have a son (now 5-1/2) who just completed Kindergarden here. Our son was fully conversant in Spanish after only a few weeks of school. He now speaks perfect Spanish with a perfect porteño accent and we have only been here for seven months. He starts first grade in March. We were very pleased with the school and plan to continue with the same school for first grade. Every private school advertises themselves as "bilingüe/bilingual." The school my son attends spends half the day in English and the other half in Spanish. However, none of the teachers is a native speaker of English which is a concern of mine. When looking for a school, see how they teach English. Are they merely giving the kids a few words here and there, or are they speaking to them and teaching in English? I think this is important along with the native speaker issue for teachers. I don't want my son, born in Ohio, to speak English with an Argentine accent because he learned from Argentine teachers. Anyway, these are a few things to look for.

I'm glad for this poster that their son picked up Spanish so quickly. This is just not true of every kid - some is the school, a lot is the kid. And fully conversant after a few weeks is nothing short of miraculous, unless the kid had a LOT of Spanish exposure pre-Argentina. My 4 1/2 year understands a fair amount and speaks some after 5 months. My shy 7-year old has really struggled, but is now doing better since we're using the summer to have her work daily with a Spanish teacher. The kids in her class have been wonderful, and her lack of Spanish has not at all inhibited her social life, however.

In retrospect, I wish we had started Spanish tutoring when we came - it just felt like too much, what with the long school days in bilingual schools... And keep in mind that most schools don't provide any additional support for non-Spanish speakers, like ESL programs in the US, largely because they don't have a regular flow of kids with this particular set of needs.

On another note, some public schools do have "jornado completa" - a full day, rather than half-days.

 

[nataliaNewYork]

Hi!
My advice would be to find a school and housing close to it so that your kids can have playdates...that will help them a lot to make friends!
We moved 6 monthes ago from NY, my kids are 9, 7 and 1yo. The oldesr one is having the hardest time...but she's getting better. We live in Belgrano R and they ättend "Buenos Aires English High school", bilingual and private. Public schools wil not be able to help your kids get use to the new environment. My kids spoke went to a bilingual school in NY so it was easier for them.
Do not bring any applyances...it's imposible to get them fixed here and the electricity is different, but get ready to spend a lot of $$ and don't expect to find american brands...
Computers, wii, playstation and phones are ok.
Hope this helps!

 

[AlfajorEfi]

I can recommend Pilar- best for families by far and the best schools and cost of life. You can rent a big house in a gated community for the price of a medium sized apartment in the city. Especially if not working downtown, Pilar is the best option.

 

[mmoon]

We also lived in Belgrano R and our son attended Belgrano Day School, which was excellent. He was speaking fluent Spanish in two months (the morning was all English and the afternoon all Spanish). It is a bit pricey, so if you have more than one child, it may be too much. Still, we met some great families and all of the teachers were amazing. Honestly, the hardest part was finding a place to live in the neighborhood...no one ever seems to move away!

 

[katti]

The first year, my kids weer taken out of Spanish class and had private lessons. So no extra classes after school. Of course, this was put on the bill. School didn't offer that for free. But it was necessary. My kids are older, so they don't learn that fast anymore.

 

[KFbaGirl]

Toys! Bring lots of them!!! I just recently moved from New York and living in Belgrano (and have a 4 year old little girl).

In my opinion, they are highly overpriced. I have yet to find the secret to buying decently priced toys....any suggestions welcome.

Linens (bed sheets, covers, etc) and towels are overpriced as well and of bad quality, in comparison to the U.S. I may be biased however, since i've also had the worst experience there.

 

[BABear]

This message is for BA with Kids: we are moving to BA in June from CT and I would like to have someone to chat with since I am quite anxious about this whole thing. I have read through your older posts, they are very helpful!
Thank you!

 

[silvinagolf]

hi BA with kids. I am interested in the organic products for kids you have on sale, if you still have them, but can't reach you any other way.
Pls let me know, also, what about expiration dates?
thank you!