My son was stopped at school
I am an expat and recently migrated to Netherlands. I just joined my 4 years old son to school, he is bit hyper and is not paying attention to teachers. So, he is now stopped from school from 21st September . When I connected with GP he said that CJG can help him getting the right school.
However, my son getting bored and desperate by staying at house whole day. I have requested for an appointment. But, I would like to know if there is anything that I can do sooner to get him the schooling early or find the right school.
Does he speak English and is he able to tell the teacher what he wants or needs? Can he make clear what is bothering him? I hope he goes to kindergarten and not to school yet. He is way to young to sit all day and learn from the teacher. He needs time first to adjust to other kids, just play and have social interactions. Where you live, does he have interactions with neighborhood kids.
And what Mija says, contact your HR department and ask for help with adjusting here in the Netherlands. Maybe they can offer a family counselor or work with you on your working hours (like you can work async and make hours in the evening)
Wow. That situation asks for a quick ‘how to get around in Dutch scholing system’. To get you even more confused, some thoughts about what’s going on.
Is the social worker keeping contact with school? Because just sending him back home does, even for Dutch perspectives, sound a bit harsh. Has there been any kind of warning and or discussions with an ib-er? (An ib-er is someone at school, supporting the teachers in how to adapt to kids needs). Have things like ‘handelsverlegen’ been mentioned? In that case they state that they just don’t know what to do and they need help from the schoolboard, to look for a school that would suit your kids needs.
Perhaps school ‘just’ thinks your kid could benefit from a delayed start. With some more adjusting to living here. You could discuss with them how he is going to adapt, like starting with half days for 2 days a week? You might need to hire a nanny (‘oppas’ or ‘gastouder’) when you’re at work- they might help him to adjust as well.
If your kid is having trouble adjusting to Dutch schools (which isn’t that surprising- kids speak Dutch and might behave a lot different than where you’re from), has anyone suggested ‘schakelklas’?
The latter is a specific kind of school (full time or part time) where kids learn Dutch and to get familiar with Dutch education. System. Such a class might help the kid to adjust.
That is, if it’s just adapting. If your kid has other issues, or they can’t be sure about that, you will need different help. Stay in touch with social work, ask school about what they are doing about this (‘zorgplicht’ is a word you might need to learn as well; the duty for the school to find a place for the kid).
Op veel plekken zijn schakelklassen om de taal te leren pas vanaf zes jaar. Voor kleuters wordt er vanuit gegaan dat ze in de kleuterjaren wel genoeg Nederlands oppikken om mee te kunnen in groep 3.
What type of school are we talking about? A Dutch school (public, though it may have a Christian or other denomination) or e.g. an international or British school (private)? The educational system and the rules may differ depending on the school type.
School is responsible to find him a better spot, and therefore school needs to take the initiative. I hope you get your appointment soon and you'll hear what kind of alternative spot your school is looking for.
If you want to take any initiative yourself, you'll need the school's dossier. I have heard of some cases where a child had a disastrous start at one school, but another "regular" school could see "through" the dossier that this was a school problem, not a child problem, and successfully admitted and integrated the child. But... you'll need the dossier to figure out what is going on, what the problems are, what the school has already tried.
Basically, your child is now a "thuiszitter". I' recommend you get the Onderwijsconsulenten (https://www.onderwijsconsulenten.nl/) to advise and help you. CJG can not help you find a school. CJG could do is help you evaluate whether your child's behavior at home and general development in the home language is normal.
You also asked what to do with a child that's getting bored.
Dutch libraries are free for children and they offer more than books alone. Some organize activities too.
Most petting zoo's (kinderboerderijen) are also free and fun at this age.
Did you consider swimming lessons? Dutch swimming lessons are very child friendly compared to lessons in some other countries. I don't know about India, but I still regret one of our children learned how to swim in the USA (he has been afraid for years!).
And of course we also have all kinds of sports, scouting, etcetera. Most are on Wednesdays and weekends.
You can also invest in learning Dutch at home. Before we went to the USA, we had sticky notes everywhere to teach our children English: 'mirror', 'toothbrush', 'dishwasher', you name it. After I took the initiative, they started making them their selves - with help from the internet. We also allowed them more screen time than usual, as long as it was in English.
Good luck!
BritgetJones007 schreef op 25-09-2023 om 15:08:
then i think there is more to this story. I think that there are alarmsigns for his behavior, because they are telling you that your Child is not making eye contact? Do they think something is wrong?
Or are they Just saying that maybe he must go to kindergarten, and then over time he can go to school? So he have more time to grow?
Yes, they think so. I cannot say that's wrong.
I actually requested for kindergarten because I also felt he will observe and learn the Dutch school culture. but they are not considering his admission stating he is more than 4 years old.
If he is given an admission for 6 months is also good, I believe he will improvise a lot.
yette wrote on 25-09-2023 at 19:21:
You also asked what to do with a child that's getting bored.
Dutch libraries are free for children and they offer more than books alone. Some organize activities too.Most petting zoos are also free and fun at this age.
Did you consider swimming lessons? Dutch swimming lessons are very child friendly compared to lessons in some other countries. I don't know about India, but I still regret one of our children learned how to swim in the USA (he has been afraid for years!).
And of course we also have all kinds of sports, scouting, etcetera. Most are on Wednesdays and weekends.
You can also invest in learning Dutch at home. Before we went to the USA, we had sticky notes everywhere to teach our children English: 'mirror', 'toothbrush', 'dishwasher', you name it. After I took the initiative, they started making them their selves - with help from the internet. We also allowed them more screen time than usual, as long as it was in English.
Good luck!
Me and my wife both are working. However, I am taking him daily to the nearby parks and zoo in Veldhoven (in Sundays).
I am taking him to swimmings on the weekends. I think for regular swimming class I remember they told he needs to reach 5 year age. I will double check on the website again.
I started learning Dutch, I will teach him the basic things like greeting others and asking for water and toilets, we are improvising.
Currently he is involved in colouring and painting but we cannot keep it for whole day.
@syboor
Thanks.
I have not tried Onderwijsconsulenten. I will give a try after this week.
@ Coreopsis I am staying Veldhoven. Since ISE is far i chose Dutch school
there is an international school in Eindhoven.
Do you work for ASML? I think they can help you to understand the dutch school system. There are a lot of expats working and staying in Veldhoven.
In Eindhoven you also have the wereldwijzer but I think it is starting at the age of 5. https://wereldwijzereindhoven.com/ Maybe you can ask them for some ideas?
You can also check de startbaan. It is also in Eindhoven but it is in Meerhoven, almost Veldhoven.
In Veldhoven you have primary school t Heike. They also have a taalklas (language class). I don't know from what age. You can check it?
I think that the problem with eye contact maybe is a difference in culture?
Sorry for my english...
You could take a look at this school in Veldhoven: https://www.doe040.nl/
it is a democratic school, which means that children have a lot of influence on their learning program. Maybe he could go there for a year, just to play and learn Dutch? It is a private school so there will be costs.
@BritgetJones007
I also requested them if he is lagging can you put him in korein or kintergarten that they are not ready to recommend. They said they are looking for an assistance ( ib-er) but they are not sure by when it will be arranged?
@Mija sure, I will give a try on this doe40 nl
Thanks duizel. I will try the school you have suggested for ideas
