Hello everyone--we have thoroughly enjoyed reading MM message board, and finally feel brave enough to post a querie of our own.

We are taking our two young children (ages 4 and 7) to Spain for one year. We anticipate enrolling our children in Spanish schools. We are seriously considering Seville, but are concerned it might be too big (we already know it's unbearably hot in July, right when we would be arriving) for a small family to feel "a part of it." Would a smaller city (Malaga? Oviedo? _____?) be more manageable and personable with small children? We are struggling over where to settle, and are hoping you might have some suggestions, or things to consider we haven't thought of. We know this is rather vague, but any comments would be appreciated. Thanks a lot.

Wow, this is a BIG question! I hope some of the board members who have done this kind of thing can offer input. My own reaction is, if you want to have a smaller city/town experience, Sevilla might be large. You want nice climate, too, I imagine. Consider something near to a city but small enough for comfort. Segovia comes to mind. Tell us more about what you want to do as a family.

A very fair question--what do we want as a family? Our stereotypical (and vague) answer is "to experience the people and culture of Spain." In our misty-eyed view across the Atlantic, we see the kids going to school, eventually learning Spanish, making friends, and being a part of the community. We see the school connection as a very positive one for all of us--we will meet other families (Spanish and other?), and this will help make our connection to where we are more personal(?). Once the kids are somewhat settled, we can do some day/weekend exploring.

We thought briefly about staying in different cities or towns for a few months each, and teaching the kids ourselvfes as we go, but think a familiar home base, especially for the kids, would serve us better.

One parent has research to accomplish, which will require travel to several university sites, but this should be easily accomplished as family excursions, and the rest of his work (writing, compiling, etc.) can be done anywhere.

Thus, our goal is to be in a town/city that is big enough (or near enough) to offer or have transportation to cultural attractions and interesting sites, has a school that can accommodate a non-Spanish speaker (would a larger city school be more likely to adjust to an English-speaking child? be more likely to have some English spoken? are we trying to micromanage?), a populace that will tolerate our genuine, determined efforts to speak and improve our (at this point, very limited) Spanish, and drink wine and eat good food!

It seems we are looking for an experience that is more personal, and reduces our the inherent anonymity in a foreign culture. Is our(again) vague idea of what we are looking for harder to achieve in a larger city? Or is a large city more likely to provide identifiable neighborhoods for us to fit into as well as valuable expatriate support? We know there are lots of places in Spain that would be fun, interesting, and wonderful. We know no place is perfect or without disadvantages. We don't expect a fairy tale experience.

In many ways, it would have been easier to have been assigned a place to go--then you just go and deal with it. So it seems we are as vague as we were in the beginning! If you are all rolling your eyes with our indecision we can't blame you. But keeping in mind the things we've mentioned, maybe you have some suggestions for places to consider. Even an "I'd go here if I were in your place and here's why" would be great. Maybe then we'll pick one and just go for it! We could be overthinking this completely!

Thanks again!

Hello Jen & Dan-

I am curious as to what you'll be "doing" in Spain for one year (!). Are you working, taking an extended sabbatical, or something else. It sounds fantastic. I guess what I REALLY want to know is "How can I do that!!??"

There are several American schools in Spain (Madrid and Barcelona, and I think Sevilla as well). They are private and open to students of any nationality, so your kids would have exposure to Spanish culture and friendship, and have a more familiar situation to begin school. The Madrid school's site is www.amerschmad.org , should you desire more info.

Good Luck to you! (or should I say, Buena Suerte!) I am looking forward to hearing more about your plans.

[This message has been edited by Kurt (edited 02-17-2001).]

Dear Jen and Dan-- That's a very clear picture! Sounds wonderful. I myself am an academic and have friends who have done what you want to do. One couple + kids went to Madrid, and couldn't afford the American School on their Fulbright so they placed them in public school, to mixed results. Another goes to Oviedo (a small, nice town) and they have lots of friends there, so it is easy for them to create a community. I'd start with the researcher's contacts in Spain-- which universities, and is there anyone there who is willing to act as a link? The culture of community might be easier in private schools (either religious or non-religious), but they can be pricey. Another idea is to find out which U.S. schools might have connetions with Spanish schools (some kind of exchange, etc). For older kids this certainly works. I hope Diana reads this thread because she seems to have lots of experience!

In your shoes, I would certainly go for middle-small size, province capitals such as Logroño (Rioja), Pamplona (Navarra), Burgos (Castilla León)or Murcia. One point to consider is that life standards are quite different depending on the "autonomia" (kind of similar to a US State).

T ogive an example, prices in Rioja or Navarra will be significantly higher than in Murcia or Extremadura. I have a suggestion, What about a place like Elche in the mediterranean coast or Merida in Extremadura. Not big, not small ( around 60.000 people) nice climate, nice prices specially Merida if you live there and the oppportunity of really living the culture.

Thanks for your input.

Yes, Dan is going to be on extended sabbatical. Once the sabbatical was awarded, it was a question of where do we want to go? Spain! Absolutely!

To answer rgf's excellent suggestion about research contacts, Dan isn't operating through a university--it's coincidental that some of his research examines college campus architectural arrangements as it relates to gender. Since we are going to Spain, why not collect data at Spanish universities and do a cross-cultural comparison? We will definitely explore contact possibilities with US schools with a Spanish exchange program (several come to mind we have com across in our GREAT Spanish adventure information collection campaign). We think you're right to suggest exploring that further.

We have looked into private schools and found that sabbatical pay doesn't cover private international schools and living expenses. We would certainly like any details as to what was "mixed" about the results for the friends who sent their kids to public schools. Maybe it would direct us to either borrow some money or think of ways to offset the downsides.

Does anyone anticipate that we would have a difficult time finding long-term housing once we get to Spain?

Thanks so much for your suggestions and interest! It's great to feel like there are real people out there in the cyberworld. We greatly appreciate your contact!

Long term furnished housing is fairly easy in Madrid and other large cities; if you are going to a smaller city I'd try to set something up in advance, or take an exploratory trip there (you might have to do that anyway, depending). The mixed results on my friend w/ kids in Madrid: they had trouble w/ the Spanish; classes were rather 'hard' compared to the pampering many US schools give kids.

In Spain, there are basically three types of schools, international schools, private schools, and public schools. International schools are very expensive and instruction is in English. Tuition usually starts at $1000/month per child. Private schools, as rgf pointed out, are many times religious and tend to be cheaper than international schools, starting around $200/month (these are Madrid prices, I can't speak for small towns). Public schools are free of charge except for books (in Spain, all students are required to pay for their books). I have taught in two international schools, two private schools, and one public school, all in Madrid. In non-international schools, the English support is going to be very limited. Most likely the only English speakers will be the English language teachers themselves. Also, as rgf mentioned, the curriculum and methodology is quite different compared to U.S. schools. Students are required to memorize material and there is less hands-on, cooperative learning. I'm not trying to criticize their teaching styles, just to point out that it's different to what you're probably used to. Also be aware that they teach math differently than they do in the U.S. If your main goal is for your children to learn Spanish, that they will, but don't expect any school in Spain to have special accommodations for non-Spanish speaking students. I would consult with your current school on what your child is expected to learn in the year you are in Spain, take texts/material with you to Spain, and supplement at home.

Also, if you haven't already considered this, you may want to rule out areas in Spain where a different language is spoken (Cataluña, País Basco, Galicia). I think it would only add to the confusion. Areas with a large ex-pat community are Alicante (Jávea) and Costa del Sol. Perhaps there are schools there that tend to cater to the international student.

I think in the end this will be a very positive experience for your children (and for you) but it may take some adjustment and surely some hard times. Have you considered teaching your children some Spanish before you make the move? Perhaps you could enroll them in a Spanish summer camp to prepare them for the plunge.

Here are some links I found on schools in Spain. Actually, some of the international schools aren't as expensive as I thought. I guess it's because of the strong dollar.
http://web66.coled.umn.edu/schools.html
http://www.embusa.es/edu/listen.html
http://www.nabss.org/