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Kindergarten Admission

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  1. #1

    Kindergarten Admission

    Hello everyone. This is my first post in this forum. Would appreciate any help I can get.
    I will be moving to Hong Kong with my wife and five year old daughter in August. I am looking for a good (English speaking) kindergarten for my daughter. I have tried contacting schools and kindergartens from overseas without successes. My questions are.
    1) What are the neighborhoods with good kindergartens/schools in HK?
    2) What is the best method for contacting them for admission for senior KG? Should I wait till my family and I get our HKIDs?
    3) Would very much appreciate a list of good kindergartens/schools in HK?


  2. #2

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    5 years is old enough for year 1 (primary school) in Hong Kong system. Not kindergarten. Kindergarten (K1-K3) is for 2-5 years old.

    August is tomorrow. You didnt really plan ahead very well did you?


  3. #3

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    1) They are all over the place generally but there are clusters of them in some locations such as KowloonTong and corridor between Causewaybay and QuarryBay

    2) Send emails and call now, you can follow up when you return. Some will ignore you but some will answer and give you a feel for prices, places etc.

    3) There are too many to list but let me ask you a couple of questions:
    - what is your budget?
    - where will you&wife be working?
    - how long are you coming for?


  4. #4

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    You better act quickly now as there is a slim chance your daughter will get a spot for this year. As you might know, the waiting lists in Hong Kong are horrendous for most international schools. And calling the schools first is better than e-mailing them, due to the summer vacation it could be hard to speak to the relevant person though. Most schools will require you to pay a non-refundable admission fee before they will even place a student on the waiting list! Good luck!


  5. #5

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    Education is a competitive sport here with some parents putting their children down for the best kindergartens at birth.

    carang likes this.

  6. #6

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    And your child needs an interview. Hope your kid is ready and can impress. They also interview the parents to see if you provide enough support for your kid.

    Recently, I was told the kids are presented with books and toys so they can see which one your kid goes for.

    Good luck.

    Sent from my GT-I9100 using GeoClicks Mobile


  7. #7

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    Quote Originally Posted by bdw:
    5 years is old enough for year 1 (primary school) in Hong Kong system. Not kindergarten. Kindergarten (K1-K3) is for 2-5 years old.

    August is tomorrow. You didnt really plan ahead very well did you?
    no, the hong kong system accepts kids into P1 when they are 6 years old.
    K1-3, K2-4,K3-5, P1-6.

    My son has just finished P1. He was 6 when he started.

    many international schools start P1 at 5 years of age, as does ESF.
    emmie likes this.

  8. #8

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    Thanks Carang. I was thinking ESF and was not aware that ESF is different from mainstream HK system. I know you work in the industry, so will take your word for it.

    But I know that in ESF, kids born in 2007 (ie 5th birthday this year) are about to start P1 next month once the holidays are finished. Given the OP coming from overseas and wanting an 'english' style education, I would guess an ESF or international school being high on their list. I therefore stand by my statement that they should probably be looking for a primary school at this stage, not a kindergarten.

    But good luck with that. School starts next month and everyone is on holidays now. From 1st September, ESF will start to accept central applications for 2013/14 year. Maybe the OP has no option but to hold their kid back in kindergarten for another year and apply for the 2013/14 year at ESF.


  9. #9

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    Quote Originally Posted by bdw:
    Thanks Carang. I was thinking ESF and was not aware that ESF is different from mainstream HK system.
    ESF along with most international schools get the kids into P1 one year earlier.
    Local schools along with very few private schools (eg: ISF) get the kids into P1 one year later.

    You can see these cutoff points when you look at the various school websites and admission criteria.

  10. #10

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    my girl was 2007. she will be K3 this year. she misses the cut off for P1 by 5 weeks... it sucks, she's so ready for P1...


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