Schools and Education on the Costa BlancaAs in any other country, there are two types of school/college for your children –
public (in Spain this refers to state run schools), or private.Private International Colleges throughout the Costa Blanca provide an english
curriculum taught in the medium of english. Fees are generally much cheaper in the
private schools than they are in the UK and some of them, in an effort to appeal to
spanish parents, now offer the spanish speaking student the opportunity to sit the
national spanish ‘Bachillerato’ exams in order for them to be able to enter the
spanish university system.If you are at all worried about whether your child will be able to cope with the added
trauma of a new language as well as a new school and a new country, take heart
from my own experience. I have two daughters who were aged 6 and 10 when we
came to Spain 5 years ago. Although I considered the private route of education, I
liked the smaller classes and friendly atmosphere of the local state-run village
school. Now 11 and 15 respectively, both girls are fluent in Valencian (the local
regional language, which is a cross between French and Italian) and Castilian (the
national spanish language). It took them just 12 months to learn and my youngest is
consistently the only member of her all spanish class to get full marks in her
spanish exams! Generally speaking, the younger your child is when you move to
another country, the easier they will integrate with their classmates and so learn the
language.Under the spanish curriculum, your child will be taught, maths (bear in mind that
calculations are done in different ways on the continent, so you may find it hard in
the beginning in helping with the homework!), Castiliano (like english grammar but
obviously in spanish), Conocemiento del Medi (a mixture of geography, geology and
biology which is studied up to the age of 12), Plastica (art), Gym – which in Spain
includes a degree of theory/written course work, Religion (Catholicism – although
your child can opt out of this and take Etica – which should be another subject but
ends up being free time to catch up on homework), Sociales (history and geography
for the older students), Naturales (natural sciences/biology for the older students),
Drama, Prensa (history of journalism and print), Tutoria (an hour of student/teacher
communication to discuss work or social issues), plus also languages – French,
English and Valencian (the regional language). In some schools, more than half of
your childs’ lessons will be conducted in Valencian rather than Castilian (the national
spanish language), great if your child is of an age where they will absorb new
languages easily (normally up to the age of 10), more difficult for older children
where the level of study is more complex.In many of the villages, Valencian is the
language of choice by most spaniards, although without exception they will also
speak Castilian. But if you want your child to integrate with the local village children,
it would be a good idea to learn the two languages. You’d be surprised how quickly
they pick it up in the playground. If you do opt for a spanish school, don’t expect to
be shown around by the head teacher when you go to enrol your child – for some
reason, this is not the ‘done’ thing in Spain, so you may get faced with a blank stare
if you ask !! Also, books and lunch are chargeable. Books will normally have to be
bought from a local shop, and can amount to quite a lot of money. You will be
provided with a list when your child starts school. Lunch will be paid by standing
order from your bank account, so you will have to provide the school with your
details. Each school sets it’s own rate, so ask first.To enrol your child in the spanish school you will need to provide the school with a
Certificado de Empadronamiento, which is a certificate of proof of residency in your
village (you can get this at the local Town Hall or Ayuntamiento by supplying your
passports and title deeds to your property or a rental contract), and your childs’
passport. As the school needs the paperwork for each child enrolled in the school, it
is a good idea to get a Certificado de Empadronamiento for each member of the
family and keep copies as they will be needed for other things as well.In September, my eldest daughter started at Xabia International College in order to
take her GCSE’s. As she is now fluent in Spanish, she will be able to sit her A level
Spanish at the same time, as well as the Spanish School Leaving Certificate – ESO
(Educacion Secondaria Obligatoria), giving her the option to choose between an
English further education or Spanish.If you would like more information on living in Spain, visit Costa Blanca World.

Many researchers have proven the fact that functioning of brain cells of infants is twice active as adult’s brain. Neurons are the brain cells that connect together and power of neuron have the potential of a PC. Connectivity of neurons decides the smartness or intelligence of individuals. In human, brain development and the learning ability of an individual is 50% in the first four years of age. The nerves of individuals are reduced as they grow up and this is why the 1000 trillion nerves present in an 8 months baby are reduced to 500 trillion as it grows up. A child that has given more opportunities to explore will be much smart.

A majority of children, more than 90% of them use their left brain, but the imperative fact to remember is the right brain must also be utilized. Education system present in almost all the schools is designed to develop or use the left brain. Right brain is never the less significant because it is responsible for creativity, arts, feeling, imagination, visualizing, daydreaming, rhythm, holistic thinking and many others. Hence it is equally important to develop both side of brain. It is also most important to take steps to keep both the brain much active, by keeping them to perform analytically on an equal basis. It is the responsibility of parents to give activities to their children that ensures the involvement of both brain. If both brain used by children it is probable to enhance their learning power and they can also increase their brain power. If brain development programs are offered to children they can make most of the program and develop their skills to give work to both side of brain and remains high in intelligence level. Development of brain in human beings is based on the degree of how much it is used. If it is left unused there are more probabilities for individuals to lose as brain works on the basis of use it or lose it.

To ensure the progressive brain development in children, it is the role of parents to introduce their children with a reputable brain development program. Most of the experts suggest step by step educational program to the children which is systemic and efficient. Nowadays it is very simple to find out a lot of schools which not only gives importance to academic program, but they also boost the creativity of children through their extracurricular activities. It is probable to search internet and get hold of relevant schools that present with a variety of activities to stimulate the brain and encourage the development of children. A total development program to stimulate mental activity of children is also found out in the online sites and parents can try out these activities with their children while they are at home. Getting education from a school that implements total development program is much beneficial. Search for such schools and secure admission to enhance the future of the children and boosts in brain development.