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bringing my 8-year old son with me to taiwan

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wattsco01

7/16/2014 14:14 EST

I am considering moving back to Taiwan. I spent a year there 10 years ago. I'm sure things have changed dramatically. The last time I was there I was working as a photographer, teacher, actor, and handled sales and marketing for a Taiwanese trading company. I have a BA in Broadcast Communications a TESOL certificate and experience teaching English in more than one country. I don't think it would be difficult to get back into the groove but.....I will now have my eight year old son in tow. I am doing research on what would be available to me for him. I.E schools, tutors, babysitters for when I can't be with him, etc. I am hoping to start hooking up with both expats and locals before I actually come there, because I do remember this: It is not what you know but who you know. If anyone on this site reads this, I would be truly grateful for any input you have. I do not want to move my son-who would follow after I have set things up-into a situation that would not be a positive experience. I am not going to be sponsored by a large company, but I do have some monthly income set up from the US, but would not be able to put him in an expensive private school. I'm thinking home schooling with the support of an online school that can help me with the curriculum. I do know from my last visit that there are groups of expats with kids that do a sort of home schooling group. I have not been able to find any info online and know I need to probably be there to find them. But I can hope. I'll be honest; I am not just considering this for him-exposure to the language and culture at this age would definitely be valuable- but also for me. I miss Asia and want to move back, but I do not want to be one of those parents that crams information and experiences down my sons throat with the misconceived idea that it is for his own benefit. I will probably come over in January of 2015 to check things out. I can do this easily because I can fly to pretty much any major international airport for free. Once again any input would definitely be appreciated. Thank you for time and consideration
Best Regards,
Weston

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Cocokennell

9/18/2014 15:44 EST

Hi Weston.
I too have similar questions and concerns since I want to move with my boyfriend who is in Taiwan. I have an 9 year old son . I don't have any certificate to teach English and I'm not sure how I would earn a living in Taiwan. My guy will be teaching English while I'm at home and that is slightly terrifying. I'm a hairstylist and I'm told I wouldn't be able to do that in Taiwan. I just more concern about the kid. I wished some one would've responded to your post

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donjuanc

12/13/2014 10:51 EST

Hey Weston,
I brought my two children to China last year and they were 10 and 11 at the time. If you're going to work as a teacher, you could work a deal along with the school contract where your son can attend classes to learn to write and speak Chinese. My kids were taking kindergarten and first grade Chinese along with their grade level classes plus I did some home schooling.
I wanted to have them stay a second year, but they didn't like China as much as me, even though I assumed they would adjust better than me as kids. They're back home in the states with mom and family. It was a good experience for them to have in their life, and they learned some Chinese, but not enough in a year. Hope that helps.

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timothymichael222

12/31/2014 14:43 EST

Hi Weston,

I think there are numerous options available for your son. I teach at one of the expensive private schools on the island (yeah, you would pretty much need a corporate package!), but I have friends from France who put their 6 or 7 year old in public school here and have been quite satisfied. He had no Chinese (or English) to start with, and became generally fluent within a year. Obviously, there would be challenges with that approach, but it might be worth it. I have forwarded your question on to my friends who live in Taipei, and I hope to hear back from them soon. I encouraged them to join this forum. If you have any questions, feel free to PM me through this forum. I will post their answer if they reply to me directly. Good luck!

~Tim

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