Maruska

You can check the www.myschool.edu.au site. It was recommended to me on this forum . You will be able to see the results of standardized tests from all schools.

Hi, congrats on the first step! We also just paid for ours today:err:, 825 US $ ouch!!!! Still need to certify the documents and the declaration which will happen hopefully tomorrow, we have the papers ready. I was supposed to be the one who applies but my genius husband got 8 overall on IELTS:wubclub: so it`s him now. I am sitting my IELTS next Saturday. We are hoping to get it back before July 1st so that we can lodge the visa, just like everyone else I guess:wink:.

Thank you for reply SaintPatrick, that`s really interesting. Is there any similar trend for boys too? I have one of each:wink:. We are in the process of looking at schools right now so I am aware of the catchment area - not surprised, same as in the US. Of course the best ranking schools are located in the most expensive neighborhoods:eek:.

Thanks for posting the process. Wow 5 days only, times have really changed:wink:.

Good point. Don`t want to be stuck without a job:err:. Basically we will have to go where the job is in the end I guess:daydreaming:. Not a whole lot of jobs posted for the Sunshine coast where we looked.

Thank you for the reply, yes I guess it`s still too early ( I am giving AHPRA 6 months for registration processing just to be on the safe side):confused:. I recently heard of new hospital being build in Kawana near Caloundra in QLD. That`s also something we will look into. About Perth, I am sure it`s a lovely city but it`s not one of the places we are considering. We do like to do a lot of day and weekend trips and WA seems to offer less opportunities to just do a quick trip somewhere nice and different each time. I already run out of new day trips in the Houston area :wink:

Thanks. Yes they advertise current jobs on the government web BUT the Expression of interest is for unadvertised jobs. I am hoping to be in AU hopefully this time next year and wanted to see what was available . We are not 100 % decided on the area we would like to go to.

First time I hear about it:eek:. To me it seems that separation is unnatural, how do they learn to interact with each other? And the aptitude for science and math would depend on the peers they share the class with.... strange:err:

Hi, did anyone apply for a job through this website? It`s a Queensland government website, private hospitals and clinics aren`t included. There is an option to submit an "expression of interest" and they would than match you with available jobs. I want to know if there are usually a lot of choices or they just give one option? We like certain areas, especially because we have preschool aged kids so good schools are important to us. Also, if you are already working for a government hospital in Queensland, how do you like it? I am not sure if it`s better to look at a hospital in a place(s) where we want to settle and approach the facility directly but I couldn`t find a recruitment websites for individual hospitals. Any advice will be appreciated.

Out of curiosity, why do you think that same-sex class is better? I was always part of a mixed class until I started nursing school. It was fine in both for me.

There is not much difference between a knife and a screwdriver:laugh:.

My friend works currently in Iraq for Doctors without borders. Nothing to do with the war, it`s a program to decrease mother/infant mortality at a local hospital in the middle of nowhere. She wrote to me about amazing sights she saw and complained because she is not allowed out in the open all too often - they have to have an escort for safety sake. I would quite like to see it myself someday but I am willing to wait 30 years:wink:

hmmmm:skeptical: I can`t think of any other use.... does it make me a psycho?:biglaugh:

I actually like that. Working in the ER I feel that the less people around carrying arms of any kind the better:wink:

It all comes down to what people`s expectations are. If you are an outdoorsy nature lover like us you should be fine ( anyway, I am not in AUS yet but that`s what I am expecting:wink:). A lot of people from my country - and I don`t mean the USA now - rather go to New Zealand for a year after university. It`s not cheaper but being a smaller place they can do a lot of things without a lot of travel time. My brother`s friend spent 4 months helping out on a sheep farm in NZ and 6 months traveling around, he found Auckland " too busy":laugh: so it really depends on a personal view. If you don`t feel comfortable in one place why not try another ? You`ve already moved across the world, moving within a country is a piece of cake:biggrin:

That`s what we are planning to do. There are direct flights now from Dallas to Brisbane, it`s an overnight flight so I hope kids are gonna be OK :err:.

Thank you, that`s great, will try some experiments with my kids:biggrin:

I wonder about that too. When does homeschooling usually stop? At the end of elementary school? At what age? Teachers are qualified in 1 or 2 subjects in which they SHOULD have an in-depth knowledge and do not teach other subjects. As for the "labs" I think you can do a lot of experiments at home too. Still remember how we dissected the earthworms in secondary school:biggrin:. That for example I could imagine doing with my child. I am sticking with Montessori for now:wink:

I used to work in Riyadh. Now living in Houston. I had to do my fingerprints in Riyadh for the US immigration and it was a major pain in the butt but I think that now they probably see these requests like police clearance every day and know what to do.

Hi, I asked this question a while ago and got no replies, I guess there are not a lot of people living in SA. I am still in the process of applying for 175 though so faaar away:err:. I would appreciate it if you could post how you did it and how long did it take ( from what I remember of SA you will be lucky to have any paper back in a matter of days ).

I work with a lot of nurses from the Philippines, one of them is my best friend here in the US. I like their community and their food:wink:.

I really like the Montessori school. That said, Montessori certificate does not mean that all schools are the same, I picked one that has been functioning for 30 years and the newest teacher has been there for 4 years, the others 12 year +. They are very experienced and the kids learn a lot. They have separate rooms and areas and rotate during the day, the kid usually gets a choice which area he would like to be in. There is science room, practical life area and the main teaching room. For example, in science they make experiments like creating a volcano model or planting seeds and watch them grow, also they have a turtle that they take turns feeding. Practical life - they may help the cook ( with the assistance of a teacher) prepare simple salad or mix a batter for a cake. They learn spelling and basics of reading and writing. My son just turned 4 and knows how to write his name and some other letters, recognizes all letters and is starting to read short words. They have a lovely outdoor area and have a baseball class once a week as part of enrichment program. In the summer they swim in the pool with a outside lifeguard/swim teacher and 1 of his teachers. I will be very sad to leave this school but he will be due to start elementary education anyway. Bottom line, I think the kids in Montessori learn all the necessary skills and gain knowledge without the stress and I am looking into this in Australia too.

Where do you live right now, UK or AUS? Here in the US I can`t imagine socializing like this:eek: it`s sad but everyone is so busy that you have to make arrangements to meet your best friend once a month:mad: . It`s one of the things that helped us in making the decision to move. Enough of the wild chase !!!!

I personally feel that home schooling might deprive a child of the opportunity to learn social skills by simply interacting with his peers. It might be different if there is a lot of social network - family, friends, homeschool parent group etc. For us this is not an option and my son is thriving at his daycare/preschool ( he is 4 y old and it`s a Montessori school ). Not sure how to "substitute" certain topics in home school - like presentation in front of a classroom. In my son`s school there is a "show and tell" every week when a child presents something in front of the entire class.

Hi, first of all, congrats on settling in well:wubclub: I am just curious how expensive cleaning services are. I work and I have 2 little kids so I hired a lady here to come every 2 weeks and do the major cleaning:wink: , I am trying hard to do the day-to day maintenance. I pay her 70 dollars ( US) per visit. We have a 2 bed 2 bath apartment and she usually stays about 3 hours to get it done. How much would I pay for the same service in AUS?