Taster term at british boarding school

It is often difficult for parents, and even for the child himself, to make an important decision about further permanent education in England, even without having "tasted" the British boarding house.

Here the so-called IMMERSION programs ("immersion in the life of a British boarding school") come to the rescue for a short period (from 2 weeks) or a trial semester. This is a great opportunity for hesitant parents to decide whether the child is ready to live in a boarding house or if it is worth postponing the dispatch for a year or two. How comfortable the child feels in terms of language - is he fluent in English or is it worth putting in more effort, how quickly and easily the child can adapt to the new educational environment and culture and make friends.

These programs are essentially a "TEST-DRIVE" BRITISH EDUCATION. They are no different from regular education throughout the year. The child enters the class according to his age and is enrolled in the educational program of the boarding school. Attends all subjects: science, mathematics, geography, history, etc., arts, sports, and also participates in clubs and other aspects of school life. For example, she can, along with everyone, participate in the preparation of the production of a school play and help create decorations or set up lights.

Of course, a very small number of schools accept children for a short period of time, and such programs are kind of pearls and are not advertised by schools. Nevertheless, WE HAVE AGREEMENTS WITH A NUMBER OF VERY WORTHY SCHOOLS to which our children go for such an unusual "test drive".

Immersion programs or a trial semester are ideal for those who want to "try on" British education and in a short period of time significantly improve their level of English, including not just everyday but academic. And, which is very important for teaching both at school and later at the university, written English: most of the educational process is based on it.

This is facilitated by:

• continuous finding of the child in an English-speaking environment;
• VERY COMPLETE ABSENCE OF RUSSIAN-SPEAKING CHILDREN (in the whole school, as a rule, there can be no more than 20% of all international students, and the percentage of Russian-speakers is even more insignificant);
• studying the vocabulary of each subject under study (the name of chemical reagents, mathematical formulas and actions, geographical realities, etc.).

You can go to these programs AT ANY MOMENT DURING THE SCHOOL YEAR, except for vacations and if there are vacancies in schools. It is desirable to register in advance - 6-9 months in advance. There are three semesters in a year: the 1st semester starts in early September, ends in mid-December, the 2nd - from the beginning of January to the end of March, the 3rd - from mid-April to the end of June.

If you find it difficult to send your child for a whole semester for some reason, you can stop for half the semester. In this case, the child will stay at the boarding house for 5-6 weeks, after which the holidays will come. Some schools do this.

The cost of an immersion week will average around £ 1,200-1,400 per week, and a trial semester costs between £ 7,500 and £ 13,000 (depending on class and school, and cost does not affect quality).

To register for these programs, you will need a report card for the last 2-3 years and a characteristic from the school. The student will need to pass online tests in English and sometimes in mathematics, as well as pass an interview on Skype with the school's admissions office.

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