Moving from the US to Finland

saleciahost · Post by **saleciahost** » Mon Apr 20, 2015 2:53 am

Hi, We are an Australian/South African family with 3 children (ages 11, 8, 6) looking to move from the USA to Finland(Helsinki) in August.
Does anyone have experience with this move as a family.
We are most concerned about schooling as our children do not speak any Finnish.
Please help

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FinnGuyHelsinki · Post by **FinnGuyHelsinki** » Mon Apr 20, 2015 8:52 am

I'd suggest the kids start/continue their schooling in English, and - if so decided - pick up Finnish on the side. http://finland.fi/Public/default.aspx?contentid=160052

Pursuivant · Post by **Pursuivant** » Mon Apr 20, 2015 9:51 am

Depends also if you are planning to stay a few years in an expat bubble and then move again, or making Finland more or less a permanent home... The kids at that age will learn the language by osmosis, a few years older they'd start to struggle and then the options for higher education start getting... interesting.

Godzilla · Post by **Godzilla** » Mon Apr 20, 2015 12:33 pm

Children do not learn Finnish by osmosis; there will be a difficult adjustment if they go to Finnish language schools, and it depends very much on the child how well they will fare. They will get a lot of assistance in learning Finnish, though, via special courses. If they will be staying in Finand, though, it is best for them to start right away. If they won't be staying in Finland, then you should look for English language schooling options .

Pursuivant · Post by **Pursuivant** » Mon Apr 20, 2015 12:56 pm

You ever observed kids in kindergarten?
All they do is stand in puddles and scream.
You seen a 5-6 year old that spoke no Finnish do interpreting for mum within a year of being in kindergarten?
Logic: you learn Finnish by standing in puddles (osmosis) and screaming your lungs out.

FinnGuyHelsinki · Post by **FinnGuyHelsinki** » Mon Apr 20, 2015 1:47 pm

Learning a foreign language to a usable level from zero is quite a different thing from trying to learn also all the other subjects, which are being taught in that language. Doable, maybe, but will require huge amounts of additional time, effort and support to not fall hopelessly behind from everyone else.

Rosamunda · Post by **Rosamunda** » Mon Apr 20, 2015 2:06 pm

I think I read on another thread that your children have been home schooled thus far. This will no doubt have an impact on how they adapt to school here, quite apart from any language issues. I guess it could go either way: They might revel in the experience, on the other hand they might find it terrifying. But that depends partly on how you prepare them for it. Ideally you should visit some schools before you choose one. Some are more international than others and therefore possibly less intimidating.
There is also the option of choosing a Swedish language school... Not so useful if you are moving here permanently but worth considering.

Resend · Post by **Resend** » Mon Apr 20, 2015 4:09 pm

Hi all

I also thought that a a child in Finland without any Finnish knowledge or contact in the family would need to go to a Finnish school to learn Finnish easily

But now I am not that sure, as I have a very straight example: My neighbours are not Finns, I have never heard them speak in Finnish and they only speak English or their home language with the kids. Theirs kids go to the international school (in english) as mine do. There were also attending the English daycare. So no Finnish at home or at the school

On top of it, they were sent abroad so the oldest child spent the first year of school out of Finland. So guess what: The child also speaks Finnish, very well in my child's opinion

I assume that even in the international schools most of the kids are from mixed backgrounds and they switch languages as needed. So now I don't think a child should attend a Finnish school to learn the language. And on the other side, for a child changing country, changing school, friends and also studying in a new (and very difficult language), with friends who will most probably only speak that language or some English in the best of the cases... I don't know it seems a bit too hard for me

Just another view in the matter...

Godzilla · Post by **Godzilla** » Tue Apr 21, 2015 11:55 am

No one learns languages by osmosis. It is a active process, which is stressful to some children and less stressful to others. To do it quickly (and they can learn a new language very quickly when small) they need immersion, such as in day care or school, which can be difficult and isolating, but ultimately this is a short term thing. It seems as though they learn by osmosis because they do it while we are at work, or while they are playing, but if you actually consider it, they are putting in a full days work every day at learning the language - few adults have the time to do that, which is why by comparison children seem to progress so quickly. Also, they are usually very good at active practice, which many adults are afraid to do. And people tolerate children's language mistakes and correct them in a productive way which helps them learn - Finns do not tolerate language mistakes by adult foreigners, nor do they correct them in a productive way.

FinnGuyHelsinki · Post by **FinnGuyHelsinki** » Tue Apr 21, 2015 2:08 pm

Godzilla wrote:Finns do not tolerate language mistakes by adult foreigners, nor do they correct them in a productive way.

I don't agree with the "do not tolerate" part. What is there to tolerate as long as the language is comprehensible? Another thing of course is certain professions etc. where the wrong language can be out-right dangerous. Unless the situation is about teaching (formally or informally with someone from whom the foreigner has asked for guidance), would you really expect anyone anywhere to start correcting the mistakes by default?

Pursuivant · Post by **Pursuivant** » Tue Apr 21, 2015 5:07 pm

Meaning probably that the Finn will switch to English rather than have his ears bleed

I thought it was the French who didn't "tolerate" and refuse to speak English ( so you need to repeat until you get it right)...

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