We are pleased to introduce you to Sergio, the father of one of our students who, after completing a seven-year journey with us, is about to start a new adventure abroad.
Sergio and his wife were kind enough to share their invaluable perspective with us on their child's growth and development during their time at Chatterbox, from Playschool to Year 5, drawing conclusions on their experience and sharing their achievements, challenges and successes.
Q: How did the idea of enrolling your child in an English school come about?
A: We moved to Sardinia for work and therefore didn’t have our families here with us to help us look after our child, so we immediately thought about choosing a private school that would guarantee us extended hours. We contacted several schools in Cagliari.
Furthermore, as I myself (mother) came from an education in an international primary school, we were very keen on offering our son the same opportunity, with all the advantages that it brings, not least the fact of learning a foreign language spontaneously, effortlessly.
Q: Why did you choose Chatterbox after contacting other schools in Cagliari?
A: We used to pass by the viale La Plaia site every morning on our way to work always noticing the Chatterbox sign. Shortly afterwards we contacted you. Cinzia welcomed us and showed us around the premises, giving us the opportunity to see not only the spaces and the organization of the structure, but also the lessons taking place and, therefore, your methodology, which we really liked.
We were also interested in the extracurricular activities offered, including the Chinese language course that our son subsequently continued throughout elementary school as part of the school curriculum.
That’s how, when he was 3 years old, we enrolled our child in Chatterbox and invested in his education, which we care about very much. Initially, we said ourselves ‘let's see how it goes’, but he got on very well from the start and now here we are: having decided to stay with you for the last 7 years.
D: When did you first realize that the school path you chose was being so successful?
A: Surely the first time we clearly understood that the educational path was paying off was during the first school exchange with the school in Glasgow, Scotland, when our son was attending the Reception class and was 5 years old. Seeing him interact with native speakers, both adults and children, revealed how rich his vocabulary and how good his knowledge of the language were.
From then on, Scotland always remained in his heart and, apart from during the sad time of the pandemic, in which we obviously could not travel, he has always chosen to go back there for school exchanges in the following years.
We tried to participate in all the school trips and exchanges offered by the school throughout the years, including the ones in France and other parts of the UK. Together with the trips we have taken privately as a family to Europe, the United States and Asia, these have been, above all, the occasions in which we have been able to see firsthand our son grow up as a bilingual child.
Q: Considering the job opportunity that is taking you abroad, do you think that your child's education has also been useful in your family dynamics?
R: Yes, we can say that it saved us. In a situation like ours, in which at a certain point we decided to accept a job offer abroad, the fact that our son speaks English fluently facilitates the transition to another country enormously.
Not only because this allowed him to be accepted in an international school in the country of destination, but also because we know that he will have no problems communicating and fitting into the new social context that will welcome him.
Q: What was the selection process for the foreign school for your child like?
A: It went above and beyond our expectations. We knew he would pass the selections, but the examiner complimented him on his preparation, saying that he rarely finds himself examining foreign boys who have such a level of English proficiency.
As well as being proud of his progress, we consider this yet another confirmation that Chatterbox was the right choice.
Q: How did your child react when he visited the foreign school for the first time?
R: He reacted with great serenity. The advantages of having participated in the school exchanges is that, in addition to the linguistic aspect, they gave us the opportunity to broaden our horizons even with regard to school life in other countries. Therefore, the functioning of the canteen and the lessons taking place in the different classes, amongst other things, were dynamics which were perfectly recognisable to our son.
He will fit into a system that he has already experienced and is already familiar with. This type of linguistic and life skills can only be acquired if you attend a school like Chatterbox.
D. Summing up your experience…?
A: As in all long-term relationships, like ours with Chatterbox, it is physiological that there are areas in which there is certainly room for improvement, and these are more the bureaucratic and organizational aspects of the school that the parents take care of, which have never affected our son's school life in any way.
Our child has always lived in a bubble of serenity at school and, as is normal in families where both parents work, he spent most of his days with you. The school is made up of those who are in it and you have always been able to stimulate and involve him, the educational work we did was twofold, on our part and on yours.
We also greatly appreciated the help you gave us when our son had to take the entry exam for the new school, giving us the opportunity to have him take it with you, setting up a dedicated classroom for him under the supervision of your staff. Thus, not only did he not miss a day of school, but we didn't have to try to organize our work either.
We are leaving Chatterbox confident that we made the right choice and grateful for this priceless journey spent together.
Thank you very much, Sergio! And thanks to your family for sharing this with us. Good luck to all of you for your future!
