In celebration of Columbus Day, Mike got a 4 day weekend. I was literally jumping up and down with joy. You see, the kids attend an Int’l School that does not celebrate Columbus Day. So, with this news, Mike and I had two 8 hour days to ourselves and we fully took advantage of this time together! Continue reading
Monthly Archives: October 2012
The extra benefits of international schooling
If we were going to live abroad in Italy, I wanted my kids to learn Italian. The International School is definitely doing that. They teach for most of the day in English, but 2 hours a day in Italian. Slowly, but surely my kids are going to be speaking the language! Continue reading
Pot holes, narrow roads, highway hookers and gypsies
My first impression of road conditions in Italy was eye-opening and somewhat scary. Aside from the craziness of drivers who do not stop at stop signs, the road conditions are all shapes and sizes, but mostly small. The highways are fairly normal, although the widest freeway I’ve seen is 4 lanes wide, with 2 lanes going in each direction. I should say “2 painted” lanes, Continue reading
Schooling and grade levels
Back in the States, the big thing is to hold young children back a grade. With cutoffs like September 1st and previously it was December 1st, young kids aren’t typically ready for today’s rigorous kindergarten where expectations are writing stories and reading chapter books by year-end. Both our boys have fall birthdays and we saw huge benefits in holding them back to start elementary school. Continue reading
Team Merrill - Living Abroad in Italy 