Kids in the UAE
 

Hey guys,
Sorry if this has been posted previously, did a search and couldn't find the answers I was looking for. Just wanted to know a few things about bringing up kids in the middle east.

How did your kids transition to living in UAE? Did they settle into school ok?

What sort of social network do they have? Are their friends expat also and do they live nearby?

What sort of sporting opportunities do they have?

Thanks in advance.

Schools in the UAE are very expensive, and many of them are not up to standards compared to home. Before bringing them here and enrolling them, do some research. There is a list of evaluated schools in Dubai, the results of which are published each year in the newspapers. It should be available somewhere on the web as well.

Settling into a school should be no problem for them. Kids come from allover the world. Your child's friends will inevitably be expats too. People come and leave all the time, so your kids' friends will often change by the schoolyear. Sports clubs, musical lessons, dancing, language or religion classes etc. are all available. Sometimes offered by the school, sometimes private.

Social networks depend on the parents - you will have to drive your kids around. Distances are huge and the only means of getting anywhere is by car. You may be lucky and have some nice neighbours around where you live, with kids about the same age as your own.

School rankings 2011

KHDA school inspection report 2011

Yeah,but....

One of the major criteria for the KDHA is the schools delivery of Arabic and Islamic studies- not of primary importance to Western ex-pats.

Do not agree with got only very good experience with the DESS ( Dubai English Speaking School )
also I do not believe compared to the previous countries we were posted that DXB schools are very expensive, in Europe you pay much more.
Well, are we talking about the same Dubai ?? That spot is a village but pretents to be a mega city.....yes, you need a car but the word huge seems to be a bit odd to me.
Mine did very well, a lot of things to do, nice aqua parks where you can spent the entire day and they even learned to ski which was compared to a real skiing holiday very cheap. Also, horse riding is one of the things you might enjoy with your familie and is also cheaper than somewhere else.
Trust me, kids will be fine over here and will enjoy it. And, kids happy=wife happy=you are happy ! :ok:

Thanks for the replies everyone. The missus has read this thread and is (mostly) reassured :ok:

Any schools you may be interested in, contact them and ask for a copy of the actual report that they received. They are very comprehensive.

The only issue I have experienced for my kids thus far is in the Summer. If for what ever reason you find that you wont be heading back home/holidays etc during the period, the vast majority of the other kids will so there can be some boredom issues creep in for them. Apart from that, all is well. I think that I too must live in a differemt UAE to Skyligh Dome but each person's experience may vary.:ok: