SERVICES

Homestay

You will stay in a nice caring host family that will strive to help you adjust to the Irish lifestyle and help you resolve any concerns you might have during your stay. We will try to match the ages of the children to the visiting child.

You will be integrated in the family and exposed to Irish culture which will help you understand the Irish better. We strongly believe that travelling to Ireland must be fun but also the main objective is to make you speak English.

 

Ages : 12-16

Spanish, ¡no gracias! And we request host families to receive one nationality at a time as the temptation to speak the mother tongue may prove too great.

Full Year in Ireland

Primary Education in Ireland consists of eight years. Children start at 56 years in the junior infants year, with a shortened day, to help the children to adjust to the routine and discipline of the school system. Then it goes from 1st Class to 6th Class finishing at 12 yrs of age approximately. We would only work with the one school which we believe is the only international option. We would recommend you the last two years: 5th and 6th Class, ages 10-11 and 11-12 years old.

See below a few of its main strong points:

  • Small size classes with a maximum of 20 pupils
  • Co-educational and multi-denominational
  • Enhanced curriculum on subjects as Maths, Science and computer. In 6th class there is Public Speaking which we believe is very important.
  • The school has a stand-alone lab, which is unique in Cork. The children have an opportunity to participate in science experiments.
  • A highly active community of parents that make the school an extension of the community.

Children develop in a happy and safe environment and grow their self-confidence day by day.

 

Ages : 6-12

Activities :

The school offers a wide range of after-school activities: soccer, rugby, hockey, ballet etc. Furthermore, the Sparks programme provides courses such as Chess, Eco Engineering, Computer Animation, Veterinary Science and a very diverse schedule. The price for the full year programme includes one of these courses at your choice per term.

Secondary Education

Secondary Education in Ireland comprises two cycles: Junior and Senior.

Junior Cycle consists of the first three years and it is at the end of the 3rd Year when students take an exam to obtain the Junior Certificate.

The following year it is called Transition Year and its equivalence is 4º de la ESO in Spain. It is the transition between the Junior and Senior Cycle and it is a non-exam year. Students still go to school however in a more relaxed way, they do trips to outdoor adventure centres for team building, for example. It is a year for the student to become self-aware and mature, so they can deal with the stress of the senior cycle exam focus. The opportunity to explore different work environments is also encouraged so the student can try out a variety of jobs, helping them decide on subjects in the senior cycle.

Senior Cycle consists of 5th and 6th years at the end of which students sit the final examination Leaving Certificate.

Ages : 12-16

Activities : Depending on the school you will have different options but sports play a big role in secondary students’ life: Gaelic football, soccer, basketball, Rugby, Hockey etc.

Adult

We will find you the best choices for accommodation depending on your needs: single, couple, family, etc and provide you with information on English academies. There is also the possibility of individual tuition from a qualified TEFL teacher.

Are you looking for a place to have your children entertained for a few hours while you go to your English lessons? Let them join a camp where they can do their own little immersion in the language.

Ages : 12-16

Activities : Throughout the year Cork offers a wide range of concerts, festivals, pubs with live music, popular and traditional sports, community & cultural events and various other attractions that we will inform you about so you can enjoy the less academic side of the city.

How to validate your school year in Spain

1st, 2nd and 3rd Year in Ireland are equivalent to 1º, 2º and 3º de la ESO. Validation for any of these years in Spain would be automatic.

Nevertheless some schools in Spain might ask for an official translation of the results certificate obtained in Ireland. For this case a translation service is offered.

Transition Year, 5th and 6th Year are equivalent to 4º de la ESO, 1º and 2º de Bachillerato.

For validation in Spain of any of these school years you would need to follow the procedure established by the Spanish Education Ministry.

See table of equivalences >

For any doubts please contact us