My father was military and we moved to Germany when I was 9 and came back my sophomore year of high school. Although I was totally opposed to going it was the best experience of my life. I loved it so much and I believe living in a foreign country has made me a much more confident and adventurous adult. I did go to a DOD school and agree with pps that you need an international school or a lot of tutoring in both German and English (grammar, reading, writing).

OMG yes. In a heartbeat

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Yes. Military families do this all the time.

That is a VERY different situation. They are dropped into a ready made well established community with American families is the exact same situation who were all raised in the same system. Kids meet American kids, play on teams together go to school together, etc. you cannot compare that to a single family civilian move to Europe.

They are affiliated with a military base and most have base schools that are American schools. They get the same military benefits, perks and lifestyle as in the US.

I'd do it with the military but not as a civilian except if they are paying for and American school. But, I would not choose to live there as Jew.

If international school, yes. Otherwise, moving at age 10 is literally the worst possible time to enter a German school unless your child is fluent and on grade level in German. The German school system is unforgiving to second language speakers and age 10 (4th grade) is right when they track kids into Hauptschule/Realschule/Gymnasium. The student's grade in German is a big part of that decision.

Check out the Toytown Germany site, which is sort of like DCUM for English-speaking expats in Germany. They are a big reality check on German schools for foreigners. "It'll be a fun adventure!" holds for most international travel, but specifically NOT Germany at age 10.

We are moving to a different part of Europe with our 2 kids, although they are slightly younger than yours. We’ll likely be returning when our older DC is in middle school, so I do worry a bit about reintegrating at that age. But overall I hope it will be a positive experience for our family!

Is your DH an EU citizen? If not, does the job offer come with a visa for him/the family that could lead to EU citizenship? Worth considering. EU citizenship is handy to have.

Check out the schooling options wherever you might be moving. Sometimes there is no international school. Sometimes one can't get in to the International school. Sometimes it is not a good school.

And remember, German law prohibits most or all homeschooling, even for non-Germans.

Absolutely!

Yes. Middle school sucks no matter what. Might as well get to live in another country. And if it's an international schools with lots of turnover, it might not suck as bad.

Where in Germany? Could you afford a private american or international school?

Absolutely! Go for it! Such an amazing experience.