considering move to Santos from Ireland with 2 children

Hello ditavon.

Welcome to Expat.com!

Do not hesitate to browse the Sao Paulo forum.

Thank you,
Aurélie

Hi ditavon,

There are no public "English Speaking" schools anywhere in Brazil. English is taught in schools in the State of São Paulo from the 5th grade onward. At best the English courses in any of the public schools (state or municipal) are pathetic. For example, I've been an English (ESL) teacher for 25 years now, went to the school in São Paulo where the sons of my ex-wife were attending classes to speak with the older boy's English teacher. When I began to speak in English she quickly stopped me and informed me that she didn't speak English. When I questioned her in Portuguese how it was possible for someone who doesn't speak English to teach the language she informed me quite bluntly, "só ensino o que está no livro, senhor." So now you have some idea how really bad it is. Worse still, students in the public school system in Brazil only have 4 hours of classes per day. If you are looking for a quality education for your children you will have to arrange for a private school and they don't come cheap.

Your chidren will, of necessity, need to speak Portuguese because to my knowledge there are no schools in Santos where the classes are given in English exclusively. You will also need a relatively decent level of fluency in the language in order to get by. It is almost impossible to live and work in this country without Portuguese, since English is not widely spoken, not even in the workplace.

If you have not already done so you should read my postings at the top of the first Brazil Forum page, they will give you almost all the information you will need about living in Brazil. You should also read the posting regarding Revalidation of Foreign Diplomas in Brazil

https://www.expat.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=177474

I would highly advise against coming to Brazil on speculation and in hopes of finding a job here after you've arrived. It is extremely difficult for foreigners since the law requires employers to prove that they've exhausted all avenues of filling a job vacancy with a qualified Brazilian citizen before they can hire a foreign employee. The vast majority of foreigners who do come to Brazil to work have either done so by means of an internal transfer multinational company they already work for; or they have been able to get a job offer from a company here in Brazil while still in their home country. Without a sponsor company and a concrete offer of an employment contract you will not be able to obtain a temporary work visa and it is not realistic to come here on a tourist visa thinking that you will find a job and be able to transform your visa in the 180 maximum you are allowed to remain in the country as a tourist.

Cheers,
William James Woodward - Brazil Animator, Expat-blog Team

Hello,
my name's Nick. I am Italian and I live in Santos where I teach English, Italian and French. I'd like to know English speakers living in Santos in order to exercise my English knowledge. I have been living here for a few years and I might give you some information about the place.
I hope to hear from you, bye, Nick.

Hello all
I am now living in Santos in Ponta da Praia, my husband is portuguese working in Sao Paulo, but my two children and I are yet to learn the language (lessons start tomorrow!)my boys are 2 & 6.
I am looking to teach english as I have completed the TEFL course and would love to meet fellow english speakers in the area.
I look forward to hearing from you
Amy

Hi Camburi & amyperner



On behalf of the entire Expat-blog Team, welcome on board. I hope you both make lost of new friends here.

Cheers,
William James Woodward - Brazil Animator, Expat-blog Team

Hi,
My name is Charlie, I saw your post and was interested in it.
I am originally from Scotland. I am half Scottish and half Irish. We are living here in Sao Paulo city where my my wife is from, she is Brazilian and we have two boys (1years and 4 years old)
We are considering a move to Santos( we need to get out of Sao Paulo city and Santos is a better pace and quality of living, especially for the children. If you don´t mind I wanted to ask you whether you found a TEFL job (I also have this qualification. If so, how´s it going? I also wanted to ask whether your husband works for a Multi National employer. My wife is of an Engineering background and we were looking or companies in Santos to apply for work. Do you have any recommendations?
Please do feel free to message me and when we are next in Santos and if you and your husband would like to meet then we can arrange to do so.
Look forward to hearing from you.
Warm regards,
Charlie
p.s - did you find a bio lingual school for your children. If so, we would be interested to know some info on the school as we may go there ourselves to see it.

Hello Charlie,

Have you spent any time in Santos? I'd highly advise against moving to anywhere in the Baixada Santista until you've spent quite a bit of time there and know you could handle living there.

I'm not just talking about the odd trip to spend a day at the beach, but a few weeks or more. It may look nice if you're their for a day of fun in the sun, but that's a world of difference from being their full-time. If you think São Paulo is violent you'll be scared out of your pants by Santos and region.

  Cheers, 
  William James Woodward – Brazil Animator, Expat-blog Team

Hi Charlie,
Mr. Woodward is right. I lived in Santos/Sao Vicente area, and there are a few things you will need to consider:
1. Can you bear the hot/humid climate?
2. Can you deal with tourist packed weekends, holidays, and all summer?
3. Some areas may have shortage of water and electricity due to the large number of tourists.
4. Have you thought that you may actually get a job elsewhere other than Santos? And you would need to commute back to SP?

I made a little mistake when moving (back)from the USA to Brazil as I went directly to the town I had chosen based on the information found on the internet. Everything was nice, including the safety issue, which it was a top priority for me and my child. But I got bored to death and moved away after 1 year, and decided to hide myself on a farm of a little town I was born. I taught English (private lessons) but then I was the only English speaking teacher there, so I had a quite a few students, as it was an university town.
If I may, I would suggest you to find a job first, and then consider the rest. There are a lot of cities just outside of SP.
In regards to TESOL, TEFL may be useful. But I have found that franchising language schools give the job to their own advanced level students, or require that you go through the training (and pay for it) to get their certificate. At my town, they pay R$7,00 (seven reais) per class!!! It doesn´t even pay for the fuel. Teaching are one of the lowest paying jobs in Brazil, unfortunately.
I love where I live because I am on a farm, but if I were to choose a city to live, I would live 3 hour drive from Sao Paulo, where I find far enough from all the dangers of a large city, and still will be close to the beach. After a while, you will not want to go for a soak that often.
Bilingual school are very expensive, and I am not sure if it is worth the investment. American schools are almost out of question if you don´t have a very high paying job. I invest the language school money into sending my daughter to the US during her school break, so she can practice the language and get to know the culture.
If you want some more info of my experience in the little town I moved to, please send me an email. That town may even work for yor family.
Wish you the best,
LS

Hi Ditavon,
I´ve just wrote a long reply to Charlie as you two have the same kind of inquiries.
I would like to ask "why Santos?", also "are you coming with a Brazilian partner?", "do you have strategies to deal with work permit issues?"
When I came back from the US bringing my 6-year old daughter who didn´t speak Portuguese, I placed her straight at a public school, as I had read that that town had one of the best public lower schools in the State. She learned Portuguese very quickly. She is now 12 and goes to a private middle school.
If you have any questions, please feel free to send me an email. I´ll be glad to help.
Take care,
LS

Hi Laura,

Thanks for your very detailed and well though-out information on the topic. While I've in the past lived for many years in São Paulo and spent quite a bit of time in the Praia Grande, Gurarujá, Santos, São Vincente area it still isn't like living there 24/7. Your insights as a resident are extremely valuable additions to the topic.

  Cheers, 
  William James Woodward – Brazil Animator, Expat-blog Team