10 years should be no problems at all. In Zürich they will give him intensive German classes for as long as deemed necessary either in the school or in a separate school especially for this purpose (Allegra).

At that age it makes no sense at all to put them in international school in my opining. Expensive and hinders the integration.

And what about making it to a Gymnasium eventually. For this he would need to first get into Sekundarschule it seems and that is already at age 13. From what I have read, sometimes not having a perfect level of German can hold you back. Perhaps he would need to repeat a year. Or am I being too pessimistic. Of course Gymnasium may not be for him.. but if its something he wanted... it would be a shame if he was strong enough in sciences but never strong enough in German to make it.

To clarify, my son was a very outgoing boy. And there is a huge difference in entering a foreign school system at the age of 7 versus the age of 10. Also, in the Montessori school in Amsterdam, most of the "learning" was socialization skills at the age of 7. My son definitely benefited from the very laissez-faire approach to learning there and perhaps that is why he adapted quickly. Plus, the teacher and the parents were very welcoming to me and my son (I also took intensive Dutch lessons - but I was nowhere close to as fluent as my son...lol!)

Hope all goes well for you and your son OP!

Because of the streaming you need to integrate him now or never. Only German TV from now on. Easier with cartoobs erc he knows. See if there is an option of a camp for the summer in Germany maybe for two weeks. Switzerland won't help because camps in the German part will be in Swiss German.
If they ask him to repeat a year, do it. It will only help him and carries hardly any stigma especially in a case like yours.
Put him in a local school and find a teenager to play with him. In High German initially, Swiss German after a while once he is more comfortable. Invest in this and put some money aside for further tutoring. A lot cheaper than going private now. You can always pull him out but the other way round is much harder. Try to find a teenager with similar interest. Could be anything from skating to playing chess. It doesn't matter what activity they do, it will help with the language.
Also Matura is also possible after three years of secpndary school and even after an aprenticeship. Start reading up about the Swiss vocational system now in order to be prepared!
Good luck.

Gymnasium is definitely possible. Even for kids arriving at older age.

If they make it has more to do with their overall aptitude than with age when arriving in Switzerland in my experience.

Do remember that Zurich has lots of children who need extra German lessons and integration courses. Therefore, your introverted son won't be all alone as the only non-fluent child facing a homogeneous sea of Swiss children. The teachers are geared for facilitating integration, not only linguistically but also, to some extent, socio-culturally.

Gymnasium is possible when you arrive at age 10, our daughter is starting this August. She also is not very outgoing, but she does have s talent for languages.

Gymnasium is possible when you arrive at age 10, our daughter is starting this August. She also is not very outgoing, but she does have a talent for languages.

Time to tell my story again. This relates to Baselland.

My eldest was 10 when we came over. He spoke only English. He went from primary (he spent one year there) to pro-gymnasium, then gymnasium. Then university. Then got a masters in theoretical physics. He's been working now for two years and doing very well as a programmer for a retail company. Also married to a Swiss woman, and they have a child.

Throughout his schooling (primary, pro-gym, gym) he was told by a minority of parochial and ignorant teachers that his German wasn't good enough to get to the next level.

However, gym isn't everything. My youngest daughter did an apprenticeship and in August will be starting her bachelors in engineering. My middle child dropped out of school, got a degree through the OU and is starting teacher training.

__________________
Down with racism. Long live miscegenation!

Hi there,

I have 2 boys and moved mine when they were 6 and 3. Both couldn’t Sprachkurs German. But we put them in the local school, and my god it was hard watching my son struggle to communicate with his piers, but after 10 months he managed to graft the language. The only problem was the school teachers and kids didn’t like the fact he was an Ausländer!! We found after time my son became more introverted and didn’t want to go to school.. after being a thriving confident boy.. we learnt afterwards the teachers and kids are bullying my son. So we went to the inspector, thankfully that bastard got the sack! Now they are in private school still German speaking but very happy. My advice if you can afford it put them in private school..