moving back to UK and wanting to home-ed

[kitbit]

Hi everyone, I'm hoping someone might have some advice for us!

ds is 4, and has been in school in Spain for a year, doing a mixture of british and spanish curriculum (jolly phonics etc). We will be moving back to the UK at the end of the year by which time he will have had 2 years in school and will be reading and writing.
When we come back he will be the right age to start school in the UK, but I'm worried that he will have already covered a lot of the ground that they will be doing in the first year so might find it a bit boring (only my assumption!) so want to at least start off with home-ed. That way I can also keep his spanish going.

BUT - obviously we have to earn a living at the same time, and probably won't be able to survive on dh's wage alone. So... is there any funding or help available for home-edders? Or, if any of you are in the same position needing to work and teach, how do you organise yourselves around work and schooltime?

I really want to do this, it's something I've always had in my mind as a "life choice" I'd love to make, but I'm just not sure how to logistically pull it off.

Any advice or insights would be really gratefully received!

[piscesmoon]

I know someone who did the same thing with 2 boys (15mth apart)both came back into an infant school and didn't have any problems. The school should be setting the work to the DCs not the DCs to the work. You would have to do your homework and choose the right school for you. You can do the Spanish at home. I was just answering as no one else has-I would imagine there is lots of help but I would be amazed if there was any funding. I have bumped it up so you might get some helpful replies about HE.

[kitbit]

Thanks piscesmoon, I too also hoping someone with some brilliant spot on advice comes along who will tell me "it's easy, you'll manage financially and organisation won't be a problem"!

[julienoshoes]

Hello kitbit

I'd suggest first having a look at the threads on 'books on home education' and 'websites on home education'-I'll bump them up for you. Reading around it and seeing what others do I am sure will be a start.

Hopefully you will see that there are many ways in which people home educate.
Some people do a 'school at home' sometimes even having desks and bells (and that is fine if that is what suits) and some people like us are totally child interest led, where we have done no formal work at all (except on the rare occasions the children have asked for it) in the UK, this is known as 'Autonomous home education'
Then there is just about every combination between those two extremes. Essentially the way you home educate is entirely down to you.

I'm pointing this out as along side very many families we don't 'teach' anything, we just follow our children's interests and facilitate their education instead. This then doesn't require quite the organisation that teaching to set hours does, and we can go with the flow and whoever is with the children can follow on to some extent.
For instance when my children were younger, their grandmother was with them for some of the time and they used to get her to do cooking with them (Grandma being a better baker than mom!) and they loved playing word games etc, as she does.
Some families then use others as support whilst the parents work. Grandma helped us sometimes, but others use au pairs/child minders or nannies. Some swap child care with other local home educators.

I changed my job around the time we began home educating, in order to be able to fit it all in. I started doing some work for a Direct Selling company and I combined that with some agency work at the hospital where I used to work.
Latterly though I work as a carer, for an agency and that has better fitted around our home ed commitments.
Other home educators I know/work from home/work as child minders/set up their own businesses/sell on ebay.
Where there are two parents involved, some work shifts so that they share the child care between them.
Remember home education does not have to take place between 9-3 and in term time.
For us, our learning through life style of educating has happened when ever the children were awake and who ever they were with.

There is no funding available for home education-in the same way as there is no funding for other folks who choose not to take up a state provided place and instead choose to privately educate.
Although many people initially wish there was funding in place when they first start, the vast majority of home educators are against funding of this sort as, quite rightly any spending of tax payers money would come with strings attached. Standards would be imposed and they would be looking for 'value for money'
Now already you have said that you don't wish for someone else's age related standards to be imposed on your child-as you feel he would already be in front in some areas-so I hope you can see what I mean here.
There can be funding available for group activities-but this is dependant on someone in the group applying to different funds etc. Some groups are more motivated than others to do this.

However home education doesn't have to cost the earth-especially when your children are young. So many resources are free or very cheap-get them off the Internet/off ebay/charity shops/car boot sales.
We didn't pay new/full price for anything for years until we needed to pay for an OU course for one of the youngsters aged 15.

I'd strongly suggest you have a look at MuddlePuddle' the webpage for families educating children under the age of eight -and their associated 'Early Years HE' email support group.
Other internet support groups will help and support too.
You'll find details of Muddle Puddle and support lists on the other 'websites' thread I mentioned.

Do you know where abouts in the UK you will be moving to?
There may be a local home ed group that you can link with for support and advice-there is a thread about 'finding local home educators' too I'll bump that for you as well.

hth

[kitbit]

Wow, that's loads of fantastic info, thanks JulieNoShoes, I'm off to have a look at the resources you've suggested. Now that you've explained it, I do agree with the principle of no funding for the reasons that you've said, of course you're right - I suppose it just makes it harder when you're potentially minus some income in order to achieve the education you want to give.
thanks again

[julienoshoes]

My pleasure
If there is anything else you need to know, do just ask.
I'm sure though the Early Years HE list would be a brilliant resource for you.

Truly the only downside I can think of for the last eight years of home educating, is that we do have considerably less money than we would have if we had left them in school.
I would have earned much much more money than I do now, in the career I had before.
We drive an old car now, our holidays consist of home ed camps throughout the year, and economise in all sorts of ways.

But for us the pay off has been worth it many times over. Having young people who are confident,articulated, well educated and above all happy, is worth so much more to us.
We truly wouldn't change a thing, and as the young people concerned tell me they are definitely going to home educate their children in an autonomous way, means they think it is worth it as well!

[julienoshoes]

LOL!
I meant articulate young people!

[kitbit]

...and articulated, hopefully! snigger