Where do we start?

[Goingtobeawesome]

It is looking likely that we will be taking our child out of school. They are year six. Secondary school is sorted. What do we do between now and end of July please? .

Also, who do we need to tell legal wise (currently at a private school but we know by law we have to give our child an education.)

[Goingtobeawesome]

Hopeful bump

[holeinmyheart]

Well first of all relax. Your child will not be much affected by not going to school.
There are lots of places to get help. Just google 'home schooling' followed by your postcode and there will be homeschoolers everywhere.
Examine your strengths and if there are gaps you have sites on the web such as ' Maths is fun' that detail all the Maths expectation for year 6 and 7, same for English.
Every subject is on utube.

[Goingtobeawesome]

Thank you. We are stressing as this was not part of the plan and we know he has to be educated. We have just frozen in where to start while dealing with the reason why he can't go to school.

[holeinmyheart]

Well honestly he will be fine. Schools are horrible stressful places for children that are mainly to be endured. Inspectors of home schooling are few and far between and are nice anyway.
They will advise you if they turn up, not chastise you. You are over thinking and worrying too much.
Xx concerns about our DCs never end.....they will survive and so will you.

[Goingtobeawesome]

I don't care about inspections. I just want to give my child an education until the end of this school year since it's not safe for him to be in school anymore. We are legally required to educate him and that is what we will do. Thanks.

[itsstillgood]

I am not sure of the exact position regards private schools but in the state sector your only responsibility is to inform the school, it is their responsibility to inform the LEA.

You are legally required to provide an education suitable to age and ability. Education is a very, very different thing to formal schooling.

We are relatively structured by most home educators standards and we spend approx 1 1/4 hours a day, 4 days a week, 32 weeks a year on maths, English, Latin and Spanish. Everything else we cover through hands on projects, reading, documentaries, museums etc. We spend a lot of time with friends and family. I allow a lot of time for hobbies and following his own interests. Lots of coding at the moment.
I find that this is more than sufficient to provide a deeper, richer education than school. We do not use the National Curriculum at all (primary motivation for home educating).

I do not know the background to your decision but sounds like your son has had a traumatic time of it. The most essential aspect of education is emotional well being. Read about deschooling, pretty much everyone (Inc LEAs now) recognise the value. It doesn't mean that nothing educational happens but that you let your child lead the way.

You have about 5 months. 2 months of which would be school holiday and a lot of the remaining time given over to tests, revision, end of year, shows, sports events etc.

In your shoes I would be making a list of places to visit while places are quiet, looking at local events, perhaps booking a holiday or short break. Work on providing the sort of enrichment activities that classrooms can't provide.
Find a project that appeals to him and will excite him. In this house I'd go for Raspberry Pi but something like a woodwork kit or camera or animation software or an online course in something that really interests him are all good. Something he can get in to and self teach and throw time and energy into.
I wouldn't worry about traditional school subjects for this length of time and at this point in his schooling. I certainly wouldn't spend money on workbooks or curricula. If you feel that gaps need to be plugged or he needs confidence building before secondary then look at something time Khan Academy.

[Goingtobeawesome]

Thank you very much.

We already have a couple of books where he can do some maths and English so will use those. We are looking at tutors and all other options. He's been doing so well at school and has really progressed. I'm heartbroken. He's had a horrible school experience in the past and now he's going to have a rotten ending to primary school.

I'm just so tired as haven't slept for days and feel overwhelmed.

I really appreciate you posting and find what you said very interesting. Thank you.

[Saracen]

I agree completely with the others.

Legally, what constitutes an adequate education is very vague. That means it is down to you to decide what your son needs. Look not at what he would be doing if he were at school, but at the whole child. His mental and physical health come first. If he did nothing but relax and recover from the trauma he has had, that would be absolutely fine. Making him happy is the main goal.

As the others have mentioned, home education provides some unique opportunities. Going to lots of interesting places is one such opportunity. Focusing on some topic which fascinates your son and doing it in-depth is another: maybe he wants to become a really good skateboarder, or learn Japanese or start playing a musical instrument. If there is any academic area where you worry that your son needs more work, you can do that too, and individual attention will make a huge difference - but if I were you I would wait a few months before starting anything which is not initiated by him. It will be so much easier when he has had a bit of time off.

There are only a few months remaining in the school year so no need to treat your son's education comprehensively. Realistically, one term without maths/reading/geography or whatever is not going to make a great deal of difference to how he gets on next autumn. In short, there is no wrong way to do it... except of course if you find that what you are doing is not fun for him or you.

Enjoy! I do understand that you were forced into this and that the circumstances are bad. But it can still be a great chance to do something different for a little while.

[Goingtobeawesome]

Thank you.

I think my husband is more concerned than me that he doesn't fall behind. I'm confident DC is at a level, and going to a good enough school in September, that he will catch up quickly if he does fall behind. Having said that, we are joint parents so we have to work together and today DC is excited about following his time table at home - he's already told me where the animals will sit while we have assembly so I will go with a good mix of time table, some fun work, reading time and playing. I feel you get more with a carrot than a stick and DC has been amenable to all my suggestions so far. He's currently reading a new book and at nine we will do some maths.

Thanks again everyone. I feel less panicky now. I'm looking forward to this time with DC at home should they not go back to the school. This is 99% probably the case as the school as let four kids leave due to this one child bullying. I think mine is the first to be violently assaulted though.