Anyone done home ed since the beginning?

[amazingworldofgumball]

My DS is 3 in a couple of weeks and we've decided to not send him to mainstream school and homeschool from the get go. (We live in Wales, children start school at 3 here)
I don't know anyone whos done this IRL so just looking for advice or information from anyone who's done this?
I've heard a lot of parents take their children from schooling to home ed but nothing much else really.
Tia x

[Ohyesiam]

I think there are some home ed pages on face book, which might help you.

[RedOrangeGoldLeaf]

We've HEd from the start, though DS would now only be in Yr 1. Anything particular you are curious about?

[Iloveanimals]

I homeschool ds and have done since he was 3. Anything you need to know in particular? He also would be year 1 now.

[amazingworldofgumball]

ohyes I'm not on facebook lol, maybe the only one left!

Thanks ladies!! I guess I just doubt my ability sometimes and freak out because it's too late to sign him up for school, even though that's not what I really want.

I've done extensive research online about home ed, EYFS and what he needs to be able to do by a certain age etc.
My living room/kitchen/DS bedroom is full of educational posters of shapes/numbers/days of the week, just about every one I could make or buy!
I also bought a whiteboard and loads of activity books.

I think I am way OTT am well prepared, but I don't really know how to teach if that makes sense.
Do I sit him down and spend small periods of time teaching and the rest of the time playing?
I need desperate help some tips!

[itsstillgood]

What do you want to know? Mine are 15 and 11. 15yo chose to go to secondary youngest never been. Lots do it.

My tips are join Facebook. Even if you don't use your account for anything but home ed groups. Get out and meet people. Very few home educators would say they teach, they facilitate. The beauty of home educating from the start is your child can set their own pace, you don't need to follow the EYFS or any other curriculum, you can learn by play for as long as you want. No pressure, no tick boxes.

[BlessThisMess]

No, do not sit him down and teach! Just incorporate it into ordinary life. Sit and read to him, count Smarties as you share them out, answer his questions ... No need to make it formal at all! I HEd my DD from the start till age 9, then she went to school for a bit, then came out again and is now doing GCSEs.

[Saracen]

My kids are 17 and 10 now. It has been great.

It interests me to compare the experiences of my older "trailblazer" child with the younger one who followed after. The older one was quite conscious of "being different" because so many friends, family and strangers expressed surprise that she wasn't going to school. Some were openly critical, which worried her.

I've heard similar things from other HE parents. It can unsettle kids and make them wonder whether their family is doing things wrong. Adults all around will be "talking up" school in a well-meaning attempt to persuade possibly-reluctant children to go off cheerfully to school. Toddler books never feature children who dislike school for more than a day or two before they realise their fears were unfounded and it's all lovely fun all day long! Many of the kids around will be excited about school. Yours may feel left out.

Based on that, my main advice to you would be to meet up with other home educating families with young children IRL so your son won't feel alone in what he is doing. You may have to do some networking to find them, but even one or two families could be enough. If there really aren't any nearby, make the effort to travel to a group even if it's difficult and you can only manage it once a month. Alternatively, the home ed camping season is nearly upon us and there are many to choose from. That way, your son will know a few home ed kids, feel that it is a normal thing to do, and perhaps be excited about his future.

My younger child was spared all that angst because she grew up in a home ed community. By the time she was a toddler, we were well into home education. Her older sibling had loads of HE friends round all the time, and we went to many HE activities. School wasn't really something she thought about. Even now, she doesn't completely grasp that her education puts her in a small minority group. This is her normal. Sometimes I wish I could go back in time and give that sense of certainty and normality to my firstborn.

[greatbulldog1958]

Hi My children were home educated.They studied maths english and a foreign language early each day five days a week.Make sure they spent the afternoons doing some sport activity and art. You have to be strict at times but let them be creative too. My children did well .

[itsstillgood]

Saracen is very right about getting absorbed into the community and instilling the sense of normality. I also noticed differences between my eldest and youngest because of that and is primary reason my oldest chose to go to school as he got older. Hard to know what I would have done differently as we were going to home ed activities from the age of 3. I think there are just so many more home educating families about now, DS1 just a touch too old to feel the effects of the explosion in numbers.

[theworldistheirclsssroom]

HI there, I home educate my 5 children ages 13, 10, 8, 5 & 2. They've never been to school. When I started years ago there weren't many home edders around but now there is so much available to us. I started a blog which has been added to Home ed UK if you want to check out theworldistheirclassroom.blogspot.com or you can follow our journey on instagram @ theworldistheirclassroom my advice would be to remember it's not 'school at home' so they do not have to be sat with paper and pencil. Just follow their interests and grab any learning opportunities that arise. Hope all goes well for you all.

[shuangnick]

HE is good. strongly recommend montessori teaching aids if u start a HE. with the MTA(88stuffs including sensory,maths,science,language,living) u can let DS choose which one he wants to play and then focus on operating it.child gets knowledges through playing the TA independently instead of being taught by a tutor. this way of learning strongly boosts his self motivation and independence which was called absorbent mind by Dr.Montessori. try to assist him but not teach when he meets difficulties. if continuously working on the MTA throughout the period of preschool,he will learn much better in primary school.and it'll be better if u read some books of montessori."the absorbent mind" "the secret of childhood" "the discovery of the child"

[Pineappleandcheeseonsticks]

We've home educated since the beginning. I'd highly recommend fb to find out about your local meet ups and activities, even if you use pseudonym :)!

[sillyquestionnow]

Hi we've been homeschooling the past year as ds would have been in reception! It's been wonderful!

[bf1000]

Home ed a 4yr old and 6 month old. Did try a pre school but it was awful. Also in Wales near boarder. Lots of lovely groups. Where abouts in Wales are you?

[Waddlelikeapenguin]

Mine are 9, 6 & 2 no nursery or school thus far & it works brilliantly for us. Schools are back here - we spent yesterday at the beach building a fire & today we're off to collect loads of books from the library :)

Meet up with people & trust yourself & your child. HE was the norm for generations!