I home-educate my four kids,AMA

[wiziliz]

Used to be a primary school teacher, now I home-educate my kids . Ages 12,8,6&3 (no special needs)Ask Me Anything.

Have you always done so? What made you decide to home ed? Are there any websites you would recommend for someone who was thinking of home educating?

Do you receive any funding for this or are you financially independent?

Do you ever worry about the social side of things?

How different is your strategy for the 12 year old. Are you planning to put them in for GCSEs?

Have you always done so? No, my kids attended private school for 2/3 years. What made you decide to home ed? Being a teacher i know how much time we spend on trying to control the class ,and discipline everyone (20-30 kids) before we do each lesson, and not to mention how many times it gets distracted during the lesson. Me teaching my kids at home, I can do a far better job, and my kids don't have to limit their learning. Its sad to see nowadays how much 'RESPECT the kids and the parents have for their teacher. I didn't want my kids to spend most of their time everyday in that kinda environment .Most importantly the moral values.

Do you receive any funding for this or are you financially independent?
No, we are financially independent.

How do you teach them throughout a day? Do you do input with one thrn move them onto task then start input with another one? There's such an age difference between your children. Do you worry about them socially?

Do you ever worry about the social side of things? this is a question asked to all homeschoolers, millions of times. I have never worried about that.We interact and deal with people of all ages,races and backgrounds literally everyday.

How different is your strategy for the 12 year old. Are you planning to put them in for GCSEs? My 12 year is studying for her IGCSEs. subjects studying-English Language,Math, Biology, Chemistry, Physics, ICT and french.

How do you teach them throughout a day? Do you do input with one thrn move them onto task then start input with another one? There's such an age difference between your children
When I am teaching one child , the rest will be doing their workbooks or worksheets. Children understand this.

do you worry about the lesser value of iGCSEs limiting what your child does next?

what do you do with your children that the parents of school children don't do?

I am also a teacher, I find it strange that you felt you spent so much time on discipline and trying to control the class. I work in a school with a very high percentage of children on free school meals and very little parental support, I don’t think any of the staff where I work spend significant time on trying to control the class. Where do you think you were going wrong with this?
Also I feel that socialising while your mother is around is very different to socialising and managing life away from parents. My children are certainly very different when I’m not there and I think that it does us all good to be apart for a time each day.

do you worry about the lesser value of iGCSEs limiting what your child does next? Really. we have researched upto the uni level , all universities accept IGCSEs. Some private schools make their students sit for IGCSEs.

Do you have a room in your house which is just for ‘school’? Do you make the kids wear a uniform/ smart clothes or is in their pjs ok?
Do you have days off at your discretion or do you follow school holidays?

I know you’re financially independent but how?

I don’t think any of the staff where I work spend significant time on trying to control the class. Where do you think you were going wrong with this?

Yep, I can see exactly what sort of teacher you are! The type that makes everybody else want to resign.... I feel sorry for the children you teach.

Bizarre comment about iGCSEs, Clairetree. My DC are all at independent schools, and are all doing iGCSE because it's regarded as more challenging than GCSE.

Wiziliz, my question is GCSE-related, though. Your 12 yo's subjects are evidently very much Science-centric. Does this reflect your own interests/qualifications/inclinations, rather than those of your 12 yo? Do you not worry about a lack of breadth and choice for a child of that age? I'm interested in this, as I did consider HE for mine, but realised that they would end up with an entirely Arts-centric education as XH and I were both hopeless at Maths/Science and would have had to have hired a tutor for all those subjects...

Just out of interest, why igcse and not the 1-9 gcse exams everyone else takes now?

Ok, just been answered.

My kids participate in number of extracurricular activities, where I am not around them.

Are all your children 100% behind being home schooled?

What would you do if one of them begged to be allowed to go to school?

And what type of teacher is that Clairetree1?

Just out of interest, why igcse and not the 1-9 gcse exams everyone else takes now?

iGCSEs are the ultra cheap alternative for children without access to proper facilities.... normal state schools can't count them as proper GCSEs.

They are used for children learning abroad without access to facilities we would consider normal here, or they are used by private schools to maximise their profits.

We considered them as an easier option but they were disallowed as a school credited qualification a few years ago.