To abandon all attempts to "home school".

[ASmallMovie]

I've had enough. The learning grids, the links, two kids fighting for space on a small desk, tech problems, my own work brushed aside. Live in a flat - the woman underneath moaning about the noise. It's absolutely fucking impossible.

I want to leave them to it - they can read, play, fight, raid the fridge, set fire to the house. I just don't care anymore. This is fucking hideous.

@ivfbeenbusy

it feels rather disrespectful towards the teachers who have spent time preparing the work for parents to just completely ignore it !

You mean photocopy a load of worksheets and provide links to u tube videos for phonics and maths?

Might just be me but I expect teachers to....you know......TEACH 🤷‍♀️ perhaps naively i expected them to at least record themselves doing a lesson 🤔🤷‍♀️

Absolutely this! All we get is a number of worksheets and tests to print and links to various online resources. I don’t understand why the teachers can’t pre-record a lesson that would take 45 minutes and allow my child to sit and watch while I can actually do some work!

Incidentally, if you really need 10 minutes peace for a meeting etc just start saying briskly that its time for everybody to start tidying the living room (or wherever you are all working). You will never see children disappear so fast or so quietly.

I hear you. I'm not in a flat, but mine need to be in the same room as me otherwise nothing gets completed. My eldest year 6 is self sufficient and just gets on with it. In fact he's helping my youngest with her maths every day - year 4.

I work Mon - Thursday, but the laptop is always on on a Friday and I'm constantly playing catch up. Their Dad, who doesn't live with us, doesn't help. He offered to do some remote learning with them. but they refused. I have to respect their decision.

To all those parents saying it's our duty to keep them educated. How many of you actually have a job and are the sole source of income for your home? If I don't work, we don't have a roof over our heads or food on the table. Unfortunately we are doing our best, but my work has to come first and we muddle along.

Be kind to yourself, tomorrow is another day x

@DateLoaf

The headteacher from our kids' primary has told us that 250 of the usual 600 children are in school. There are usually 3 classes per year group so currently 2 of the 3 teachers per year group are teaching and the other us setting online work for children not in school. I really don't think it is just childcare this time.

Fair enough, I’m not sure how that proportion of attendance will affects the schools balance of resources between using TA and teacher time. The official line is that being in school is childcare while the teaching has moved to being done remotely. Because it isn’t possible to expect teachers to teach online and in person at the same time, teachers set and mark the work and teaching assistants supervise- rather than teach- the kids in school who do the same worksheets.

Hi Dateloaf ok I'm sure there different schools are using different methods but the head has told us that 2 out of 3 teachers are teaching the children who are in school, and that the remote learning being put online and marked by the other teacher for each year group covers the same work that the children in school are doing. With this method teachers are either teaching in school or setting and marking the online work but not both. I don't think there are enough TAs to do what you suggest. Also we aren't getting worksheets.

Take them outside and have them make a den and potions instead

That sounds lovely, but not all that easy to do in January when you live in a flat and are trying to do your own work simultaneously.

OP last time we gave up on school tasks but you still need structure to keep you all sane. Reading hour, walk, scheduled TV time (I wrote mine a long list of "educational" documentaries, and Deadly 60 /horrible histories are good TV). If they argue over choice of programme, you choose (I tended to choose a cooking programme) or they can watch separately and only have half as much time. Just Dance or Joe Wicks on YouTube, again at separate times if they argue. Tutorials on YouTube.

Anything you can do like putting one into your room in the day or as the PP suggested, keeping one with you and the other in their bedroom, do it. I've never been so grateful for our doors.

It is unreasonable for the state to expect you to do a highly specialised job for which you are not trained. You shouldn't feel any sense of "failure" at all because, I'll say it again, you are not trained.

A qualified teacher needs a Degree in their subject plus an intensive 1 year course in teaching itself (PGCE) which is not easy to pass.

These kind of experiences might actually prove to those idiots who maintain that "anyone can teach" that this is most definitely not the case, and it's about time that this argument was consigned to history's dustbin.

Best to see this as childminding your own kids TBH - try to keep a lid on things, keep some kind of routine together if possible, see if you can get them to do a bit of school stuff with the usual bribery tactics, and in a national emergency that will have to be enough.

Please don't beat yourself up on this one, it really is not your fault that the state doesn't seem to value the art of teaching (and being qualified to do so) as much as it should. If it did, it would not have issued much of the fatuous 'advice' that has been doing the rounds.

Your children's school will already have a catch up & recovery plan in place for when they get back, just trust the school's professionalism and give yourself a break.

@HopeForTheBestExpectTheWorst

I am loling a lot at the idea that a 10yo should be self-sufficient.

Depends on the child. I was homeschooled at 10 and I definitely was. My sister was an absolute nightmare and tantrummed every step of the way.

I don’t understand why the teachers can’t pre-record a lesson that would take 45 minutes and allow my child to sit and watch while I can actually do some work!

I didn't either. And then heard from a teacher about some of the issues that can be involved, like how fair is it to put an expectation on a family to have a screen available to the child at a set time when it might be needed by the parent trying to work from home, or when there are secondary aged kids in the home needing to use the screen for online lessons for exam work, and even the basics of how a school staff plan it so families don't end up with siblings in different classes having clashing online viewing schedules and all that fitting around whether the family can spare the screen to the child or if the family have access to a screen at all.

It's working for some schools, obviously, but I hadn't realised how complicated it was and that it won't work for all schools.

My 8 year old DD has been crying because she cannot access the online stuff properly as the system is down. So sad to see her like this, I have told her it doesn't matter and we will get it sorted but she "doesn't want to fall behind her friends who are actually getting to go to school". breaks my heart.

hiedipi I’m not disagreeing with what you say, you know your school. I was posting to disagree with whoever it was above that implied kids are getting actually taught (rather than just supervised) by teachers in schools.
That’s not the norm, it’s not a given, it’s not the point of having vulnerable or keyworker family kids in school. It’s also not fair on the kids at home who don’t have teacher access- so schools will have a balance to find if loads of their kids are in school.
The keyworker parents I know are feeling stressed out because while they’re away at work their kids have to get on with the set work in school without being ‘taught’ it, or having a parent try to help them, they are supervised in a group while they get on with it.

Do what you can, remember you are not homeschooling. You are trying to keep your kids learning during a pandemic. There's a difference!

I use online programs, dvds, games, walks. Not all sit down and do a worksheet in my house!

Teacher here.
I really feel for you OP.
Can you contact the school and ask for worksheets? We deliver packs of stuff to families where there are shared devices/no devices.

I agree with protecting your income abs protecting your sanity.

In the long run, our DC are missing out in 2 terms in approx 40. If you are reading with them, getting them to write, practicing numeracy, then I really wouldn't stress about following what school give you. Lots of really good advice about routine - alternative stuff. If even have half hour bursts (with rewards) of your DC helping you with a short task. Set a timer - do anything that takes one job off your list when they are in bed.
Please contact your school and say that you are categorically struggling and for them to be mindful.
I get emailed daily by reception with messages to remember pupils that are unable to produce work.
You sound at the end of your tether . I want to take your DC for the afternoon to give you some air

@DateLoaf

hiedipi I’m not disagreeing with what you say, you know your school. I was posting to disagree with whoever it was above that implied kids are getting actually taught (rather than just supervised) by teachers in schools. That’s not the norm, it’s not a given, it’s not the point of having vulnerable or keyworker family kids in school. It’s also not fair on the kids at home who don’t have teacher access- so schools will have a balance to find if loads of their kids are in school. The keyworker parents I know are feeling stressed out because while they’re away at work their kids have to get on with the set work in school without being ‘taught’ it, or having a parent try to help them, they are supervised in a group while they get on with it.

Actually I wasn't implying that the children were being taught in school, I was just pointing out that it is unfair that the children of 1 key worker can be in school where the other parent is a SAHM.

Whether they are taught in school or not is irrelevant if the OP is struggling to do her job and supervise her kids.

But I do know that children are receiving better 'supervision' in school than they could receive at home in many circumstances. My brother is a secondary teacher and SIL is also a key worker they are sending their children to school even though he can WFH because they are getting better supervision (and getting some assistance) than he can give whilst teaching all day or zoom.

I feel your pain. Mine are 8, 9 and 10. 10 and 8 year old’s are mostly happy to get on with things but I still have to set it up on their devices, print the sheets and occasionally there’ll be a tech issue that arises or they’ll need my assistance in some way. 9 year old really struggles and needs my help with almost every subject so I spend the majority of my time assisting her. It takes an hour+ just to do the maths and there’s always lots of screaming, shouting and often throwing the paper and pen across the room. The teacher does record videos of him doing some examples of maths but she’ll watch and still won’t understand.

I have a toddler and baby too so I’m honestly at the end of my tether. There’s pretty much zero work she’ll do independently, the only break I get is lunch hour when they go play in the garden for a bit. Feeling so guilty on toddler and baby, I slot in their playtime when older ones have finished their school work but also have cleaning and cooking to do. Honestly on my knees.

How fair is it to put an expectation on a family to have a screen available to the child at a set time when it might be needed by the parent trying to work from home,

Most schools use u tube. They could easily upload their teaching videos to u tube. Highly doubt there is a home in the land that doesn't have at least one TV or a phone with u tube on it 🤷‍♀️

Aim for two quality hours of study time. Then leave them to choose their own activities.

I'm very pro home ed, did it for years. But this is not home ed as a lot of people think of it. This is intended as remote learning. So those parents on here saying don't worry about falling behind, we home ed for years, just have a lovely time etc are missing the point. If the kids weren't going back to school then yes, great, they'll figure it out in their own time. But they are going back in to school, and as such could well fall behind their peers in school.

We used to follow the Charlotte Mason philosophy of home ed which sounds a lot like Chestnutstuffing's suggestion from earlier, it was a lovely way of going about it. But totally unsuitable in this circumstance as it relies on a lot of parental input.

Op: I would focus on reading/spellings and some times tables daily. Make sure they have lots of good books around. Perhaps suggest one or two afternoons a week for the more project type work and the other subjects. Get a good long walk at lunchtime/afternoon, then a film in the afternoon while you work. Then dinner, with some times tables at the table, spellings etc.

So your kids like computers? Mine enjoy Spelling Frame, Maths Frame, TTRS amongst others

I am a teacher and I have given up trying to home school my two (both in ks1) whilst working full time. I have signed them up to IXL and edplace - online schools and they can do it independently on their tablets and it is all marked online and they get a certificate at the end of the week that I can print out. It has saved my sanity and my job. They do 1hour of maths, then one hour of either science or English. We also do half an hour of reading and half an hour of tt rockstars in the afternoon and a big walk or bike ride at lunchtime. This together with their x box, lego and trampoline has made this more managable. Its just so difficult and the weather really doesn't help.

" am loling a lot at the idea that a 10yo should be self-sufficient."

Bear in mind that, printer assistance/laptop setup aside, the tasks set should be the sort of thing that they are expected to tackle independently at school. They don't all get 1:1 assistance on demand in the classroom. So yes, in the main, a 10 yr old should be largely self-sufficient, unless there's some SEN at play.

@ivfbeenbusy

How fair is it to put an expectation on a family to have a screen available to the child at a set time when it might be needed by the parent trying to work from home,

Most schools use u tube. They could easily upload their teaching videos to u tube. Highly doubt there is a home in the land that doesn't have at least one TV or a phone with u tube on it 🤷‍♀️

I teach in a fairly deprived city centre area and 17% of our pupils don't have internet access at home. For such a privileged part of the world, we have an emergency poverty issue with too many of our kids.

I am a. Ut of my DC were still thay age I would forget about school work and get them to read the work of Enid Blyton.
Play chess/monopoly card games. Maybe but a couple pf cheap ‘magic’ sets Invest a bit of time in the morning to set something up and them leave them to it til lunchtime. Teach them to hoover. If you gave a spare wall get them to paint it.

If your children are finding formal types of learning difficult to do at home, take a break from it, and take some tips from people who normally home school, especially those who unschool. I'd suggest giving your 7 year old a cookery book and asking them if they'd like to bake something, or ask them to find a recipe online. I'd suggest biscuits to start with. Without knowing they're schooling, they will practice reading maths science, and at the end, something nice to eat. If they have an interest in anything in particular, such as a period of history, dinosaurs, the police, fire brigade, animals, martial arts, countries they'd like to visit, perhaps somewhere they'd like to go on holiday, and get them to do a project . I'd suggest telling them they can have a week of school work, on condition they work on a project of their choosing.

*off

I don't think it's harmful not to do the school work but I would do some work with them. At their age I'd focus on reading, literacy and maths even if it's just 20 minutes of each per school day.

am loling a lot at the idea that a 10yo should be self-sufficient
Mine could sit and read for a while or do a sheet of time tables

think the schools are covering their arses because they know they’ll be the scapegoats for the government if and when the going gets tough on this. I feel so incredibly bad for anyone in the teaching profession at the best of times with all the bull they have to put up with...but especially so nowadays.

Most teachers would say the bottom line is focus on reading, spelling, handwriting, phonics, times tables, number bonds. You HAVE to prioritise your income and the safety and sanity of everyone at home.

Unfortunately, there were some extremely vocal parents last time screaming about lack of provision, and this has resulted in a situation where schools are now legally obliged to provide at least 3 hours (KS1) or 4 hours (KS2) of work each day, to cover the same content they would have done at school. Initially, we were told 5 hours.

So I'm afraid anyone who does have to prioritise income or sanity by not doing all the work set will be doing so at the detriment of their children. At least in the short term. Teachers will be picking up pieces for years after this, and they will work bloody hard to do so.

There is no way anyone with any brain could expect parents working from home to manage it all. The government should have limited it to English and Maths so at least everyone stood a chance. Now you're screwed if you prioritize home learning (unhappy employers, possible job loss) or if you prioritize work (children's learning taking a hit, got to love the guilt there.)

Great work from UsForThem.

As for pp suggesting teachers just record 45mins of a lesson to plop their child down in front of...lol! That's a lecture, not a lesson! Any teacher doing that during a lesson observation would be pulled up on it sharply. Lessons are like ping pong...teacher discusses, shows, models. Children do a bit then back to teacher. And so it goes on. They'd be glazed over long before 45 mins!