To wonder how people who homeschool acquire the knowledge to do so?

[Homeschooll]

Just as the title really. I don’t have strong feelings on homeschooling, I don’t think it would be my choice mainly as I have little patience and I don’t feel I know enough about science or maths.

If you do it how do you know what you’re doing is right? What about the pastoral side? How do you make sure there’s a routine?

Just interested really. I’ve found more and more people are doing it.

Going to school isn't just about the education though. They learn about friendships, frenemies and managing relationships as well. All great preparation for the real world.

If we had needed to do it we would have paid for maths tuition in primary, and maths and science in secondary, but I could have taught all humanities subjects myself up to GCSE level, and German.

Judging by the 6 children we’ve had back into school following alleged ‘home schooling’ they don’t.

I have no choice. My daughter has been rejected by all our local mainstream schools and specialist schools. She has autism and adhd.

Conventional schooling didn’t work and she wanted to kill herself. Luckily I’m educated and can afford tutors and lots of books, apps and resources. She’s only 15 and might not get any GCSE’s at the ‘right’ time but we’re currently reading some of my a level/ first year degree level books because she’s interested in the subject.

Are you kidding? I’ve met many a parent who haven’t a clue with maths in KS2!!!

I definitely wouldn't be cut out for homeschooling my DC. I discovered that in lockdown. God bless all the good teachers out there

I think my job as a home educating parent is more to facilitate and encourage my child's learning than be their teacher.

I have worked with many HE families. The vast majority are having an excellent education, at least two have gone on to Oxbridge.

A teenager once said to me that the trouble with school was just as you got interested in something the bell went and you had to go off and do something different. He said that if he was really interested in a subject or topic he would spend a few days on it.

Many HE families group together and share expertise, they also spend a lot of time socialising in groups or going to places such museums together. They frequently hire tutors, to work one to one or in groups.

I am also sadly aware that some HE children are getting a very inadequate experience.

One of the earlier posters at the top of the thread seemed to suggest no PE was a benefit if homeschooling

busybeemumm the family of three in my road who are home schooled are out nearly every day meeting with other HE children and teenagers. They also attend groups such as scouts and at least one meets others in a youth orchestra. Swimming lessons, regular football practice, dance classes and Junior /standard Parkrun help balance out the lack of PE.

This isn’t my experience (worked with a lot of home ed families in a past job). Of the ones that decided to pursue GCSEs, they weren’t teaching in the same way as school every day from 4. The kids were able to jump into subjects later on and get their GCSEs. It’s not like you are tested on everything you ever learned since 4. Most of them saw qualifications as a means to an end and the kids were self motivated to get them and did well.

there’s so many resources out there now to home school. All mine went to school, and are high achievers. Both maths experts, no way I could have taught them A level maths with my D in Maths GCSE.

so how does society have greats like da vinci certaintly didnt do great, or Einstein, or any other people that were self taught or partly self taught etc. or various other figures in history that helped build empires,

how did people ever learn before the curriculum

😂 why would parents of home educated children get fines for non attendance or for going on holiday during term time when their children are not registered with a school?

There are NO term times in home education, as it's not a school/college/university. Fortunately, in the UK, home educated families are not prisoners, and are able to leave our homes and even the country whenever the hell we want!

In terms of grade for University, if a home educated child wants to attend a university, they can either sit exams as external candidates, which their parents pay for themselves, those exams are then marked by the same exam markers as schooled children's exams are. Some universities except home educated children without exam results, and they can be offered places based on their portfolio work and interviews. Oxford have open days especially for home educated children to attend, one of their professors was home educated herself.

It's really not very hard work, our job as parents is to facilitate learning, so we are legally responsible for providing our children with the resources they need to learn. The DoE EHE Guidelines are very clear, if you want to have a read, and then perhaps it won't feel so daunting to people.

In terms of teaching being a profession for a reason, I think if you knew about home education, you'd realise that home education is nothing like the school experience. I'm a former teacher myself, and my qualifications and experience are very much irrelevant to my children's home education. A big part of teaching is about classroom management, dealing with large class numbers, and in secondary education the teacher would have a subject specialism, so again, wouldn't be particularly relevant for children learning a broad range of topics.

I'd say home schooling would be quite hard work compared to home education, but then with home schooling, the child is still registered with a school, so the parents can get support and all of the required resources from the school and LA, the LA even pays for some tutoring for home schooled children, which home educated children don't get, despite us saving LAs thousands of pounds per year.

im currently self teaching myself all these topics :

I. Strategic & Military Studies
warfare as a system—historical, psychological, and increasingly post-human.

• Military History (with emphasis on the Great War and 20th-century conflict)
• Operational Art and Battlefield Strategy
• Special Forces Doctrine and Asymmetric Warfare
• Military Logistics and Force Projection
• Command and Control Systems (C2)
• Cyber Warfare and Information Warfare
• Psychological Operations (PSYOPS)
• Perception Management and Narrative Warfare
• Strategic Deterrence and Escalation Theory
• Private Military Structures and Post-State Warfare
• Arms Industry Dynamics and Defense Economics

II. Intelligence, Espionage & Tradecraft
intelligence systems—both human and structural.

• Espionage Tradecraft (classic and modern)
• Intelligence Analysis Methodologies
• Covert Operations and Black Operations Doctrine
• Counterintelligence and Deception Strategy
• Surveillance Systems and Behavioral Monitoring
• Signals Intelligence (SIGINT) and Human Intelligence (HUMINT)
• Cognitive Warfare and Information Manipulation
• Institutional Secrecy and Compartmentalization

III. Psychology, Cognition & Human Systems
studying the human mind not as an abstract entity, but as an operational environment.

• Combat Psychology and Stress Conditioning
• Trauma Encoding and Memory Fragmentation
• Dissociation as a Tactical Mechanism
• Identity Construction and Ontological Instability
• Behavioral Conditioning and Control Systems
• Psychopathy and Strategic Advantage
• Cognitive Bias and Decision-Making Under Pressure
• Emotional Suppression and Neurobiological Control
• Group Psychology and Loyalty Engineering

IV. Systems Theory & Post-Human Frameworks
shift from human-centric to system-centric thinking.

• Systems Theory and Complex Adaptive Systems
• Cybernetics and Feedback Loops
• Algorithmic Governance and AI Control Systems
• Nanotechnology in Behavioral Regulation
• Virtualized Environments and Simulated Reality
• Human-Machine Integration and Augmentation
• Network-Centric Warfare
• Collapse of Traditional Authority Structures
• Transnational Power Systems

V. Political Science & Geopolitics
politics in realism and structural power.

• Realist Geopolitical Theory
• State vs Post-State Power Models
• Ideological Engineering and Memetic Warfare
• Policy Formation and Strategic Decision-Making
• UK and US Political Systems (comparative)
• Global Power Competition and Multipolarity
• Institutional Behavior and Bureaucratic Strategy

VI. Economics, Finance & Power Structures
examining capital not just as wealth, but as a strategic instrument.

• Financial Markets and Market Behavior
• Modern Portfolio Theory
• Efficient Market Hypothesis
• Wealth Accumulation Mechanisms
• Structural Inequality and Systemic Advantage
• Defense Economics and Military-Industrial Complex
• Global Trade and Shipping Systems
• Resource Allocation and Strategic Investment

VII. Science, Technology & Applied Innovation
science where it intersects with control and capability.

• Genetic Engineering (especially human-focused implications)
• Biotechnology and Biological Warfare Contexts
• Cybernetics and Neural Interfaces
• Emerging Military Technologies
• Systems Engineering and Applied Physics (conceptual level)
• Technological Acceleration and Strategic Advantage

VIII. Cultural, Narrative & Media Systems
analyzing how stories shape systems of power.

• Narrative Construction in Warfare and Politics
• Myth-Making and Strategic Storytelling
• Media Manipulation and Information Ecosystems
• Cultural Engineering and Ideological Framing
• Fiction as Strategic Case Study (e.g., Metal Gear Solid series)

IX. Applied Civilian Domains (Systems in Everyday Contexts)

• Archaeology (as reconstruction of historical systems)
• Fashion Studies (as signaling, identity, and influence systems)
• Allotment Gardening (resource cycles, sustainability, micro-systems)
• Hospitality and Frontline Administration (real-world human systems)
• Casino and Risk Environments (probability, behavior, design)
• Global Shipping and Supply Chains

X. Creative Strategy & Expression
developing the ability to articulate and operationalize these ideas.

• Strategic Writing (intelligence briefings, dossiers, essays)
• Speechcraft (power-centric rhetorical structures)
• Worldbuilding and Scenario Design
• Game Design Logic (via Dungeons & Dragons frameworks)
• Visual Design and Thematic Composition

thats without any formal structure or curriculum

There's no reason why a home educated child wouldn't carry out physical education, unless they don't want to - and that's ok too, there's no requirement for it, it's optional.

Oh dear, but don't tar all parents with the same lack of basic education!

Ah yes, those 6 children you've met mean that the over 100,000 home educated children in the UK, are not receiving a satisfactory education 🙄

I home ed my eldest children through most of primary school. It’s pretty straightforward so long as you remember the core subjects to bring into their interests (English, maths, science). There are lots of resources available but the most important were other home ed families.

My children are adults now and passed their GCSEs and now in full time work in areas they are interested in.

This. Teaching primary maths effectively can be incredibly difficult if you don't know what you're doing. There's a reason us teachers have to do a PGCE...

And home educated children are in the real world every day, seeing their friends and managing relationships. We don't keep them chained up in the basement you know!

Not usually at GCSE. They only do KS3.

I often think the same. Primary school level fine but there’s no way the average parent has enough knowledge/expertise to tutor the full breadth of subjects at GCSE/ A level.

There is no requirement to follow the national curriculum, so it's irrelevant really.

But as you've mentioned it, as parents, we do not need training to help our children to learn. In terms of the primary curriculum, it's really not that difficult to any adult with intelligence.

I find it weird that no one has an issue with parents raising their children until they reach the age of 5, and then suddenly they freak out because they have not been sent to school to be taught by a 'teacher'. People should really have more faith in others, and less ignorance and judgement towards people who have made different life choices regarding their children's education.

Of course, there are some parents who give home educators a bad rep, but the vast majority of us do a really good job and raise really fucking fantastic, well-rounded, polite, curious, focused and determined children.

And how did their parents teach them 9/10 subjects at GCSE level?