Is anyone NOT sending their children to school in September?

[Greenbutterlfy566]

Is anyone NOT sending their children to school in September?

Ok they must be paying for online lessons, I thought it was odd as all children in the UK are entitled to a free education.

On another note how do you homeschool secondary school children with a different subjects? My daughter really struggled with physics in lockdown, my husband and I are useless at physics, do you pay for a private tutor if they are struggling with a certain subject?

Ds will be going back-reluctantly. The school is huge, around 2k pupils. They can't bubble in that, and the school is doing their best, but admits that with over half the pupils coming by public transport or school buses (very much full and the council won't provide more) and that the school is at capacity, that there is a significant risk that they can't overrule.

I will be telling the school that I will be pulling him out if there is a second wave showing because he is always ill over winter with one illness after another and he had an operation in June. This is with support from the doctors. The school will support me on that, I'm confident.

Dd2 will be going back and should be fine, because she's in the 6th form, which is small, and isn't often (despite drama queen tendencies) ill.

@Alex50

I was told you had to pay £3000 a year? Not sure if this is true as I don’t home school

You don't have to pay anything, unless paying exam fees.

@Alex50

Ok they must be paying for online lessons, I thought it was odd as all children in the UK are entitled to a free education.

On another note how do you homeschool secondary school children with a different subjects? My daughter really struggled with physics in lockdown, my husband and I are useless at physics, do you pay for a private tutor if they are struggling with a certain subject?

Yes you could get a private tutor, do reading yourself or, with secondary, children would work things out themselves - you can find amazing resources online on basically everything.

When homeschooling, you can spend extra time on weak areas and whizz through stronger areas.

Alex50 yes, tutors for weaker areas. There are also often groups for specific subjects, particularly in larger areas. You also don't have to teach to a curriculum, so whilst I'd say it's a bad idea to pick and choose subjects there is a school of thought that a child who really struggles with a subject such as physics is unlikely to work in an area that involves anything but very basic physics knowledge.

It also isn’t compulsory to do every subject, home Ed can be juggled to work to the needs and interest of the child. You don’t need to follow a set curriculum

10:17Drivingdownthe101

DolphinandDuck

"40% of Welsh children didnt go back at the end of June for the catchup sessions. I think that shows where parents thoughts lie."

"Interesting, 98% of reception, year 1 and year 6 children went back at our school. It also reopened on a rota for the remaining years and they had similar numbers too."

Are you in Wales? The 40%quote was on Wales news last night. Our local primary as an example was only open monday and tuesday mornings as so little numbers of kids took up the offer.

No I’m in England, just meant it was interesting that the numbers were so low in Wales. Then remembered my welsh relatives decided not to bother sending theirs back because they were only offered 2 hours twice a week, and they were different days for each child, so the hassle made it not worth it for them. Was wondering whether that made a difference to the take up of places.

I do think that 'real' percentages of parents sending children back will only become apparent when full-time schooling, including new teaching, returns.

I don't think that the number of parents who turn down very part-time 'catch up' sessions is indicative of the number who will not send children in for a new school term.

We pffered 4 day a week places, no rota, for those returning from 1st June, and found the response was close to 100%.

My school... Couldn't accommodate all the KW children, Reception, Yr1 and Yr6 who wanted a space (every teacher and classroom in use) Friends school about a mile further away... Any parent who wanted a space in any year group could have a full time place. So even within a small area, take up varies.

You don’t need to follow a set curriculum

Well,you have to cover exam curricula if you want your DC to sit public exams for recognised qualifications.

Covering GCSEs is tough enough and A levels would be very hard to do unless your DC wants to do the subjects a parent did 5unless you are going to employ tutors of course)

@nether

You don’t need to follow a set curriculum

Well,you have to cover exam curricula if you want your DC to sit public exams for recognised qualifications.

Covering GCSEs is tough enough and A levels would be very hard to do unless your DC wants to do the subjects a parent did 5unless you are going to employ tutors of course)

I mean we're getting ahead of ourselves as hopefully the period of not wanting to be in school is short, but sometimes people who home ed do a few GCSEs each year, rather than all of them simultaneously taking two or three years.

Some school years have already had their exam preparation mucked up; and if there is further disruption in this autumn term, then that's two more.

It's not necessarily a distant prospect - it's already happening for those going into yrs 11 and 13 and couid affect those going in to yrs 10 and 12 (and possibly 9 if you have GCSE spread over 3 years, but they have rather more time to recover)

And if your DC is just younger, and you want to reintegrate them after a few terms, then you really do need to stick pretty near to a standard school curriculum