Regretting taking kids out of school.

[apocketfulofposy]

Posting here for traffic,sorry.

I have 5 children ranging from aged 6 to 10 weeks old.

We always planned to home educate after reading a book about it when ds1 and 2 were toddlers,then when ds1 was about 4 and a half,and i was pregnant with baby number 4,i decided to give our local primary a go,partly because it was just that time where he would of been going and partly because i was finding it hard with them all at home (no family on either side for 3 hours,husband who works away monday to friday,rural ish area,i cant even drive!).

Anyway reception was ok,he liked it,made plenty of friends,dc2 and 3 went to the pre school and liked it,except dc2 had lots of issues with hitting other children and just general destructive behaviour.

When ds1 started yr1 last year he hated it from the word go,he still liked seeing his friends but he really noticed the change between mostly play to mostly lessons,plus his teacher left after a term and the new one was very strict and spoke to the children like she was some kind of prison officer.

Ds2 started reception and seemed to enjoy it but after a few weeks i was called in a few times about his hitting and destroying things,they said he just physically wasnt ready to be at schoolt hat much so put him down to half days,which was a bit of a faff for me as i was in and out all day but it was fine.It didnt seem to help though and he was behaving worse and worse at school,especially at lunchtime,but strangely his behaviour at home was getting better.

Add to this the fact i was finding it hard carting them all around everywhere and i felt crap because i kept forgetting to reply to things and i kept hearing all this micheal gove stuff,i just decided to pull them out,id been thinking about it on and off for a while and just thought do it,and id id it almost on a bit of a whim.

The first few weeks were great and we all loved the novelty of not rushing around in mornings and the kids have been playing all day,and actually one good point is that they have been getting on so much better.

But apart from that i am starting to regret taking them out,i miss the routine,i miss being able to take the babies to their groups and talking to my "mummy friends"(cringe) i miss being able to go to the shop quickly with just the double buggy,i also just dont know what to do with them,and the house is just such a mess!

I know these are'nt huge things but its starting to feel chaotic and i can feel it going back to the way it used to be,before school,and it hink i underestimated how much it did for all of us.I just dont know what to do!

Help and advice please!xxxxx

Sorry posted too soon

He plans to be an engineer and plans to take A levels in maths, further maths and physics alongside English which is his first love and talent.

None of my boys have been to school. They have no special needs or problems. I just don't like the school system and knew I could do better.

They take part in a wide range of activities, have lots of friends, and yes I do balance the varied needs of all three of them (my other two are 5 and 9).

It can be done successfully :)

How are you going to teach Maths and Physics to A level?

I have an only and she has never been to school.
We never registered with the lea but we were reported by somone who thought DD would benefit from outside intervention.
DD was 5 at the time and we exepted the visit, DD loves meeting people.
We got a glowing report saying who we'll DD was doing, how happy and confident she was and how she could resion things out.
I explained that I believed that Europe had the wright idea and that I would not push DD to wright tell she was ready.

I admit my spelling and grammar is rubbish but being as DD does not read my posts I don't see this as a problem.
She is starting to read now using reading eggs, and she is doing well.

She also reads to her dad in an evening, his English is way better than mine so someone in the house can tell her if she does something wrong.

Thinking of the comments about all children needing to get to the same level it may be worth looking at sir ken Robinsons, changing the paradigms of education.

Not to try and convince anyone you understand, just to say there are well respected academics saying the same as many home edders.

I really don't understand the post who think science is difficult to do at home. Science is something we do a lot of and I'd like to know what problems none home edders think we have.

bebanjo your post neatly illustrated my concerns over HE.

You admit that you have difficulty with your spelling and grammar, and indeed your post demonstrates that.
I am certainly not criticising you for that but do have concerns about the resulting educational environment you are able to provide for your child.
No DD doesn't read your posts but presumably you do some study work with her during the day ( a lot of which will require language). I see your OH is there in the evening but if her ( presumably) works, your daughter is spending a large amount of her day unsupported by her language learning activities.
I would be very concerned about this. She is very young atm so possibly doesn't seem a problem, but in a few years time how will this lack of language support impact her?

She has a wide vocabulary, I am able to read thing to her.
Many things are doable on apps these days. I know 4 English teachers that we see weekly, they have not shown any concern and they understand my difficulty.
I understand that indeviduels may see this as a problem. But please remember my DD does not live in a bubble with me. She has many friends adult and child.
And I am capable of getting a book from whsmiths and going through it with her.

Doing things on "apps" and going through a book is not really teaching English though is it? Unless the 4 English teachers you see weekly are actually teaching her then I can't see that helps.

I can understand that they will have no concerns atm- she is at an age when her peers are only just beginning their language education at school. In another 3 or 4 years the situation may be quite different.

I appreciate she does not "live in a bubble" but having friends is not the same as having an education.

Also I don't know what you mean by study work.
If you mean written work then no, none. She wrights as and when she want to.
We study things all the time, it never involves writing.

Like I said the lea are quit satisfide with DDs education.

But she is only 5. At some point during the next few years her sudies will (hopefully) involve written work, whether she is studying volcanoes or castles or rivers. All this needs a grasp of English.

Having a grasp of writing, of syntax, of spelling are tools we use to enable us to explore many other subjects. How will she learn the language she needs to allow her to progress?

You can't assume that her education will never involve writing. That would be irresponsible.

I really don't understand the post who think science is difficult to do at home.

Really? So that they can get the right qualifications to get to a RG University to study chemistry-as my DS did, with a mother who hasn't even got an O'level in it? I try hard to get my head around statements like this and utterly fail!!

To answer the person who asked... I have no intention of teaching him maths or physics. I have not "taught" him any subjects so far and his maths is already at GCSE higher level. I facilitate his learning by providing the right text books and learning environment and opportunities. He then teaches himself - in other words he learns. He is an extremely self motivated in dependant learner. Something I value highly and have encouraged with all my children from the beginning.

Please explane how having one adult per 30 children for an hr when that one adult May or may not care about my DD is better than one on one 24/7 with a mum who cares more than anything that her DD gets what she needs?
Many teachers only know because they have spent time lesson planning, they don't all just know.

I read post all the time about teachers spelling things wroung, misusing grammar ect, where is the difference.
dD is mine for ever, not tell the end of the school year.

I love the way that HEers think that they are the only people to pay any attention to John Holt and Sir Ken Robinson-as if schools are not working with it all! ( or maybe I misunderstand)

I think the collegiate aspect becomes ever more important as DC get older. I know this is the key issue for my friends who HE and their biggest concern.

Tamer, really. Just tell me why you think it is difficult to do at home.
We do something sciencey everyday. I really don't know why it is preserved as difficult to do at home.
Perhaps we just have different ideas of what is / is not being done.

He is very lucky if he is able to do that WiifiFitMama. There is no way that I can-I need a teacher who works in a logical manner and can explain things and motivate me + others who are doing the same to bounce of ideas and discuss. That is nothing to do with how I was brought up-it is how I am. I can't even learn to crochet from a book or the YouTube clips.

You have of course yet to know if it actually works -the exams will be the proof of that. (not saying it won't-just that there is no proof yet)

bebanjo you are not the only mother who cares "more than anything" to make sure their child gets what they need.
That's why I send my children to school. I don't have the expertise or subject knowledge to give my children all the education they deserve.

Different adults get different things out of them bebanjo-mine have blossomed under different teachers who have found all sorts of talents that I would have missed.

Teachers are quite different from parents-often the parent is too close to get the best.

wiifitmama- this seems a very impersonal way of learning.
A good school teacher is worth their weight in gold. My son is studying Science and Maths at secondary school and his teachers are inspiring, insightful and can weave a web of intrigue and wonder in the classroom. Such was my secondary school experience too.
Good communication between a pupil and a caring teacher who has a deep knowlege of their subject is a fantastic thing- a two way process between two human beings.
Not to be underestimated. To think that can be replaced by books and computer programmes is quite sad.

You still have not said why you believe science is difficult to do at home.

Tamer, really. Just tell me why you think it is difficult to do at home.

With the greatest respect bebanjo she is 5 years old!! At that age I did things with my children like make volcanoes explode, even though they were at school-we did it for fun. This does not mean that I can produce a Science lab with test tubes, Bunsen burners, chemicals etc for a 15 yr old!
Your child is so young it doesn't really matter whether she is at school or not yet.

To think that can be replaced by books and computer programmes is quite sad.

Terrifically sad that this isolation is better than interacting with a good teacher.