Do you follow school holidays and breaks?

[applessauce]

It's just that we're still doing a few hours a day of work, and DC have been asked, by schoolchildren, why they're doing work in the holidays as they're not supposed to (they responded that we take holidays, but at different times of the years).
It's really relaxed though, and we're working outside a lot of the time and going off to meet others for days out and practical stuff. We did take a few days off recently, but we don't take our main holiday until children have gone back to school in September.

We don't home school. But surely the best time to take holidays would be in term time when places are quiet? I would love to have September of as the weather is often good but it isn't manic everywhere like Sugary!

Obviously a few days here and there to catch up/days trips with friends/family who are in school or to take advantage of any school holiday activists that are running might be nice.

Our approach was that if we were around and not doing anything else, we'd do some work. It evens out over the year. This summer is dd3's last weeks of HE/first proper school holiday as she goes to school in September. I want to carry on doing bits and bobs with her so she's feeling confident when she starts, I want to do some (recreational) maths with ds, dd2 has preparing-for-A-levels work set by school, and dd1 has books to read and research to do for her A levels and EPQ. So they're all going to be working on and off anyway!

were doing work during the weeks schoolkids are off as DC has sensitive issues with autism and stuff, and cant manage places crowdy and noisy.

shell have a couple of weeks off when school starts again and all is quieter.

were doing about an hour a day though so shes got some chillout time.

No, we don't follow them at all.

The DC like to take about a day off every 10 days, then they really enjoy it. If we try and impose even a day off a week they start setting things for each other.

A bit odd, but hey, they love learning.

We tend to have a break in the summer, so that we can see friends who go to school and to take part in summer clubs and activities. We don't take the whole summer break though, partly because we have other breaks (including our family holiday) during term time but also because I want to keep things ticking over. My dc are young and 'school' doesn't take long so they still get plenty of time to play, whether we're taking a break or not.

We break because I have one at school and one HE, so to do anything else would cause ruptions. (Is that a word? Sort of like an eruption but without the lava; it's very dramatic and leaves you feeling completely burned out.)

We tend to follow the same as schools because dd attends lots of musical activities run by the LA.
We don't always have the same amount of time though.
Last year we had the whole of December off academic work and this year most of June and July.
She is doing Maths and English with dh today and will do a sort of pt week this week. Then she has a full week, then a week off.
Not sure about September yet, it may be a pt month if the weather is good and then full on for October and November.
It varies each year depending on what she has on in each month.

We don't really follow term times at all. HE started on the 1st day of the Easter hols this year, as that is when the DC decided they were never going back to school. We don't do much structured learning anyway but they get odd days off here and there, when we have other things on or they're just not feeling up to it. I'm of the opinion that even on days off, the DC are still learning something- its just not the things that are measured by the NC or school league tables, that's all.

Only difference for us between term time and school holidays is I have to work more hours as my job is running out of school activities for children, and we are always fully booked throughout the summer holidays especially. So my DC get less 'free' time to follow their own interests as they have to come to work with me most days and obviously we don't get to go on as many outings as a family as we do at other times (not a bad thing as I prefer to go in quieter times anyway) DC do get to spend loads of time mixing with other children though, including a lot they previously went to school with, and of course the activities are fun too, otherwise we wouldn't be in business!

Once the schools go back in September though we are planning to have a couple of weeks in France as a family holiday, then it will be back to our usual HE routine- structured learning (maths, english, French) in the mornings, then free time to follow interests in afternoon, until I go to work at 3pm. I have lots of resources based on DC's current interests that I've found over the summer but not had time to use, so we will have loads to get through and I'm expecting we will be inside a lot more through October and November.

From December 1st its probably going to be pens down though and we will just do Christmas stuff instead. No point trying to force learning when DC's minds are on the contents of Santa's sleigh!

Yes we do, because all of the kids friends are schooled ( we don't know any other HEers.) It would cause untold grief if I tried to make them work during school holidays. Also, I have one at uni and one at college - if I tried to make the other 2 work during the older ones' holidays, all hell would probably break loose.

We don't really follow the school holidays - tend to take some time off during those periods, but still keep busy some days as well. We tend to take our holidays in term time (although this year we went away in August for the first time in years) - both because of cost and because it is so much quieter.

We do tend to HE Mon-Fri though - but are flexible if something comes up on a weekday.

I think being flexible is important, you can then take opportunities that arise.
This year we took a holiday in June, it was mostly educational but saved a fortune just going that month earlier.
I think you do what suits you and your family that's the joy of not having to follow set policies and procedures.

ruptions. (Is that a word? Sort of like an eruption but without the lava; it's very dramatic and leaves you feeling completely burned out.)

Great word. Like ructions but more explosive. We have ruptions in our house too