I don't understand how you guys do this .. home ed that is

[Twiglett]

I'm totally in awe

I love the fact DS goes to school and that DD will be joining him

Having him with me 24 hours a day would be too much

and getting us out and about to do all the learning things ... and the effort in ensuring the total curiculum .. and the just constantly being there

bloody hell .. sometimes its all I can do to read a book with them

lol! I look at things like SATs which really turn me against mainstream ed, but the thought of not losing DD to school scares me more!!! If she was a different personality, maybe, but she is too much for me to cope with

I met someone last week who homeschools all her 7 children - oldest 13yrs, youngest 20 months (obviously the younger ones don't need much schooling yet )

She was saying that she looked at the science GCSE curriculum recently and her 4 year old son could answer some of the questions and he hasn't even started 'formally' learning with her yet. She said some of them were things like the difference between raw and cooked foods etc.

Anyway I certainly found it interesting to talk to her. Her kids all seem very nice but I too was in absolute awe. How does she cook,clean look after etc and also educate all those children? She is also heavily involved in the church I atattend and is always making and selling cakes, making tea/coffe and clearing up etc.

Also she takes some of the childrens liturgy services. It makes me feel pretty feeble when I sigh at how difficult it is to attend church with one toddler.

Well, I've got three, one of whom is old enough to homeschool, and I'm disabled and expecting number 4.

I think one of the reasons I get by is having a supportive husband. If I need some chill out time, I always get it if possible, usually when he's giving them a bath and putting them down.

And having little ones help with the house takes some of the time pressure off when it comes to housework. Hey, counting how many pairs of socks we have, and how many have gone missing since we last did a wash is maths, innit?

It's not for everyone, that's for sure. But what is?

My friend does it with 5, and I see how it works, and it is her that makes me like the idea of it... but then I look at the afternoons when I want to send DD to boarding school...

Completely agree. Have given it some thought, as I have a ds whom I suspect will not really "fit" into a normal school class (though I am desperately hopeful that everything will be ok). Also, was a teacher in former existence so have basic ideas of pedagogy, materials, etc.
I can imagine myself HEing with a child who will sit, listen, do etc. DS has such selective hearing and walks his own path to such an extent that I fear I would end the first morning of HEing in tears.
I know it's not about the child sitting at a desk and you teaching them a curriculum, but what on earth do you do with a child who refuses to go along with HE?

Hi Pruhoo... I've been reading 'Free Range Education' by Terri Dowty, and it's gradually been dawning on me that you don't need to sit your child at a table to do HE. In fact, they naturally move about constantly. When they are ready, they will get out paper & pens as part of what they are doing. My daughter, currently at school, aged 5, when at home plays all these games with notes and messages and delivers them all around the house. Also must tell you about 'Unconditional Parenting' by Alfie Kohn which I've just got: it's turned my stormy relationship with my daughter around in a few days. I've stopped telling her to do things and everything is much calmer. She is already offering to help with this or that and saying 'I love you mummy' all the time! I keep hearing that kids are easier when not forced into the straightjacket of school. They can express themselves as who they are. And anyway who says what the curriculum should be? I've just seen a group of schoolchildren on a visit to the greengrocers - it was laughable - the teacher was explaining to them how fruit was sold by weight. It was made into a lesson! My daughter comes to the same shop nearly every day and helps me do the shopping.

In reference to Twig's OP, just wanted to say that my children are home educated, but I don't have them with me 24 hours a day.

They have art classes, literacy classes, music lessons, they go swimming, do karate, stay over at their friend's houses etc - just the same as children who go to school do.

They also go to home ed groups during the week, as well as to educational visits.

Home educators don't have to follow the national curriculum - which is one of the best advantages of home ed IMO, as the national curriculum offered very little to my children.

Offering a total curriculum is not as hard as it might appear, as their learning tends to be topic based, rather than half an hour of history, half an hour of geography etc.

Since being home educated my children have taught themselves to be independant learners.

I work from home, so mornings are spent doing their maths and literacy work, with me available to help if required.

We usually go out in the afternoons and evenings.

It is tiring, and can be stressful (I feel VERY responsible for their entire existence at the moment, and have a constant niggle of self-criticism in my head!), but the positives far outweigh the negatives for us.

You know, I think being a teacher makes it harder to consider home ed, as we are used to a particular style that wouldn't fit at all well. When I think of home ed, I think of ds and me, sitting at the table, teaching and learning. And that's not how it's supposed to be. Actually, sometimes when we're out and things just come up and he learns something, I think it might be doable, but for me I think it would be too hard to adjust my style.

I think it takes any family a while to find the learning style that works best for them - and especially if there is more than one child, as each child obviously has different strengths and weaknesses, likes and dislikes etc.

IME many home educating parents are former teachers - which says a lot, I think!