Am i taking a risk trying out Home Ed at year 9?

[duvet]

Hi, I have 2 Dds year 5 and year 8 currently and have only thought of Home Ed as doable in the last couple of years, mentally more than anything (even tho I trained as a teacher!) Now I'd really like to do it for a few reasons

1. dd2 struggles with Maths and communication/comprehension skills,
2. I've seen from a new friend I made how beneficial it is,
3. the years are slipping by and I feel like I want to make the most of the few years we have left with them.
4. They both seem much more relaxed and dd2 is generally much more pleasant at weekends and holidays, even though they
5. They have both said they'd like to be home ed even though they both pretty much enjoy school and have made good friends. Dd1 is very academic and is doing well.

I don't know if these are good enough reasons though. My DH at the moment although sees benefits of home ed, thinks it could be disruptive, particularly if it didn't work out and dd1 had to go back into school, having missed some of the school curriculum. Just wondering what others think. I feel bad that I didn't do it earlier, when they were younger, but I do want to do what's best for them. Thanks

Yes, slotting back into school should be no problem at all. Now is the time!

I believe some schools have recently begun to timetable some GCSE subjects over more than two years so check with your dd's school whether they will be doing this with her year group, which subject(s), and what could be done with a child who had missed the first year. But I don't think it would be an insurmountable problem.

Arriving much past the start of Y10 is a big problem, however. During the exam years the inflexibility of the school system is shown at its worst.

That means that if you want to try home ed without committing to stick with it through GCSEs, this is the perfect opportunity.

Your reasons are excellent, particularly they both say they'd like to be home ed. They are keen, you are keen, go for it or you will likely regret seizing the opportunity. There are lots of groups now organising GCSEs for home educated children (check in your area beforehand maybe to give you peace of mind). You could also consider Interhigh as a GCSE option if funds allow.

Thank you for your positive replies, I will enquire about GCSE's. I know someone who took a year out to go overseas with family a few years back & did GCSE's in a year but she went back to a different so not sure what the case is here.
I thought it was a perfect opportunity too, just got to work on DH now ...

Sounds like a real possibility. Just one point of caution. It isn't always easy to 'slot back in' to a school. It depends on how full your local schools are. In our area if you are in a good school and de-register then want to re-attend you will get the least popular school going that has a myriad of problems and will be miles away and practically impossible for DC to get to independently. We are really enjoying our one term of home Ed for last term of Y6 and will never claim to be home ed specialists. DD wanted to do it and there have been fantastic projects done, new skills learnt, London walks and trips, one-to-one sports and music lessons. However we know she has a place for start of Y7 at our local grammar school and she is looking forward to that too. If you have experienced home education it can help create resilience for lessons where you might have the occasional teacher who isn't so good as the DCs have developed good self learning skills.

We are looking at home ed for DD who is currently in year 8, though with the idea of her going back to a different school for start of year 10. We think this is a great year to do it as she has a grounding in different subjects already, can largely study independently and will be taking new stuff at GCSE level so not expected to know anything already for those. We want to give her a year of finding out about what she's interested in and getting new opportunities and perspectives she won't have at school and getting her to learn how to learn - year 9 seems perfect for that.

I am also thinking of home schooling my year 8 boy, who seems to be distracted with drama, peer pressure and unjustified penalties at school, which I think will send him over the edge if I don't intervene. He is highly academic, only raising his grades throughout the negativity and he now suffers from stomach cramps and headaches due to the stress of being at school. He was excluded for 5 days and I have never seen him so relaxed, he studied well and did further research into subjects when he didn't want to. The only issue is that I don't want to give up working full time and I work 10 mins from home. Is it possible to balance this with paying for a home tutorial course and having a family member check in on him? I am not sure what to do but I think we have reached a stage where he either accepts that this is how school will be until he leaves or we cut it short. I am really scared of making the wrong decision and it impacting his future negatively. In terms of dealing with the social aspect, he attends scouts, swimming and karate and church activities.

Hi Peachy. If your son is unhappy at school and very bright, home education would be great for him. My daughter didn't go to senior school at all, did no GCSEs just A levels and has now graduated from Cambridge with first class honours in her first degree and then latterly a doctorate. She did not have any personal tutoring or follow any tutorial courses apart from the A level course books. In my opinion, this is all a very bright child needs. However, I worked from home so she was never left unattended and I don't think it would be a good idea at all to leave your son unsupervised - I can't see how you can really. You would worry about him while at work so it would be too stressful for you. Anyway, good luck with whatever you decide.

Thanks for the advice Badoll. I think home schooling is the best option in the circumstances. However, I have decided to 'chicken out' of taking on the responsibility of educating him myself and have signed him up for a home study course as it would ease the pressure and give structure to his day. The course seems to offer a study timetable, regular assignments and tutors for each lesson who are easily contactable. I suppose I just have to make sure the internet works. DS seems keen on it as he is stressed at school, so we will give it a shot.

I think it's well worth trying. If I were you then my main concern would be whether being home alone for long stretches could be lonely and dull for him, and look for opportunities for him to see people and get out of the house. Can you come home for lunch? Are there neighbours for whom he could do some paid or voluntary work such as dog walking or gardening? Is he able to get out on a bike or bus?

Since things are so bad at school, home ed may well be the better option even if your setup isn't ideal. However, it's still good to do what you can to make his environment more suitable at home so he won't become unmotivated and bored.

Hi Saracen, Yes that is next on my 'to do' list as I believe he will be bored if left alone for too long. He is pretty mature and works independently without my help (although I am not sure if that is what teens do). Luckily, I have family members who live nearby and I also work 10 mins drive from home...but I am still thinking of maybe putting him into a club, such as a football academy where he can break up his day. I think I may find problems with clubs for children in the day considering most are at school, at that time. He really likes football and does play at the weekends. It is incredible how your mind unravels from the stress and becomes flexible with your decision to home ed. It is quite a liberating feeling, although I am sure I will find something else to stress about whilst he is at home.

HI Peachy72
I have a similar dilemma as I don't want to give up working, I work part time and could cut that down to 2 days a week but it's what to do with the children on those days.

Like you say difficult to find clubs during the day, but if you find clubs for evening time then that will probably make up for it. I still haven't taken the plunge yet but its on my mind all the time, fear is the only thing stopping me I think!

"Like you say difficult to find clubs during the day, but if you find clubs for evening time then that will probably make up for it."
I agree, that helps. Aside from home ed activities. you'll find nothing at all which meets during the school day and caters for young people. My teen spent several years mostly at home during the day (with me and her sister often around for company though) and then went out for after-school and evening things, and that worked for her.

Another idea is to look for activities aimed at adults which allow teens. Unfortunately many of them now set a strict age limit of 16 or 18. This is because if they allow children to attend then they must have a safeguarding policy to help ensure their safety, and some clubs simply can't be bothered with this and decide that the simple answer is to ban children. My teenager has found this immensely frustrating - even the local WI wouldn't have her because presumably they feared that the old ladies might lead her astray - but she has found a few adult activities she can do in the daytime. There's a conservation project near us which accepts over-14s with parental permission. Our local libraries take volunteers from 14. A fair number of national charity shop chains will have volunteers from the age of 14. If you ask on your local HE list then people may have some more ideas.