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Home ed

Find advice from other parents on our Homeschool forum. You may also find our round up of the best online learning resources useful.

Original poster

sorry just a quick question about home education

18 replies

MoaningMirtle · 08/11/2007 10:41

is it really possible to do it in two afternoons? my sil is keeping her 7 year old dd off school full time and doing home ed but her other dd who is 2 is only at nursery on Monday and Tuesday afternoons so they are doing it then

my mil is going ballistic about it but I just wondered if it was possible to do the amount of work necessary in that time or maybe it is better because it is one to one? we're trying not to take sides but just wondered what you thought

thanks all xxx

OP posts:
ShrinkingViolet · 08/11/2007 11:22

you can cover an enormous amount of "education" simply by chatting about things as they come up, there's no actual need to be sitting down doing workbooks form 9-3 five days a week (unless of course that's how HE works for you). Just because there's a younger sibling around, doesn't mean the older child isn't learning anything.
There are a home edders on here who are fully autonmous I think who can explain it a bit better than me, but basically, just living your life is "education".
On the other hand, it sounds from your OP that your SIL doesn't follow an autonomous approach, and is only "activily" HEing two afternoons a week. What is she doing the rest of the time with the 7 yo?

Original poster
MoaningMirtle · 08/11/2007 11:26

I don't know really what she is doing, I don't know her that well really. dh is being asked by mil to justify it and we can't because we know nothing about it, I didn't want to ask sil lots of questions because she is getting enough flak from her mum, so I thought I would get some advice here. Is it okay to do that? I have no problem with her home educating at all I'm sure she knows what she is doing but I didn't know anything about it so wanted to be a bit more knowledgeable next time mil is round for tea and moaning and moaning

OP posts:
Jennylee · 08/11/2007 11:41

Yes they can do it in two afternoons, it can work well like that, is nothing like teaching at school and she does not need to justify herself to anyone.

I know it works, I did it like that as an intervention, and 9 months later he is actually in higher level groups for maths and reading than he was before, now he goes to school part time and it helped him, home education sometimes is the answer.

juuule · 08/11/2007 11:46

ShrinkingViolet is correct in what she says and your sil might be formally educating for the 2 afternoons and autonomously educating the rest of the time. Learning and education doesn't stop just because you are not sat down doing 'school' type work. Why is your mil asking your dh to justify it? She would be better asking your sil if she wants to know more.
If you want to find out more about home-ed then you could look on
Education Otherwise
Home Education UK
and for an insight into how autonomous education works have a look at Sandra Dodd website.

Runnerbean · 10/11/2007 20:25

Yup!
My dd4 is at pre-school 1 morning and 1 day.
So with my dd8 we spend that time doing 'formal work'.
We managed to cover virtually the whole of KS2 in that time over just 18 months and we're now doing KS3 stuff.
One to one means doing in 10 mins what could take 2 weeks in a classroom and then there's no garauntee all 30 kids understood the lesson.
Learning is not just about sitting down doing work.
I'm learning stuff all the time too!

Just want to be contenscious here- what's it got to do with MIL anyway?

FrannyandZooey · 10/11/2007 20:27

yes absolutely fine

many Home edders don't sit down and do any written lessons at all, they just 'live'

2 afternoons solid study a week sounds loads tbh

CharlieAndLolasMummy · 03/12/2007 09:41

yes

Ubergeekian · 04/12/2007 11:50

If the wee girl was at school she might be with 30 children and 1.5 adults for 25 hours a week. That's a maximum of 1.25 hours of adult attention - and since whole class teaching would take up a fair amount of time she would in practice be very unlikely to get more than 3o minutes of dedicated teaching per week.

Two afternoons at home is far more time - and the adult with her isn't being distracted by 29 others at the same time!

The only problem might be with the LEA - children have to receive "full-time" education, at school or otherwise, so two afternoons of lessons wouldn't by themselves be enough. However, as others have pointed out, lots of autonomous education can happen in the unstructured time.

I'd suggest telling the inlaws to wait and see how things turn out. The girl will probably do very well, and if she doesn't - well, a year or two more at home before going to school shouldn't make any significant difference.

terramum · 04/12/2007 17:37

Re the hours issue & what is considered "full-time education"....this from the "Providing a full-time education" section from the Guidelines for local authorities on elective home education published by DFES last week:

"3.13 Parents are required to provide an efficient, full-time education suitable to the age, ability and aptitude of the child. There is currently no legal definition of ?full-time?. Children normally attend school for between 22 and 25 hours a week for 38 weeks of the year, but this measurement of ?contact time? is not relevant to elective home education where there is often almost continuous one-to-one contact and education may take place outside normal ?school hours?. The type of educational activity can be varied and flexible. Home educating parents are not required to:

  • teach the National Curriculum
  • provide a broad and balanced education
  • have a timetable
  • have premises equipped to any particular standard
  • set hours during which education will take place
  • have any specific qualifications
  • make detailed plans in advance
  • observe school hours, days or terms
  • give formal lessons
  • mark work done by their child
  • formally assess progress or set development objectives
  • reproduce school type peer group socialisation
  • match school-based, age-specific standards."
tilbatilba · 06/12/2007 04:49

I home schooled my 7 year old last year following a set govt curriculum. For age 7 we were advised to set aside 2 hours a day for study. Those 2 hours included settling time etc and 1/2 hour of free reading. because we were traveling I would generally set aside a day or a couple of afternoons.
She has just completed a year back in mainstream school and has done very well. Tomorrow is her last day for the year as we are going to home school again while we travel for another year.
Having seen my daughters thrive their grandparents...2 of them school teachers, are total converts!

nappyaddict · 06/12/2007 08:21

tilbatilba - i would love to go travelling with ds. where abouts have you been?

tilbatilba · 06/12/2007 11:54

Last year we went around Australia. We started in Melbourne and followed the path (not the fate!) of explorers Burke and Wills through the desert and outback up to the Gulf of Carpentaria. We spent some time in East Arnhem land which was fantastic. The kids learnt a lot about Aboriginal culture and we met lots of fantastic people. That took about 5 months and then we traveled through the Kimberleys and down the West caost of Australia. It was great. We were able to free camp everywhere, we caught fish , ate by a camp fire every night, 1000's of stars.....We were away for the whole year.

Then this year we went to Africa for 4 months, Mozambique Swaziland and SA. That was great to travel there with children. People fabulous and very kind and welcoming.

Next year we aren't sure yet. We would like to travel up to Cape York in QLD and then on to Papua New Guinea. We want to take the coastal mail boat around the island....very slow and I think it will be a great way to see the country.

nappy addict ...the hardest bit is leaving home....once you are out the door it is simple and you'll have the best adventure!

Let me know if you go!! Tilba xxxxx

nappyaddict · 07/12/2007 08:53

it won't be for some time yet. i assume it is expensive and i don't have the money yet but it is a possibility for the future. how old were your kids when you first went travelling? did you have a camper van thing?

tilbatilba · 07/12/2007 10:54

Yes we took an off road camper trailer....it's like a box that pops up and unfolds. Ours had 2 mattresses and a camp kitchen. We towed it behind our Landrover. Our girls were 7 and 8 when we went for the year. The main expense was fuel...Australia is huge! We did 30,000ks...we preferred to free camp and there was plenty of work along the way. Nappyaddict I hope you get to go. xxxx

nappyaddict · 07/12/2007 11:52

what sort of work did you do? and how did you get your car over there?

tilbatilba · 12/12/2007 19:54

We bought a Landrover in Melbourne and set out from there. Where ever we went people were looking for workers, fruit pickers, farm workers, governess work,waitressing,working in the road houses, lots of skilled work available on the West Coast with the mining boom,especially for driving big trucks, electricians, plumbers etc. Most of the caravan parks had boards advertising jobs...cleaners wanted everywhere!
Lots of opportunities to nurse especially in the aboriginal communities doing relief work.

wornoutwaitress · 13/12/2007 09:24

excellent.makes me inspired it might all be possible one day. did you buy the trailer thing there too?

tilbatilba · 01/01/2008 10:10

Yes! Australia has the cleverest trailer thingos you have ever seen. Great kichens/storage and all 4 WD. We are just about to head off again.....get's very addictive . xxx

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