Starting home ed

[Fredhere]

Have had an interest in home education for a while. Over the lockdown I looked into various methods and was excited by the opportunities it could bring to our family. My children are currently in year 3, 2 and reception.

Now we are seriously contemplating a house move to another location and we are planning to tie this in with homeschooling from September.

But now that it is a serious possibility I'm suddenly having a crisis of confidence. Can anybody advise on how they got started, particularly if your children had already done a few years at school before taking them out?

And what have your experiences been like?

Hi op, I deregistered my DC from primary school 2.5 years ago.
It has been overall a wonderful but challenging experience too.
It’s wonderful because they can learn at their own pace without all the pressures of target setting/regular assessments in school and a very rigid curriculum. It’s also wonderful because we go at our own pace in life and have a huge amount of freedom.
Locally we have a thriving home Ed community so that’s been fantastic (Covid aside!) for making new friends and attending groups.
For me personally the downside is that I never get a break from the children (& them from me!!) It can feel all-consuming at times but even so I have no regrets at all.
The upsides far outweigh the downsides for us.
In terms of getting started there really is no right or wrong way. Even now I’m still adapting as we go along.
It all depends on how structured or unstructured you want to be. Every home Ed family is different. Some follow what’s known as ‘unschooling’ (look it up) whereas some have a set curriculum and timetable. I’d say we fall somewhere between the two.

My advice would be to think about how you want to be in terms of structure, join your local home Ed Facebook group to get a feel for what groups are on, really think hard about what your children are interested in. I’ve found that I’m guided by their interests and then i throw in my ‘non negotiables’ too.

It’s not the easy choice in life but it’s one of the most amazing things we ever did. Having a confidence crisis is normally too btw! HTH

Thank you so much Allison for sharing your experiences. It's good to know you have had a very positive experience even though there are challenges. I also worry about not having a break from the children and about how I'll stay on top of housework (i don't do a terribly good job of this even with them at school!) but I hope it will be an opportunity to teach them to all pitch in with chores and learn some skills that will serve them well when they get older.

With the academic side one thing I think will be a challenge is how to assess how they are doing with English creative writing, essay writing etc.. subjects that have definite right or wrong answers seem easier to check. I wonder if just being exposed a lot to good writing they will naturally pick these things up.

I will give unschooling a good look at as well, it's great that we can pick and choose different bits we like!

I will check out our local home ed community and hopefully there will be lots of things we can join. Even though I can see schools might not be the best or only places to make friends i worry a bit about my dd7 who does enjoy the social aspect of school, so I would like to find some regular groups.

It feels a bit of a leap of faith but I think it will be a good thing for our family. Thanks again

@Fredhere
It’s a HUGE leap of faith.
I still have wobbles wondering if it’s the right thing for the children long term. It’s such an unconventional route to take in life (although its popularity is growing fast in the U.K.!).
But I come back to my gut instinct and try to trust in the process, the DC and me.

In terms of assessment, there are two things to say. One is that there are lots of school websites (& other educational sites) where you can access end of year targets/assessment sheets for all subjects.
But the other thing to say is that one of the joys of home education is that your children don’t need to be assessed! They go at their own pace and have no need to be assessed against age-related targets.
That said, I do keep an eye on them mainly in maths and English but I don’t get too tied to them.
I can understand your concerns about friends. I spend a lot of time and energy ensuring the DC keep up with their old school friends and encouraging newer home Ed friends or friends from say Cubs and Brownies. In a way, they have the best of both worlds now. They have friends from all walks of life. Again it’s a trust thing.
Have you got any further on your decision?

Be flexible, don't tie yourself to a particular philosophy. Find your own path that works for your family. Don't compare to school kids or other home educators. No body else is educating your kids, everyone's experiences are different. Nurture friendships, I think parents need the safety net of other HEers more than the kids do. Make to most of places and people around you.
My youngest is 15 and a half, never been to school so we are near the end now. I'd do it all again in a heartbeat. Home educating has given us such a rich life.