The Joy of Homescholing

[EssexAnya]

How to make the most out of homeschooling

1 You are the teacher.
I’ve got news for you: you’ve become a teacher ever since you found out that there is a child on the way. Oh, and did I mention that you are the most wonderful teacher in the world for your child?

2 Play!
Do not interrupt your child’s game in order to sit them down to do homework. Instead, start a game into which you can weave homework.

3 Prepare.
Set up props, draw quest maps and add décor the night before. Let your child wake up into a story…

4 Bring in the big players.
Invent a story about your child’s favourite characters: pirates, animals, cartoon characters, aliens, monsters, etc.

5 Imagination is everything.
You don’t need to visit a NASA building in order to create a space-themed quest. All you need is a couple of very simple props and a dramatic story and your child will imagine everything else. Add homework to the mission to fight evil aliens.

6 Observe them, do not change them.
Notice the speed at which your child does things. Do not encourage them to slow down or speed up their progress, just watch. Let them be.

7 Relax.
If you are tense, worried and stressed about your children’s homework they will pick up on that and feel guilty and inadequate. Are you the most creative and productive when you feel guilty and inadequate?

8 Your child’s learning is your responsibility; your child’s homework is not. This is a very important distinction to keep in mind.

9 Role reversal.
Ask them to teach you. Even if your child is learning the ABCs ask him to teach you to write the letter A. Try writing A and make a mistake. Accept their correction and try again. According to the Cone of Learning the best way to learn is by teaching others, so be your child’s pupil.

10 Do not EVER approach your child with any variation of this statement: “Get the homework done and then you can play.” Your child is not in prison and therefore you don’t need to chain them to their desk. If you happen to be fresh out of ideas about how to make homework fun, then do nothing that day! Let them enjoy themselves, observe them and watch their favourite shows with them. Notice what interests them and then create a game later.

I hope you found this short summary helpful. If trying these ideas seems like a mission impossible to you right now, please leave a comment and I will support you the best I can.

Please note that I do not work in education, I am not a child psychologist, and I never planned to homeschool. I am just a mum whose child has received top marks ever since the lockdown while having fun. If I can do this, so can all of you.

Cannot quite believe I'm biting again as this is so obviously nonsense...but here goes:

1. We've all been doing this for almost ten weeks. You've missed the boat for this conversation by so long, the boat can no longer be seen on the horizon.
2. Can you really see an employer being happy with "10-midnight" and then giving up after less than a week when most contracted hours are more like 9-5? Should we all take the other 5.5 hours as unpaid leave every day or just ask for the P45 now to save time?
3. Many, many families don't have 2 adults at home, let alone with just 1 pre-schooler. And yet somehow we're educating our kids, doing our jobs, and keeping the household more or less functioning. No medals required because everyone is doing the same.

I decided to work at 10pm until midnight. I only lasted for 6 nights
so you normally work 14 hours a week, and couldn’t even do that???I hope you’ve quit at least, and don’t still get salary.... (because some other person will have to cover your work).
many of us still do 40-50 hours a week plus childcare of more than 1 toddler.
You live in fairyland with serious issues with reality...

What a load of patronising bollocks.

The appropriate response to this type of thing in the '80s would be:
"What do you want a medal??!"

Also to warn you, don't go thinking your child will thank you for being supermum in the future, because they won't remember half of it and by the time they're 12 if you say "ah do you remember when I used to build pirate shops for you..."they will be embarrassed and say "shut up mum!".

Ships I meant not shops although they have to buy their stripy tops somewhere!

But your kid is in nursery? And you're a SAHM. I dont want to diminish the role you play; being a mum is hard no matter what, but you're teaching a toddler... and we all know that toddlers learn through play. There just isn't as much pressure. And since you dont work, you can devote all your time to it. We shouldn't make lockdown parenting into a competition, but when someone in your position preaches to people who are working full time and teaching primary aged children... it makes it very hard for us not to bite back.

I'm a single mum, their dad has decided not to see them for the duration of lockdown so he hasn't been around since mid March. I obviously cannot get help from family or friends. For months, it has just been me and my 2 primary aged children.

I'm a jeweller and am very lucky that my studio is at home, so I can still work but I am working overnights. During the day, I have the kids in "school" from 9 till 3.30, with a full timetable including music, history, art, geography, Spanish, literacy and maths with PE every morning before breakfast (cosmic yoga or a joe wickes video). Then they have free time, then dinner and then we have fun family time. When they go to bed, I go to work.

For all lockdown, I havent slept more than 3 hours a night but I am still managing to follow the curriculum and give them a full home school experience. It's been bloody hard work, but I am really proud of myself and my kids for how we have all taken to it. I am also really fucking tired. And I've spent about £300 on homeschooling materials and website subscriptions. It certainly hasn't all been sunshine and daisies.

To see someone like you tell me it should be magical and fun and life should be wonderful at home during lockdown sort of makes me want to tell at you. It's hard, and I think we should all be happy with whatever we have managed to do.

1. I became a teacher when I gained my PGCE many years before I became a parent.

OK I will bite. Do you want to explain to me how I can teach my 4 year old to read, number formation, social skills and whatever she needs to cover the whole of reception year or until the government deems it’s safe for her to return to school (DH is shielding). I also need to look after a young toddler who only contact sleeps but it is getting big for the sling, cook, clean and at sometime get some time for me. DH works full time.

@NuffSaidSam

1. You are the teacher.

You make the rules. Half day? Sure. PE all afternoon? Yep. Wine with lunch? Ok.

2 Play!

A film for the children while you try to get some work done or Mumsnet.

3 Prepare.

For tantrums by having a large stock of bribery sweets and wine.

4 Bring in the big players.

I'm talking Minecraft, YouTube, Netflix, Amazon, whatever gets you through.

5 Imagination is everything.

Is a great thing to tell yourself as you ignore your children and your children when they complain they are bored.

6 Observe them, do not change them.

Notice that they have dinner all down their front and glue in their hair, but don't waste your time changing them. Why make more work for yourself?

7 Relax.

Have you ever actually needed algebra or to identify a fronted adverbial? Get the paddling pool out/the TV on and put your feet up.

8 Your child’s learning is your responsibility; your child’s homework is not.

And we're always hearing how they learn so much from everyday life, just let them crack on! They'll learn.

9 Role reversal.

Cooking and cleaning is educational, let them look after you for a bit.

10 Do not EVER approach your child with any variation of this statement: “Get the homework done and then you can play.”

Because it is not effective for older children, instead use 'do your homework and then you can have some screen time'.

I hope you found this short summary helpful.

Please note that my children have all survived lockdown thus far.

Love it.

I despise home schooling!

Top marks in nursery? Which subject would that be? Playdoh modelling or finger painting? I'd be more interested to hear in someone who has multiple children in different school years, is working from home, has SEN children, you know, real challenging situations.

Wow, if there's ever a competition for a lack of understanding and empathy you'll win hands down OP! You have one kid in nursery🤣🤣 You are NOT homeschooling!