The advantages of new legislation and better regulations...

...As far as I am concerned.

WARNING !!!
I am about to get on a soap box about something, avert your eyes if you are of an easily offended nature.

The 3 R's. Simple, basic and lets face it, essential if anyone is going to get anywhere in life these days.

Reading:- I love to read, so too do my children. It took some patience and some determination to get them to agree that reading a story as opposed to watching it happen in front of them on a screen, was fun, but eventually the joys of the written word were opened up to them.
We read a variety of material, from fiction, to research papers on just about anything that takes our fancy. The kids may not always understand what they are reading about, but then that naturally opens up a whole opportunity to find out about something new. To teach themselves something. To EDUCATE themselves.

Writing:- I absolutely abhor bad grammar and poor writing skills. It took hundreds of years for that basic privilege to reach the masses and I am not about to let such an important skill fall by the wayside now as far as my children are concerned.
I can remember as a child myself, being taught how to say 'schedule' properly, and how the beginning of the word starts with shed..not sked. Now, every time I hear an American or even worse, an English person utter skedule...it sends a shiver up my spine.
Therefore, I have instilled the same methods into my own children.
Ekscape, is another one..so too is haitch, for the letter H. There are others, but in truth there are too many to document here, and the listing of them isn't important to the point I am trying to make, which is this...I read other blogs. Other Home Educating blogs. Sometimes with ease and interest, other times with a squint developing in my right eye as I try to decipher exactly what the writer is trying to say.
It truly is a sad thing when ones poor speaking skills translate so literally into their writing skills. 

Arithmetic:- Learning how to use numbers and their relevance in everyday life, is vital. End of story. If I need to elaborate, then you have completely missed the point, and should indeed consider going back to school yourself. You certainly should not be contemplating the task of educating the next generation of society.
For this opinion, I offer no apologies. 


I was thinking about making some dramatic point here, about how I have seen other parents supposedly educating their children at home, but showing quite clearly that they are incapable of even teaching grass to grow. Their inability to string a coherent sentence together with correct spelling and grammar, is astounding.

Now, before someone gets all windy with me, I do in fact know about and accept that there are some who have a language barrier to overcome maybe, or even dyslexia to cope with. But it has to be said that these people are generally in the minority. (This is not a sweeping statement, and I give no impression of supporting evidence to my 'claim' which in fact is not actually a claim...so again, don't go there).

I will say only this in conclusion. If you are adamant that you are going to take on the responsibility of teaching your child everything they will need to know to become valued and useful members of society..then please make sure that you can accurately do so, without leaving any gaps..no...chasms in their education.

I think for anyone reading this, who absolutely gets what I am talking about, will also get why perhaps new legislation and better regulation of HE might not be such a bad idea, and perhaps why some who are obviously lacking in the above areas, might feel the need to get defensive when such a proposal is mentioned.


Loz

HE is NOT a status thing!!!

I have been thinking...(a rare but often momentous occurrence)
... This continuing debate about HE is beginning to bug me.
There are those who Home Educate because they believe it to be the best and only option available to their children. There are those who Home Educate because of circumstances beyond their control. Sadly, I have recently discovered, that there are those who Home Educate because they believe it affords them some kind of social status.
It is this misguided belief that some have, which has started to irritate me. 
Also..just for the record, I am not in the habit of name dropping, or indeed leaving a bread crumb trail behind me large enough for anyone to decipher whom I may be talking about. So lets not even attempt it.

Firstly, I need to state that I do not like what I have seen recently from some HE families. 
It would appear that Home Schooling is about how well some parents can 'do it'.
It is this ethos of competition which bothers me greatly. 

Is it not enough that when attending mainstream school, our children are constantly  compared to each other and constantly expected to reach certain targets against each other? Why then do I find that exact mentality occurring within the supposed safe environment of HE?

When I attend a quiet get-together, for a nice cup of tea and a chance to watch the kids playing together, I do not expect to be bombarded with talk of comparisons...I quite honestly do not care how many iGCSE's another parents child has. Or indeed, how many college courses they plan to take in the next year, or how many degrees they expect to have gained before their 16th birthday. 
And another thing, if I choose to work with my LA..that is my choice, and I do not expect to be told that I am making a mistake, and that I will regret even letting them in through the door.
I do not happen to have a problem with the LA. Because I have nothing to hide. 
Actually, I quite enjoy the opportunity to show them exactly what we have been doing, and what else we plan to do. 
I like to have things to show them because with that evidence before them they have absolutely no reason to suspect that I am not providing an adequate education for my child, and that I am in fact providing an education the LA could only wish to provide for children in mainstream schools.

It also gives my son the opportunity to defend his own reasons for being educated at home, and to speak for himself should he feel the need to do so.
This also goes a long way towards proving just how adequate his education is, which staves off the dreaded SAO, which so many other HE families go on and on about. 

It seems to me that the one thing I was so desperate to get away from, is still very much present within the Home Education community..and that is the clique mentality, which is especially so with those who strongly advocate child led autonomous education.
Now, just for the record, I have no problems with AE. I just choose not to take that route because it does not suit either myself, or my child. Not because I don't think it works, but because my son actively asked for more structured work to be getting on with.
It would seem that because of this decision, some would class my son as not being properly Home Educated. They would rather class him as being schooled from home. If that is the case, then I hold my hands up..yes, I school my child from home. Yes, I do have workbooks, and pens and pencils and exercise books. Yes, we do sit down at the table and discuss everyday events, politics, geography, history, mathematics and English. And yes...I do make him write things in his exercise books (Boo Hiss)...
..After all, there are only so many uses for willow baskets and weaving skills. And my son has neither, nor does he aspire to gain them.

Therefore, my final note on the subject is this, Home Educators..you must learn to live and let live.
The entire point of HE is that there are no guidelines to follow, no legislation, and no rules. the method and execution of it's delivery is the parents responsibility. Therefore, do not create so many negatives and restrictions which you then hide within the very infrastructure of it.

Loz

Bread and butter!

Recently, Ethan made homemade lemon curd, which he was very proud of, and we planned to make some bread alongside it. however, another HE parent suggested that we also have a go at making some butter, and to be frank...we thought it was a great idea. So we had a go, and were pleasantly surprised at the results.


Mixing the dough. Ethan wasnt over keen with the texture, but he kept on going.



Kneading the dough.



Leaving the dough to rise and double in size.



Daniel whisking the double cream...



 

Seconds after this picture was taken, it separated and sprayed the kitchen with buttermilk. We gave it to the cat for a treat.





A couple of hours later, and tea was ready.

And very tasty it was too!





Proving the point of HE...

As if I needed further proof that Home schooling is definitely a better route for children, I was today confronted with the perfect example of why mainstream schooling is failing in my opinion.
My 11 year old son was victimised online by a fellow student in his year at his school.
It was nothing neither he or I couldn't handle, but it still shocked me into such fury I had to take a timeout to calm down (several cups of tea and yes...some chocolate).

He likes to facebook every now and then, although he enjoys playing yahtzee on it more than chatting, and only has a handful of friends. However, he does like to post the odd picture of himself or other family members.

Anyway, he got a message on one of his photos, commenting - and I quote "you look like a 50 year old plumber".
Later the other child said that my son needed to "get a style" and that he didnt have any friends, and that he also hangs around with weird people.

What is happening to our children when they begin to find it acceptale to talk like this to their peers?

My sons 'style' is something he in fact takes great pride in. He doesnt like to wear tracksuits, or sporty type clothing, feeling more comfortable in proper shirts, jumpers and jeans. Before we moved here he enjoyed wearing floral patterned shirts - like Richard Hammond, or James May - but has since told me of how he gets accused of being girly when he does so now. Sadly, he no longer feels comfortable in them.

I dont think it is anyones right to judge another person by what they are wearing, or how their face or hair looks, how they talk or what interests they have etc. It shows little to no respect for diversity, and an exceptionally shallow personality. I have brought my children up differently to this. I dont ilke them to fold to social expectations and peer pressure just because it is easier to do so.

I have tried to teach them to be themselves as much as possible without fear of reprisal. It is just such a shame that so many other parents fail to do the same.

It is little wonder that we live in such a 2 dimensional society. Our children are taught to be the same as everyone else, to blend in, to not stick out for any reason, to conform to what is generally seen as socially acceptable. They are constantly bombarded with the ethos that being the same will ensure them sucess. that those who play by the rules will be accepted over those who like to bend them - or indeed ignore them completely. 

Now, I am not talking about rule breaking, of course there are rules in place within society that are universally accepted as being correct. Stealing, fighting, and everything in between are a definite no no, and this has also been instilled in our children from an early age. They have great respect for adults and figures of authority in general. They have impecable manners, and have never let us down when we are out and about.

But, I believe that stringently following the herd actually causes more harm than good in the long term, and so have always told them to follow their beliefs, to enjoy their interests and to be proud of who they are...exactly the way they are. 

watching how much enjoyment this other child derived from name calling was saddening. Do they really have that little else going on in their lives and heads, that they muct resort to name calling for amusement?

Do they really have such eventless lives, that they must create activity through any means possible be they good or bad, simply to feel as though they are experiencing something?

These children will more than likely do very well for themselves at school, gaining several qualifications along the way, and probably ending up in fairly well paid jobs, surrounded by equally 'successful' people.

But I do not believe for one moment they will come out of their life experience complete people. There will always be something missing. Something lost from what could have been. Something which was repressed and swallowed down for the sake of being cool, or popular, or successful later in life. These are the things that they will recognise when it is too late to retrieve.

I want something different for my children. I want them to feel utterly comfortable and complete in their own skin. I want them to believe and know that it doesnt take popularity to achieve in life, and it doesnt take crowds of friends to make them someone.

Every day, I am proud of my children. I would walk over hot coals for any of them. And so it spurs me on to ensure that I am providing the very best that I can for each of them, remembering that each of them is different and deserves to be treated as such. It is not my job to mould them into what I think they should become, but rather to guide them towards realising that for themselves.