I have very wise friends. They're also better at baking than me, have tidier houses and always have gorgeous hair. I wish I could hate them but I can't because they're just so darn wonderful.
I spent today with a fabulous friend who also happens to be super-experienced in education. As usual I learnt A LOT. Some people are such naturals they can't not teach - even when she's meant to be popping over for tea and cake I'm getting a top quality education in child development.
She mentioned Home Education months and months before I realised she was right and it was something our family should consider. I pick her brilliant brain for ideas and potholes in my plans. We talked about issues EHE kids face if they integrate back into school, about how school supports (or doesn't support) high level pupils, how to structure literacy teaching and equivalences in terms of number of hours of hands on teaching.
There are a few tweaks to be made in the next couple of weeks. As well as peppering our days with writing up science experiments, filling in reading diaries, etc we need more focussed literacy. Every week or two we'll try out having a story day where we focus our full attention on creative writing, aspects of SPAG (spelling punctuation and grammar) and handwriting. I'll let you know how it goes!
The focus element is really interesting. The teaching at home is so intense that K & W are missing out on the sitting-for-an-hour training that normal school gives them. We achieve more at an individual micro level but the shorter bursts are different to the rhythm of a large class. External provision is helpful on this one with Explore Learning giving them a solid hour of classroom style work. It doesn't replace the practice and group work element, the latter being one of the biggest EHE challenges.
The best thing about good friends is the confidence they give you. Having someone on your team to cheer you on, shout advice, motivate and inspire... especially when you're tired and starting to doubt yourself... is invaluable.
