Now we're getting into our summer stride it's tricky to work out what's home ed, what's holiday fun and what's regular family stuff. (I wish family stuff was the same as holiday fun. I tried to pull a Mary Poppins and convince the kids that dusting was fun. Failed.)
We've gone from structured HE to semi-structured HE for the summer hols and it's liberating and confusing in equal measure : a line has been blurred.
Last week we spent a fabulous day with friends at a National Trust property. Here are two versions of what happened; my perspective is in italics and the boys' version is in courier.
We visited Waddesdon Manor. On the way we discussed divergent thinking and came up with as many ways as possible to use a paperclip to stretch our creative brains.
We made up ways to make weapons out of paper clips.
When we arrived we met up with our friends, caught up on each others' news and went on a shuttle bus.
Said hi, sat at the back of the bus.
When we arrived we looked at Vasconcelas' candlestick installation identifying it as modern art and discussing what it might look like at night. We looked at the symmetry of buildings and talked about Victorian Gothic architecture.
We ran along the grass and saw wine bottles made into a tower and a big yellow house.
We practised map reading and sign reading skills. We read menus, ordered food and the boys had their own table to talk and socialise over lunch.
Ate sandwiches in the cafe. No-one liked the yoghurt.
Afterwards we headed to the woodland play park and explored. There was excellent risk assessment in action during tree climbing, collaboration on the spinner and an abundance of team work when other children spontaneously joined them to design and build a den out of sticks. Sharing sweets, negotiation and great manners - tick. They developed their den to include seats, shelf, a secret hiding place and entry password.
We played at the park, climbed a tree and built a den with some other children. It was fun.
We stopped for an ice-cream which the boys bought independently, working out the costs and change for 4 cones with a flake.
We had ice-cream and got chased by a wasp.
Being solely responsible for the boys' education piles on the pressure to see everything as an opportunity for learning, analysis and extension.
Thirsty? Of course darling, what's the chemical symbol for water?
Biscuit? No problem. If I have 11 in a packet and we eat 2 each how many will be left?
It's a bore. I'm a bore. Some things are just fun, like friends, parks and ice cream.
I shouldn't moan because it sums up the reason HE is working for our family right now. The contextual learning, the confidence building and the socialisation all happens in the course of our normal life and adventures.
As my own confidence builds I'm looking forward to relaxing into our new rhythm and putting my 'What Are We Learning' checklist down.
