Can You Home School Your Kids? 5 Considerations Before You Start

The jury may still be out on home-schooling in the UK, but there is no doubt that some people have had success using it. Obviously, not all parents are able to cope with home schooling; but if you are, then it is surprisingly easy to homeschool in the UK.  However, ploughing into a home-schooling routine without any research would be foolhardy. The obvious place to start is the government’s education website, but there is a lot of advice available from your local council and the internet too. Here we will look few things to consider before you take your child out of the recognized education system.

Time

If you are going to home-school then you need to be prepared to put the time into it, and you need to be organized about that time. Yes, you can home-school and work from home or be a normal house wife at the same time, but only if you can organize yourself to do so.  As with a school, create a timetable to organize your week. Your child will not need as much study time with home-schooling, so they will not need to learn for 6 hours a day, but they will need you to put the necessary time aside for them.

Approach

There are many different methods and approaches to teaching, but you do not have to know them all to home-school. However, you will need to choose how you are going to teach. Whether you decide to teach the curriculum of your local school, or to develop your own strategy, it is important to plan ahead and make a home-schooling schedule as this will enable you to find the right resources, and discover activities to use.

Materials

The internet has a wonderful array of materials that you can use, including interactive learning games and songs, and it is possible to download complete lesson plans if that is how you decide to teach; while the number of worksheets and activities available will give you a huge choice to supplement any other materials you use. You may decide to use the books from your child’s school, and if you do, they will be available for you to purchase, but you will also have the option to choose your own books if you think more suitable ones are available.

Classroom

Though you may not be using a traditional classroom, you will still need a space to use. You will find that, unless you have a dedicated area, things will become disorganized and messy. A dedicated space such as a spare room is great for any sit down learning; however, a separate area altogether will enable all sorts of ongoing projects and games to be played. Available from companies like gardenspaces.co.uk  a garden classroom will create a dedicated mini school in your home, and lead to a dedicated learning environment

Going It Alone

Home-schooling can seem lonely at times; especially if you are just starting out and have doubts about your ability, and do not see immediate success. This is why joining a home-school community is so important. You will get invaluable advice about resources and how best to help your child, and you will also be given support during the times that you are having any regrets from those who have been through the same difficulties. You will never really be alone, even though it may feel like you are.

Home-schooling is a choice that needs to be taken seriously, and not on a whim. Hopefully, you will consider these 5 things carefully before you start.

Written by Guest Submitter

 

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