Educating at Home

doddsy

Hi there,

I wonder if any of you have experience of homeschooling and the costs involved. My 13 year old daughter is having an awful time at school - to the extent where I think she would be better off out of it.

This would mean me having to leave work which would be a huge blow financially, but what are the actual costs like? Text books, extra tutoring etc?

Any tips/help would be gratefully received.

Thanks
Doddsy

silverfoxdude

Hi doddsy

Kids eh? I am not a great fan of the British Ed system, but

Your daughter is at an important stage in her life, learning about growing up and being part of the social scene. Kids learn so many skills from experiences at school, including the tough times... but I'm sure your already aware of these. Have you thought about moving schools, talking with the teachers at her present school?

Getting to the root of the problems will help you decide the best course of action I reckon

I cant teel you anything about cost, sorry. And good luck

doddsy

She has some mild learning difficulties, as well as problems with social interaction. Having been bullied through primary and early secondary she has lost all self confidence and just can't make friends. The other kids either treat her with contempt (weirdo, loser, greebo) or ignore her completely.

If we are going to do something it needs to be soon, as next year is year 10 and GCSE options. Moving her to another school is virtually impossible as we are in a very rural area and the next 2 senior schools are miles away with no transport.

We are meeting with school (again!) on Thursday, they are sympathetic but at a loss as to what to do - so am I!

Baileys_Babe

Have you looked at https://www.education-otherwise.org/ they have all sorts of support and advise for people considering or already home educating

doddsy

Thank you Baileys Babe - I will have a good look tonight.
Doddsy

silverfoxdude

awww, poor lass. Ask your local council if they have a number for Parent Partnership. We have one in York, and they have been very helpful with us and DS. they are an independant body that help parents with Education issues.

I hope you gt some help, and your DD gts sorted with better education, one way or the other

Skintmama

Sorry to hear your dd is having such difficulties. It may be worth checking the situation with school as to whether they run classes for children who are not fully integrated into school. School Refusal for instance is a common problem so there are usually facilities.
My dd is 14 and has been HE for several years. We have used a number of books by Letts and CGP as they do study, revision guides and workbooks which fit in with the National Curriculum. There are loads to look at in Smiths and Ottakers, Waterstones etc. Libraries are a good source for supplementing these.
This year dd is studying with Interhigh at https://www.Interhigh.co.uk costs are on the site.
Tutoring is between £20 and £30 per hour, they should set some homework too.
We had been at a Steiner School so not on the school roll for the State School. For children who still are as with your dd there should also be options like 3 hours free tutoring a week. All these services are not offered upfront you have to push to find out what is there. Remember the EA has a duty to provide an education for her.

Type "Home Education" into a search engine and you will find lots of info and ideas.

Good Luck!

doddsy

Thank you Skintmama - will do.

Meeting with school today at 4pm,although I am not getting my hopes up for a solution there. We will have to wait and see

Thanks everyone
Doddsy

slobbery

After much thought we have decided to withdraw our boys (11 and 12) from mainstream school and teach them at home.

We have looked carefully at the differing ways of home educating, but would really appreciate any tips/advice/thoughts/ideas from other parents who are doing this.

In particular we have decided to take one/two days a week out on trips (museums, gardens, castles, etc) to help with their education.

Does anyone know if there are any type of student card and/or discounts we could apply for to help with costs both for trips and for teaching resources?

Js_Other_Half

http://www.education-otherwise.org/

"Education Otherwise is a UK-based membership organisation which provides support and information for families whose children are being educated outside school, and for those who wish to uphold the freedom of families to take proper responsibility for the education of their children"

Every council has to have someone employed (even part time) as the education otherwise worker - it may well be worthwhile contacting your local council?

purplepurple

Hi slobbery... just a couple of links to websites that deal with different learning styles... maybe find out how your children learn best and then you can adapt their work to suit their learning style? We all learn differently and if lessons are adapted to our learning style, it makes the whole process more enjoyable and easier.....
Learning Styles
campaign for learning

and some links to discount voucher sites for trips and visits....
days out uk
what to do with the kids
voucher codes.com
hope this helps!