Introduction
Hi, I’m currently a stay at home single-mum to my 2 children, who are 7 and 3 years old. We live on the Bucks/Beds/Herts border (which means we get access to lots of home education activities and friendships).
How long have you home educated for and what made you decide to do it?
I have been home educating since my eldest was 3 years old, he had a brief time at pre-school and it was there that I decided I wasn’t happy with the school system. I started looking into alternatives and discovered home education – I loved how child-led and free it was. I then started to connect with other local home educators and discovered a vibrant and friendly community. Best decision I could have made.
Briefly describe your home ed style. Do you have a ‘typical’ week and what does it include if so?
We are very much unschoolers or as I like to call it life-learning. That means I follow what the children are interested in, answer questions throughout the day, play games, meet with other home educators, attend events and trips, get outside, read, create, visit libraries, cars cars cars (my eldest is very passionate about cars) bake, jump on the trampoline, ride bikes, fly kites, build with Lego – basically anything that they want to do.
We don’t have a typical week but at the moment our Wednesday and Fridays are the same. My eldest has swimming lessons on Wednesday mornings and we all attend a casual outside sports session every Wednesday afternoon (where we bring different sports equipment and children of various ages play together exploring the equipment or the play park!). On Fridays a small group of home educating families all meet together and we have been doing specific projects with the kids – such as; space, under the sea, romans, Olympics, boats, music, fashion, food bank and homeless collection, world landmarks.
What was your highlight of home ed last week?
A highlight of last week was going to London and visiting the Natural History Museum and the Science Museum for my son’s birthday trip – we were able to go into London on a week day and have a quiet wander around the museums.
What is your favourite thing about home edding your child/ren?
I love the freedom and variety that our weeks hold. No week is the same as the last, and we are free to flow with the natural rhythms of our days. Some days we are at home in our pj’s the next we are dressed and out at a large home educating event. I also love being able to see their passions come alive.
What do you find most difficult and why?
The most difficult part is finding 1:1 time with each child and also juggling all 3 of our needs – making sure that I don’t forget about my needs too.
What advice would you give to other home educators?
Trust your instincts. Stay strong – everyone has a different way of home-educating and sometimes you can feel the pressure to follow how someone else does it, but the best route is the route that suits your child best. Also – find your tribe, having support of those that understand your way of thinking is invaluable (especially when you’re having a wobble, which we all do)!!
This interview is with one of three home educating mamas who co-share The Mama Tree – which includes blog posts on parenting, home-education, arts and crafts, recipes, product reviews, days out and holidays, and self-development.
Website: themamatree.uk
Facebook: facebook.com/themamatreeuk