I homeschool and I'm not weird

I am writing this hub to dispell a few myths about home-educators.

I decided to home educate my 4 children because of the failing educational system in the UK, my childrens own specific needs were not being met or even considered.

As a working class, un-educated mum of 4, I guess I wouldn't be most peoples ideal home educator.

Ok! so let's figure out what is the ideal?

Educated to degree level? Well no, but why is that so important? Who knows my kids abilities better than me? At 2,6,8 &10 why would I need to know everything about the Newtonian Laws? Shakespeare's sonnets? Pythagoras theorem? The answer is I don't, by showing my children that it is OK not to be perfect I feel I am giving them a much more valuable lesson - what you don't know you can learn!

Home-school allows cross curricular learning so literature, numeracy and science can be incorporated into a much wider choice of topics. Take for example my 10 yr old. He loves astronomy! so science being the first obvious subject is studied, but then literacy? how will he learn without reading and recording his observations? and where does it state that a child can only learn to read by reading dull unimaginative books with no real content?numeracy? space is full of calculations speed, trajectory, time etc etc, history space does not exist without it's history and even more recently the advent of manned space flight! geography? my son follows the ISS around the planet and keeps track of a number of other satellites and their global position. Two of which are geographical satellites measuring oceans and tectonics.

Anything your child is interested in can be the key to opening the world of learning all it needs is a little imagination and creativity.

Our home looks like a primary school we have class displays recording our work on a theme, we have bookcases full of reference books on all-sorts from ancient Egypt to astro-physics.

Each child has a wall dedicated to their topic and proudly shows off the things they have made and discovered. We have time put aside for snuggles and stories, toast during lessons and more one to one tutoring than is possible at school allowing more time to visit museums, zoos, farms, woodland, and NASA! The world is theirs the only limit is our imagination.

I am not anti-establishment, non-conformist or any other title I receive. I don't live in a kibbutz, a cult or an over zealous christian fellowship, I am not out to save the world, convert people to some weird religion or vegan lifestyle!

People like to pigeon hole and because I don't agree with society on one thing I am weird, a hippie the god squad LOL

I love homeschooling I consider myself to be an average mum I love my kids and I am so very proud of them and proud that I was blessed to be their mum.

I have a duty to give them all I can and, if that means that I have to go against convention, then OK they deserve that at the least!

So whats the ideal?

Well for my children.......................me!