Anybody home schooling their young children?
May 18th 2009, 2:57 am
#1
Forum Regular
Thread Starter
Joined: Dec 2008
Location: Alberta
Posts: 31
Anybody home schooling their young children?
I have 22 months left on a work permit. We have a 5 year old, 4 and 3 year old. The early years education system in Canada is very different compared to the U.K. My 5 year old was used to going to school every day and now goes twice a week. He was reading on his own in the U.K and over here is still be taught letter sounds. My four year old will not have started school full time before the work permit expires. I would like to home school my four and 5 year old with the english national curriculum so that they are on par with U.K kids when/if we return to the U.K.
Any advice about this would be great. Thanks.
Any advice about this would be great. Thanks.
May 18th 2009, 1:30 pm
#2
Lost in BE Cyberspace
Joined: Nov 2007
Location: back in Cambs
Posts: 7,157
Re: Anybody home schooling their young children?
I have 22 months left on a work permit. We have a 5 year old, 4 and 3 year old. The early years education system in Canada is very different compared to the U.K. My 5 year old was used to going to school every day and now goes twice a week. He was reading on his own in the U.K and over here is still be taught letter sounds. My four year old will not have started school full time before the work permit expires. I would like to home school my four and 5 year old with the english national curriculum so that they are on par with U.K kids when/if we return to the U.K.
Any advice about this would be great. Thanks.
Any advice about this would be great. Thanks.
May 18th 2009, 3:47 pm
#3
Lost in BE Cyberspace
Joined: Jul 2006
Location: Cochrane, Alberta
Posts: 7,861
Re: Anybody home schooling their young children?
I can't really help - but just wanted to say Hi. Home schooling seems quite popular here (as in my area, but I'm guessing you are not too far away - Red Deer/Ponoka perhaps?) for a variety of religious, bullying and we-just-think-it-would-be-better reasons. I guess you need to start with your local education authority or there will be a specialist role within your local administration who deals with this. I know that our local home-schooled kids are like their own community and meet up for sports, outings and 'play time' very regularly. But obviously they will be directed to keep with the local curriculum.
If you wanted to follow a more UK-based curriculum, then get hold of some of the Key Stage 1 and 2 work books from the UK - you could probably get them via Amazon, or a friend could go to WHSmiths and post them to you! However, I suspect you still need to go via your local representative in order to explain why your oldest is not going to school. I suspect the early years teachings are very similar however, and you could probably just do all this stuff at home anyway.
And can I finally comment that I think the ages that your children are now would be the hardest to acommodate when settling into a new country and you have my empathy for your settling in processes (others may disagree, of course). I've said it several times before, that those with young children who have already done a year or two of UK schooling are likely to meet with the "it's boring mum" protests because, for quite a while, there may be no major new challenges (for some). I've had it myself, and for a variety of reasons, it quite distressed me. Thought that I'd buggered up their whole education - which is daft in reality, and which I can now say, with hindsight, has not happened at all, and I have happily settled children.
The other issue is that if you come here with 2/3/4 year olds that have already got into a daily part-time or full-time routine with nursery schools in the UK, it's sometimes very hard on the parents to have them back at home again! I would have been well upset - but others with a stronger maternal instinct than me have loved having their kids around again
Can I venture to say, that with you and your husband reversing roles and moving to a new country, and trying to settle and find activities for kids to do, there must be a heck of a lot of adjusting going on for everyone. Crikey, it must be manic in your house sometimes anyway 
I just wanted to wish you well. Bounce some more ideas off some more people, talk to whoever you can, particularly other local mums if you get the opportunity, or even go in to assist in the classroom for a morning here and there (though I appreciate that if you are working full time that may not be possible) just so you can see your child, the other kids and the teacher in action - that may allay some of your fears.
And if you do head back to the UK in the next year or two, believe me, your children will still be young enough to catch up quickly. I've gone through the same thought processes myself, and if it means 3 months of extra maths tuition, then so be it!! Don't get too down, and I hope things improve for you soon
If you wanted to follow a more UK-based curriculum, then get hold of some of the Key Stage 1 and 2 work books from the UK - you could probably get them via Amazon, or a friend could go to WHSmiths and post them to you! However, I suspect you still need to go via your local representative in order to explain why your oldest is not going to school. I suspect the early years teachings are very similar however, and you could probably just do all this stuff at home anyway.
And can I finally comment that I think the ages that your children are now would be the hardest to acommodate when settling into a new country and you have my empathy for your settling in processes (others may disagree, of course). I've said it several times before, that those with young children who have already done a year or two of UK schooling are likely to meet with the "it's boring mum" protests because, for quite a while, there may be no major new challenges (for some). I've had it myself, and for a variety of reasons, it quite distressed me. Thought that I'd buggered up their whole education - which is daft in reality, and which I can now say, with hindsight, has not happened at all, and I have happily settled children.
The other issue is that if you come here with 2/3/4 year olds that have already got into a daily part-time or full-time routine with nursery schools in the UK, it's sometimes very hard on the parents to have them back at home again! I would have been well upset - but others with a stronger maternal instinct than me have loved having their kids around again
Can I venture to say, that with you and your husband reversing roles and moving to a new country, and trying to settle and find activities for kids to do, there must be a heck of a lot of adjusting going on for everyone. Crikey, it must be manic in your house sometimes anyway I just wanted to wish you well. Bounce some more ideas off some more people, talk to whoever you can, particularly other local mums if you get the opportunity, or even go in to assist in the classroom for a morning here and there (though I appreciate that if you are working full time that may not be possible) just so you can see your child, the other kids and the teacher in action - that may allay some of your fears.
And if you do head back to the UK in the next year or two, believe me, your children will still be young enough to catch up quickly. I've gone through the same thought processes myself, and if it means 3 months of extra maths tuition, then so be it!! Don't get too down, and I hope things improve for you soon
May 18th 2009, 5:36 pm
#4
Forum Regular
Thread Starter
Joined: Dec 2008
Location: Alberta
Posts: 31
Re: Anybody home schooling their young children?
Thankyou for taking the time to reply. I appreciate it and I am going to make an appointment to see the head at the local outreach school to see if they can point me in the right direction! I do feel like we have screwed up the kids education but I just keep in mind that I didnt have any early years education and I didnt go to school full time until I was gone 5, and I turned out o.k! (I think)
