Home Education Matters

Andrea returns from our very popular podcast episode 'From Teaching to Tuition' and today we are doing a subject deep dive into English Literature. There are options galore when it comes to English Lit so buckle up while we do a whistle stop tour through the main offerings, look at what you can expect on the different papers and discuss how to choose the right specification for you.

Join my children and I as we talk about our ups and downs during the last fifteen years of home educating. There's nothing more candid than a pair of home educated teens so buckle up and settle in to hear a discussion ranging from the good and the bad, to the possibility of a register and the perils of bad parenting!

For today's podcast, I am joined by Damian from Earthlings Learning to talk through the Cambridge IGCSE in Environmental Management. This exam is a great choice for home educators and is often the first one that a home ed child will sit. So settle back and hear all the ins and outs of the exam, what you can expect and how to maximise your enjoyment of the subject.

It's our March episode of A Journey into Home Education and we are catching up with Ash in her year of home education. Today we talk about the joys of home ed socialising, the prospect of a return to school this Autumn and Ismael's youTube speed run!

Emma from We are the Nomaders is taking her home education journey to the road. With one husband, one van and three children, Emma is exploring the possibilities that home education on the move offers herself and her family.  In today's episode, find out how she does it, where she's off to and the highs and lows of life of home educating on the road. 

Today I am joined by Jeanette from Get Keyed Up and we are doing an in depth study guide for Citizenship GCSE and Global Citizenship IGCSE. These are great, relevant qualifications open and accessible to home educators. We compare the two options and then look at the community projects, the type of questions you'll be asked and which is the most maths / essay heavy. Do check it out and don't forge...

Sareeta Pattni and I discuss the role that community and collaboration plays in parenting, specifically home educating parenting. This is a thoughtful and vulnerable episode for both of us and we touch on the destabilising role of comparison, the difficulty of finding your tribe and how we contribute to our own isolation.

I am delighted to be joined by Amy from E-Learn with Amy to guide us through the new and very popular Marine Science IGCSE. We discuss what you can expect from the exam, the topics, questions and the practical component to help you and your child prepare for the exam.

Today's podcast is an up close and personal look at Economics. Helen guides us through all the exam options so that you can choose the exam specification that suits your child. We talk about the layout of the exams, which has the most Maths, which has the least writing and lots more. 

Join Ash and I as we see how February has gone for her and Ismael in their home education journey. This month we see things clicking into place and an exciting new child led project taking shape. 

Join author Richard Clarke and I as we discuss ways to support your child's wellbeing. We talk about how to help them with issues such as anxiety, grief and the effects of covid on a young generation. Younger children often struggle to vocalise their inner emotional world, so it's great to be able to chat with Richard about how we can support our young children with their mental health from home.

Today we venture into the often unknown world of home educating through the college years. There aren't many of us who home educate through A levels / equivalents but that number is growing every year.  Jenni, Helen and I discuss the advantages and pitfalls (but mainly advantages!) of home educating through to 18 and beyond.

Today is another of our subject deep dives, and we're looking at Biology IGCSE (with a smattering of GCSE and the space between!).  Ibby and I discuss the role of practicals in science, the differences between the exam specifications available to home educators, as well as looking at top revision tips, a general understanding of how Biology as an exam works and resource ideas.

Join Jo and I for our next discussion in our mini series analysing the worlds of parenting humans and animals! Today we are talking about what role discipline plays in home ed parenting. Does it prevent chaos and anarchy or does it create repressed behaviours and increase frustration? And is compliance needed and when?  Buckle up for another thought provoking discussion on how the worlds of p...

It's the first of the month so it's time to catch up with Ash and Ismael's journey into home education. And we're on month five and it's been a month of settling into the natural rhythms of home ed. Plus we discuss the benefits of private tuition, the importance of relaxing into it and glimmers of hope for socialising!

It's revision time! And today's episode is a fabulous in depth look at how to maximise your revision success. From planning and scheduling to resources and strategies, we look at how to make revision work in your household.  Comment and tell us your top revision tip and let's share our wonderful knowledge as home educators!

Join Sareeta and I as we discuss the role that the parent can play in allowing your child to express their emotions by finding a way to listen without problem solving.  Then we move on to the ideas of being grounded as a person to give yourself that space and calmness we need in our centre, creating a bubble around you to help in moments of stress and recognising, from this grounded calm core...

Today we talk about how to use past exam papers as a hugely effective means of revision. Emma guides us through the do's and don'ts of using exam papers, the advantages of it as a revision system and how to ensure your child is fully prepped for that moment they sit down for their exam at the centre. 

Today we do a deep dive into EHCPs including: EHCP at school EHCP and specialist school provision EOTAS EHCP with a budget And the advantages and disadvantages of each possible route Plus a huge amount more. Ann is an expert in the provision of EHCPs and we are really grateful for her time talking us through this vital but complex area of educational support.

Welcome to month four of our regular catch up with new home educator Ash. And today we find out how December has gone for her and her son, Ismael.  It's been a time of nagging inner voices and so we discuss the inherent worry of parenting and the self-doubt that hits us all as home educators from time to time. And we also look ahead to the next year and discuss the tweaks and adjustments Ash...

Welcome to a special Christmas edition of Home Education Matters and we are going for a quiz on all things home education! Sit back, test your knowledge and see if you can keep up with the ever changing question numbers :)

It's the third episode in our Sharing our Successes season and we're meeting the fabulous Chloe, who is crafting her own home education journey to make sure it works just right for her. She's a fabulous example of liberation from 'this is how it's always been done' to 'this is how I'm going to do it!'. And all this while documenting it on her Instagram account: chlojosclassroom.  Feeling like...

Is your home educated child struggling to engage with their learning? Maybe you've just started home educating and your child isn't engaging with their work or perhaps you've been home educating a while but have hit a bit of a wall. Today we talk to Jake from Humanatees to find his top tips for engaging a child who has disengaged from their learning. 

Join Jo Moorcroft, dog behaviourist, and I as we discuss the role of manners and etiquette in parenting. Our latest episode as part of our mini series where we see how the worlds of dog behaviourism and progressive parenting meet! Today we discuss what role manners has to play when home educating your child, whether there is a place for learned etiquette and how our family values might dictate our...

Our monthly catch up with Ash and Ismael on their home educating journey and today we hear how month 3 is going. We discuss that fine line between 'lessons' and 'learning', how home education impacts on the wider family and the role that the parent's attitude plays in making it a success.  Look out for next month's catch up which will be out on 1st January 2024. How time flies!