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How do I feel ready for home education?
When educating your child at home there are ways you can plan and prepare outside of lesson time to make sure things run smoothly, including:
- Using visual timetables to show a daily and weekly routine.
- Creating a 'work space' - sharing a space is okay too!
- Asking you child what else they need.
- Mirroring a school routine for children who have been in mainstream schooling.
Video - How to get ready for home education with Sophie Ellis-Bextor
Singer and mum Sophie Ellis-Bextor explains how she adapted to home education and shares helpful advice.
Sophie Ellis-Bextor:
The fact of the matter is, if I wanted to homeschool my kids I would’ve been doing it already. I don’t know about you, but our house was not set up to be a school. So, let’s look at some tips from people about how you can make your home more of a place of education. Which in our house, is taking quite a lot of doing actually.
Adalaine:
So, I've really tried as much as possible just to create an environment that’s very much as close to his classroom, as close to school as possible.
Sharon:
We’ve just put these times tables and a counting chart as well on the back of her door.
Adalaine:
We have a periodic table poster on there as well, we have colour charts.
Leigh:
There are lots of areas around the house with different activities that they can engage in.
Sharon:
In our kitchen we’ve got her little table, where we go and do the arts and crafts. So, if she wants to do painting…
Adalaine:
The children work on the dining table because there’s quite a lot of space on there. We always just ensure that the windows are open, and it’s nice and bright in the room.
Leigh:
There’s a lot of free choice for the kids to go and work on what they want to work on at a particular time.
Sharon:
We have tried to make those areas for her so she feels she knows where her space is as well in the home.
Adalaine:
One of my favourite things, we’ve got two bells in the house as well, so at lunchtime I’m like the dinner lady, I’m like come on kids, it’s time for lunch!
Sharon:
When I was at work one day I literally thought let me write a list of things to do, because that’s what she lacked, the structure that they have in school.
Adalaine:
I know that when I’m not organised, I feel all over the place. We just said to Isaac, you know, let’s get together and discuss what sort of things you would like to have on the timetable.
Sharon:
By keeping her in a routine at home, it’s preparing her for the time they go back.
Sophie Ellis-Bextor:
So that was some tips on how to adjust to home learning. But remember, whether you’re doing five minutes or five hours, you’re doing your best and that is all we can expect to be doing right now. We’re right there with you. The Ellis-Bextor-Jones house, it echoes everything that’s going on in your home. So, lots of love!
Every day just say to yourself at some point, you’re doing the best you can.
This video was recorded during the Covid-19 pandemic. We hope the advice will remain relevant and helpful to parents educating their children at home.
Home education hacks: How to feel ready
- Use visual timetables to show your daily and weekly routine. Some kids struggle with spoken instructions, so having a bright, colourful planner is really important. You could also help them to personalise it.
- Create a 'work space'. A chair, a desk if you can, just a bit of room dedicated to their lessons, where they can keep all of their workbooks, pens and pencils and importantly where they can leave them at the end of the educational day.
- Sharing a space is okay! If the best work space for your child is the same living room you're working in, that's fine - feeling less lonely could actually be beneficial to their learning.
- Ask them what else they need. Keep talking and adapting, listen to what your child has to say about their lessons, good or bad.
- For children who have been in mainstream schooling, it might help to keep as much of their former school routine as possible, including lunch times and breaks. You could even get a little bell to ring at the end of the day! Whether they're excited or a bit unsure about the change to home education, a familiar routine will help to manage their emotions.
Where can I find more support for home education and parenting?
The BBC Bitesize home education collection is designed to support you and your child’s learning at home with free resources for early years and foundation stage (EYFS), primary and secondary-age students.
Bitesize Parents’ Toolkit is the go-to place for the whole parenting community to find stories, expert advice and fun activities.
If your child has special educational needs and / or disabilities, be sure to check out the Parents’ Toolkit SEND collection.
For more information about home education, these BBC News articles cover the rise in families deciding to educate their children at home and, from 2021, the impact of Covid on home education.