Teaching your child at home and how to make the decision to home educate or school

Teaching your Child at Home

Some parents do choose to home educate their child or children for various reasons. They may feel they can provide a better standard of one-to-one education or may themselves have been home educated and experienced the benefits. When making this important decision there are key issues that need to be considered such as:

Will you be able to maintain this ongoing commitment?
Do you plan to home educate at both primary and secondary level?
Does your child have contact with other children e.g. siblings, friends, cousins etc?
How would you ensure your childs social needs are met and they form friendships?
Will you have the support of a partner or close family member, should you fall ill or be unable to teach for a period of time?
Do you have the space at home to set up a learning area for your child?
Have you outdoor facilities to develop your childs gross motor skills and allow them to explore the outdoor environment?
Do you have a positive relationship with your child - Would you be able to manage any behavioural issues?
Do you have the skills and knowledge to provide a stimulating learning environment?
Are you confident you can provide the resources and facilities so your child can experience a wide ranging curriculum?
Does your child have a special educational need, and if so, would you be able to cater for this?

If you have answered 'yes' to most of these questions then perhaps home educating is something you want to consider further. You should also consider if financially home education is a viable option with all teaching materials and resources having to be provided by yourself.

What are you required to teach your child?

Government guidelines suggest you offer you child experiences to develop their

Communication skills i.e. learning to read, write and communicate
Numeracy skills
Problem solving skills
Personal and social skills
Physical and fine motor skills
Creative and Imaginary skills
Observation and Awareness skills

At Key Stage One (ages 3-7) in UK schools your child would be working towards the requirements of the Foundation Phase (Wales) or Foundation Stage (England) Skills based Curriculum. The areas in this document require the development of the skills outlined above.

If you do decide to home educate your child, some parents decide to write an annual report on their child, but this is not compulsory. It is a requirement by the local education authority that the home educators provide an education that is age appropriate and effective, whilst catering for any additional or special educational needs.

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