People have asked if home education will finish now that the schools are breaking up – well seeing as I never really have a plan and we are really just playing things by ear then things are not going to change. Of course the boys will still carry on their Explore sessions regardless, and the 10 year old needs to carry on reading at the very least as his entrance exam is just a couple of weeks after the school summer holidays. This was the first week that the teen was not at school too – so that changed our routine (that and some things have finished until September).
Monday 16th was a mix of work and play – seeing as they had had a busy weekend and not got on their games consoles much. It was also the day that yet another parent from the boys’ old school contacted me asking about home education.
Tuesday 17th was the last day we would be starting with any kind of school run until September as the teen had his last half day. I had thought about checking out the new LEGOLAND in Birmingham whilst it might be quiet – but actually it looks to be the same as Manchester and it was quite a bit for the three of us to go up on the train for what it was (even with a Friends and Family Railcard). Instead I decided to head off in the other direction to Bristol; which cost just a third of the price. On the train the boys also read books. I accidentally picked up Pride and Prejudice for the 10 year old and he read 3 chapters, picking up a lot of new vocabulary.
Once there we headed for the Children’s Hospital where I knew there was a shop which would have the Gromit Unleashed 2 trail maps (with a suggested donation of 50p). We had a lovely time hunting down all the different Wallace, Gromits and Feathers McGraw statues. It was great for so many reasons such as doing something for charity, exercise, orienteering, and communication.
We discovered a really nice noodle place and the boys used chop sticks! Plus we stopped for a Krispy Kreme!
It was that evening that I heard the news that a wonderful fellow blogger Kate Sutton had passed away. She was so kind to me when we were in Devon and I was really struggling with the teen. Her death really echoed that of my own mother’s (who was called Kate by some of her friends). Both only 48 years old, both with red hair and leaving behind two children, including a 14 year old son.
Lucky for me it was a fun session at running club – which meant running up and down a hill in teams before planking!
Wednesday 18th was the day of the homeedinsight picnic. A local one had been arranged for those of us who couldn’t, or felt it was too far, to go to London. The 10 year old started the day by making jam tarts for the occasion.
It was nice that the boys already knew so many children. That actually the ones they didn’t know were actually much younger than them. All the children played together so nicely – climbing trees, making a dam playing football, face painting and generally sharing food. The only problem was the 10 year old completely ripped his shorts on the zip wire! He eventually solved the problem by wearing his t-shirt inside out around his waist – a bit like a skirt to cover his modesty (he doesn’t like going around in just his pants). We then bought him some new clothes before heading to Explore Learning for The Sensory Seeker’s session. I took the 10 year old to Costa where we both had cake in honour of Kate. The 10 year old worked through a Spanish workbook. He then returned to Explore after dinner for his 11+ session.
Thursday 19th
We had a morning of academic work with the 10 year old completing things on SAM Learning and The Sensory Seeker started his English 6-7 years workbook. They then had some chill time (which included Fortnite) before going to Explore Learning. On the way back there was a lorry fire so the motorway was bad, and later a car accident which meant the lady who runs youth club was half an hour late. I waited until she came and then the boys had a party. I have since learned that some of the kids are nasty about our son’s hair there too, but he doesn’t care he wants to see his friends. My husband suggested we quickly pop to the pub whilst they were there.
Friday 20th
We tried the home education group we went to on the very first week. A sports day had been arranged and it was nice to see the children joining in. The Sensory Seeker did really well with the egg and spoon! At the end of the session one of the children made sure I had his mom on messenger so that it could be arranged to meet up.
The 10 year old had a workshop at Explore so his brother did a normal session. We went to check out the new children’s menu at The Bottle of Sauce, before I went for a sober night out with my friends (who were not sober).
Saturday 21st
I woke up to realise that the alarm wasn’t on and that I had just enough time to get myself to Parkrun. It was really hot and I walked quite a bit but still managed to do it just over half an hour. The 10 year old went for a sleepover at his friends and went on a pedalo and went fishing.
Sunday 22nd
Our oldest needed to move out of the house he was living in and can’t move into his new place until September. It really isn’t practical for him to come back here as there isn’t a room for him and he tends to sleep in the living room. With the 10 year old needing to focus on his upcoming test I didn’t think this was very practical. But as it turns out he was able to rent halls of residence for the month. So my husband drove down with The Sensory Seeker to help him with his temporary move. In the meantime I went shopping for things we needed (and didn’t really need) for camping. The 10 year old came back from his friends and they went to the park, and then the pub (where a girl in his old class lives and they had a water fight).
