Tips for Effective Homeschooling in the UK

Homeschooling in the UK has several challenges and benefits for educators. Parents, especially homeschool mothers, find it difficult to announce that they are not sending their children to school due to possible uninvited comments from the public, their close friends, and their family members. In addition, some argue that removing a child from school predisposes the child to be in illegal and unregistered educational centres or worsens the situation. However, some home-educate their children while waiting for a suitable or preferable school. Others prefer a low or no-tech perspective and avoid the digital revolution. Other parents are concerned about bullying at school or fear their child might not get individual attention in state schools due to the size of a particular class.

Some families fear mainstream schools might not adequately support their children’s needs. Other cases include talented children who might find school stressful and distracting for their practices, such as music and sports, or require more hours, which a regular school may fail to provide. 

On the other hand, a parent with no experience can effectively teach their child at home using several ways, including creating a designated learning space, following a daily schedule, mapping out the school year ahead of time, taking learning beyond the classroom, and collaborating with other homeschoolers. 

Tips for Teaching Effectively without experience

Create a dedicated learning area.

Even though homeschooling is fun and exciting, it is messy and living or learning under the same roof might become monotonous, leading to disorganization and chaos. Such a chaotic environment does not ensure happy children for both parents and children. Therefore, ensuring tidiness and material organization and creating a particular learning space is helpful. Additionally, as an educator, it can be beneficial to post a printed schedule at the learning hub so that learners know the specific tasks they must undertake and the goals to achieve within a given period. 

Follow a daily schedule

Since homeschooling offers flexibility in your child’s education, a schedule is helpful because a child can get easily distracted and veer from the focus of the teaching. Children succeed with a basic plan that they must follow daily. Through colour-coding by activity type or subject, kids can see what to work on a specific day and use swim lanes to track their daily routine and when they work together on a particular project. Effective teaching requires an educator to have a routine for learners to adapt and comprehend what they want to achieve quickly.

Be Creative and Engaging

An educator must be very creative in developing good teaching aids for effective teaching. Home education requires more than textbooks or classroom set-up to enhance teaching. Educators can use pictures and diagrams that help a child visualize the reality of what they learn. Parents must engage their kids in enjoyable teaching methods that ensure full attention throughout a lesson. For example, they can engage the kids in questions that keep them active.

Mapping Out the School Year

Educators must map out the school year ahead to trace their goals and plan major projects. They map the curriculum via organization charts, mind maps, roadmaps, and flowcharts. Plan visualization helps an educator stay focused and presents opportunities to assess a child’s progress. 

Learning beyond classroom

The unique opportunity with home education is that it is a flexible way to educate your child. The opportunity to learn beyond the classroom is one of the critical benefits homeschoolers enjoy.

Children can play board games, practice skills like cooking and baking, visit local businesses, and visit the library. It is vital, therefore, to create time for moments like this on their daily schedules.

Collaboration with other homeschoolers

An educator must appreciate that there are other rich and diverse homeschooling communities everywhere, and being in charge of their child’s education does not imply that a person must work solely. 

Connecting with other homeschoolers available in your area or online can be beneficial, meaning you can work together and share resources. Resources can include textbooks, costs of homeschooling trips, and other tangible and intangible materials, such as knowledge shared from different perspectives.

Make learning a Family Activity

Parents should share their enthusiasm for learning with their kids. For example, what subject or activity does everyone in that family enjoy?

It is possible through the following measures. 

• Reading together
• Exploring new hobbies or having a particular family member teach or share a skill
• Crafting
• Being a tourist in one’s town
• Visiting the museum

Families can take part in teaching and learning in many ways. For example, families can organize zoo trips or practice home economic skills. Additionally, they should be creative and get involved for fun as a family to make the experience memorable.

Seeking Guidance and Professional Development

Learning is expansive and a process that requires one to interact with other people. Educators must seek guidance for professional development. They must interact with other minds who have been in the teaching field for a long time. You can look for other teaching methods different from the style you use to gain inspiration on how you deliver your teaching programme.

Keep Learning and Growing

Engaging in continuous learning and development as an educator enhances your teaching methods. Home education means something other than that an educator should depend on what they already know alone. It is through their continuous learning that you discover new ways of teaching. In addition, you will uncover your strengths and weaknesses, which will give you the opportunity to go beyond your comfort zone to be the best educator possible. 

Conclusion

Home education requires a lot of creativity and engagement. Parents must consider indoor and outdoor learning to minimize boredom and chaos under a single roof. Where there is a will, there is a way!

If you are in the United Kingdom interested in homeschooling and would like to learn more, feel free to download our FREE EBOOK to help you on your homeschool journey. 

References

Benefits and disadvantages of homeschooling (no date) Education Corner – Education That Matters. Available at: https://www.educationcorner.com/benefits-disadvantages-of-homeschooling.html (Accessed: April 23, 2023).

Chung, H., Seo, H., Birkett, H., & Forbes, S. (2022). Working from Home and the Division of Childcare and Housework among Dual-Earner Parents during the Pandemic in the UK. Merits, 2(4), 270-292.

Home Education – A Parent’s Guide (2023) the Good Schools Guide. The Good Schools Guide. Available at: https://www.goodschoolsguide.co.uk/choosing-a-school/alternative-schools/home-education-a-parents-guide (Accessed: April 23, 2023).

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