Does anyone here home educate?

That was a bit longer the I intended!

Sorry!

And I forgot to add that it's amazing to be a part of my dd's journey like this. We love every minute of it

I HE my DD (and ds too - although he's only 16 months so it's mostly by accident lol)

I suppose my DD is missing out on some 'hard-knock-life' lessons but she's gaining a whole lot more imo.

There are pros and cons to anything, and every parent will do what they think is right for their child. Your daughter's experience is truly shocking, and anyone in that situation would be inclined to do as you have done.

That's the point I suppose. Each child is different and some really love school. It really should be what suits your child best

My dd does miss some parts of school I think - she often talks about the school dinners lol!

My dd does miss some parts of school I think - she often talks about the school dinners lol!

They are certainly much better than they used to be - I have terrible memories of egg mornay and smash mashed potatoes. I didn't like eggs, mashed potatoes (but Smash was particularly yuk!), or cheese sauce and we HAD to eat it or we got into trouble. Oh yes and tapioca pudding
Some things have definitely changed for the better

Not at all. We meet up with many children, still see old school friends, etc, etc. They go to clubs, groups, activities, etc where they come across all sorts, hear all sorts, etc. We walk down the street, go to the shops, library, etc, etc. It's all there as well, not just in schools!

Glad to hear you found some clubs around here for the boys to go to! I know the last time we spoke you were struggling to find any clubs that you could get to. What are they doing nowadays? We went to most of the clubs over the holidays. Did we miss you?

So are you saying that home ed is better because it removes peer pressure? Again, I think it's important to learn to make your own decisions.

No, I am saying that schools increase the likelihood of peer pressure and bullying which is common in larger groups of same age children (specifically in the classroom).

It almost sounds as though you are saying that peer pressure and bullying are a good thing and are necessary to produce children who can think for themselves which is clearly ridiculous.

HE children are very good at thinking for themselves and making their own decisions.

I would have thought the main advantages of home education were that the child can follow his own interests, not be held back by the rest of the class, not be limited to a school timetable if he is engrossed in something, being able to have more frequent, meaningful and tailored outings etc etc. I appreciate that there are additional benefits for children with special educational needs, for whatever reason.

There are lots of very good reasons to HE, the main reason might be completely different for every family.

So are you saying that home ed is better because it removes peer pressure? Again, I think it's important to learn to make your own decisions.

No, I am saying that schools increase the likelihood of peer pressure and bullying which is common in larger groups of same age children (specifically in the classroom).

It almost sounds as though you are saying that peer pressure and bullying are a good thing and are necessary to produce children who can think for themselves which is clearly ridiculous.

HE children are very good at thinking for themselves and making their own decisions.

Actually that's my impression so I didn't really understand the argument. Obviously I don't think peer pressure and bullying are a good thing, but in reality they are something that most people will experience throughout their life at some point or another.

Oh yes and tapioca pudding

Am I the only person in the whole world that REALLY loves tapioca? Like really really thinks it's lush!

Having said that, I also used to go to the very front of the dessert queue as I loved the 'skin' from the custard. nomnom (I still do too )

She went to school and experienced some bullying - by a member of staff. That staff member kept her job despite an investigation finding she was completely out of control with her approach to children. The lesson my daughter learnt was that if you report being hurt at school by an adult you'll have to speak to the police, social workers and the Local Authority. Then you'll have to face that person on a daily basis despite being so scared when the incident took place that you wet yourself and had countless nightmares.

This is what happened to my DD, who was 9 at the time and could speak up for herself, but because she has special needs her cries for help went ignored. We didn't have to go to the police, but we did have to complain directly to the Director of Children and Families before anything was done about it. An apology from the head teacher and local authority means nothing when the teacher is allowed to continue to teach though.

A recent poll of HE families revealed that in 40% of cases, one of the main reasons for withdrawing a child from school to HE, was bullying by a member of staff.

ETA: Obviously there were other reasons we decided to HE instead of just moving schools and my other children are home educated for lots of different reasons.