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NOTICE ON PICS - All pics on this blog (unless otherwise stated) are my personal work. DO NOT take pics from this blog without seeking my permission first! Bless you.

Welcome to my blog. It is updated weekly with pictures and projects from our homeschool - maybe you can find something to inspire you :) I have a (no longer updated) materials page elsewhere on my website and will, occasionally, post my homemade materials in this blog.

I'm married to Tim (delivery driver and gorgeous musician), have 2 daughters, live on the south coast of the UK and have 1 aging cat (Hemmingway or Hemmy for short). I love reading, yoga, crafts, baking, daft old comedies, music and teaching.

On this page you can find my homeschool blog, if you want to read my general, day-to-day blog, click the link below :)

My NOT Homeschool Blog!

Great Links:

Hands of a Child

Homeschool Share

Mathwire

Nature Detectives

NOTE ON PICTURES: This shouldn't be necessary but I have, sadly, noticed growing cases. Please DO NOT link directly to pictures on this website - it steals my bandwidth and is BAD! I CAN trace you if you do and I will take action.

Tuesday, June 23, 2009

So, how was it?

I don't even know where to begin on our little excursion to the school this afternoon. I truly wish I could sit here and say it was a positive and refreshing experience but it wasn't. It was tedious, stifling, patronising, boring and, frankly, a bit upsetting.

So what annoyed/upset/irritated me?

1. Having to sign THREE times - once to get in the building, once to get into the hall (less than a minute later!!) and once to GET OUT the hall at home time.
2. Being talked down to and patronised by the Reception year teacher who told me to "go natter with the other mums dear" (like, do I need to be told that - I will if I want to!!) and made a comment to the effect that, presumably, I would be getting tutors in to get Rosie (she knew that we home educated) through her secondary education. Erm... no.
3. The almost cattle-market appearance of a bunch of insane mothers fighting each other off for the last 5-6 year old cardigan on the uniform stand (I kid you not).
4. The smell of the place (ok, I'm being picky now)

What about April? Well, predictably, she took it all in her stride, didn't hesitate to go off and play when we got there and froze a boy off with the sheer force of her stare when he tried to steal a car from her. She went off perfectly ok to have a story in the other room leaving the mums behind (to "natter" presumably) and came back with the same indifferent expression on her face.

On getting home I had a quiet chat with her, gently probing for her views, asking her whether she still wanted to go to "big school". She says yes, because they've got a room like Tumbletots (gym equipment). That, for me, isn't good enough - just today a woman from a local gym class that I had put April's name down for AGES ago (when definately going to homeschool) phoned to say they had a place now ............. talk about timing!

April wasn't excited today, wasn't full of herself, wasn't raring to go. She was indifferent - not scared or crying or worried just .....indifferent.

Tim thinks we should still let her go and try school and he also says that we shouldn't muck her about by saying she's going to go one minute and then not the next. He's right off course. Part of me feels now we've got this far we might as well see it through and just see what happens. Part of me doesn't want to do that though ..... because ... don't know. I just keep seeing that indifferent, guarded, almost emotionless little face in my mind and it's bothering me.