Bohan is 4 years old. He only turned 4 a week ago. He’s at the usual “school age”. Which is a funny spot to be because people have been asking me since about January when he starts school. I’ve been mostly avoiding the question.
People like definite answers and as soon as you mention anything other than packing him off to school as soon as the clock strikes midnight on the eve of his fourth trip around the sun they start being very concerned for his university choices. He’s 4.
We always said we would educate our children at home. For many reasons. Not trusting the education system that is offered to us by our government. Believing a classroom isn’t an environment most conducive with learning all about the world and how we fit into it. Understanding that children are all different and require unique care in all aspects of their childhood. And because we want to show them the world, which quite frankly is impossible when you enrol your child onto the rat race as soon as they’re out of nappies and now the government fines you for not handing your kid over ever day. So yeah, home ed makes sense. For us.
And I do always say for us as plainly as I can because I’m not here professing this is the only way. I know it’s not the only way. Bohan LOVES structure, and he loves having a teacher. I often worry that he would absolutely thrive at school and that maybe I’m not making the right decision for him. But then I remember again. He’s 4. We’ve got time.
True to form I’ve been planning and reading and tinkering for weeks with how this Forrest education is going to look but I’ve realised the best thing I can do is just get going with it and see what happens. I’m hoping this whole process will be organic and I’m really open to letting the children guide the way. However, knowing that Bohan likes structure and that I also enjoy a bit of rhythm to our days I have come up with a loose plan to try out.
I’m feeling lucky that we get this grace period. As Bohan has only just turned 4 and in the UK the age of compulsory education is 5; so he can still attend his much loved nursery for a day and a half a week and I have time to figure out what rhythm works for us right now.
At the moment we are starting with 2 days at home, giving us chance to start looking at some work, eking out space for unstructured playing, allowing us time for walking in nature and exploring, seeing friends and to also be together to hopefully figure out this journey collaboratively. Then Bohan has a day and a half at nursery, which gives Romy and I some time together and as she’s still napping I get a bit of downtime too. To end the week we’ve just signed up to the local home education forest school group which is something both kids really enjoy and it also means we can see some of the home ed families in the area too.
My plan for this soft start to our journey also has a very slow easing in period with September literally being a finding our feet month. Both Bohan and I get on with Waldorf style sessions and we’re going to bring that home this week and see how that goes for us.
We’ve got some nice things to cook, and some lovely stories to listen to, and lots of crafting. I’m really looking forward to it.
And of course, I’m really nervous about this whole thing but can’t wait to get going.
I’m hoping to use this space as a journal and I would like to think I could write something everyday but I assume it will be more sporadic than that; but for me it’s good to have a space to collate what we’ve been doing. To reflect.
So here’s to home ed. Do we know what we’re doing? Nope. But we’ll absolutely give it our very best shot.
