Category Archives: General

DFES Home Education Guidance Consultation

This has been appearing on various lists today, so just spreading the word. It’s the text of a letter from the DFES – sent to people who had asked to be kept informed.

The Department has recently decided not to pursue any changes to monitoring arrangements. Instead we are consulting on draft guidelines for LAs prior to their publication. This consultation launches today and will run for three months. The consultation document can be found at www.dfes.gov.uk/consultations.

If you wish to participate you can respond by email to homeeducationconsultation@dfes.gsi.gov.uk.

Best wishes

Elaine Haste
Elective Home Education
Department for Education and Skills

so the rest

typing this round bb – so difficult!

I had a lie in. I’m not sleeping well, and tend to fall asleep 4am and wake wake up with BB at 6-ish and then where possible have a second shot at sleep. I am lucky that chris lets me do it, but it does take more time away form the children.

Whilst I was snoozing, both girls had a wild hama-fest. even BB did a lovely job with the midi beads. SB did me a pattern and put an M in it for mummy, and a lovely wrapping up [luov to mumee from SB]. BB also proud of hers, and we took a picture.

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Both girls also did some colouring in and then some drawing. I read some apple tree farm books to BB, SB read some to herself and then some magic tree house to me. SB then did some violin practice – she declares this new violin is too heavy to hold!
BB did some playdough before lunch and I read to SB some of the rivers book described below. We did the ill fated experiment after lunch! Weather ed indeed!!

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The girls then did lots of outdoor play and running about – getting v wet! Chris finished sorting out the greenhouse, so I moved loads of things there ready to get ready for the great ourdoors [toms for indoors, cucurbits, runner and french beans and sweetcorn] I gave them a good water and some rooster feed.

BB wanted to do happy maize [do you still have any Merry?], so she started on that, and SB did some fimo – she made a face pencil topper and some beads. When she did the hair with our garlic press [thanks merry!] BB also wanted a go. luckily BB made a nice colour rather than brown out of her bits squished together, and lot of hair!

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The girls watched some TV and I hoed the onions and chris made tea. BB fell asleep and had to be jiggled awake – and why I have been blogging with her in my arms! oh, we joined up the princess hats!
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obviously finishing this blog a bit later! SB had britannia and read me a story from usborne young readers for bed. i am getting mentally prepared to go back to work tomorrow. Have a presentation to write as well!

Anyone who hasn’t stated a castle day preference, either email me or go to the protected post below. Thanks

I am drenched, and its all my fault!

we have been doing some f the make it work rivers book we got from the library, and the first experiment is setting up a water cycle. So we set it up in the garden and although we got the water to condense, we didn’t get it to rain. I grumbled, and SB and I and BB all agreed we wished it would rain. Almost immediately it did – though unfortunately not in our experiment!

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So I took the camera in – it was only spitting, and then went outside for the washing – by whcih time it wa a torrential rainstorm and they were all drenched. SB and BB wanting umbrellas and coats – duly provided! I then noticed 2 of our gutters are not doing the job properly – well one gutter and one downpipe. In trying to get the downpipe not to spray allowver the wall, I succeeded in increasing the amount of rain over me – in fact a waterspout,

So I have retired inside, girls are playing like loons outside. The sun is coming out, however, so had better go outside and spot rainbows. Chris is safely inside the greenhouse sorting out the staging.

sociable sunday

I had a lovely sunday with some colleagues at their house/ garden with assorted other colleagues. one set had 4 girls in the 5-9 bracket – good fun for SB. It was a really lovely relaxing time. All thanks to the host and hostess..

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of course we had to stay off topic for as much of the time as possibile always difficult!!

Discussion wrt the fate of the NHS was universally gloomy.

Sb has read loads at home, and made a lovely hama present to take. The other girls tried to teach her cartwheels and handstands. somehow I think we have missed that key time to learn.

bloody pubs

1:30 am and still blaring forth. I know the pub doesn’t do it that often, but there has been too many high days and holidays late night music sessions.

The frantic gardener blog is back up and running

well, sort of! I am moving posts over, and the will do a photo spree!

Here it is – link also in sidebar.

Are there any other HE bloggers with a gardening blog on the side that wants a link?

A typical home ed day? Photomeme thingummy

Actually, in many respects it was. We forgot about it to start with [fairly typical!] BB woke up way to early [fairly typical] Chris eventually went down with her leaving me to have a lie in [fairly typical for the weekend!] An brought me breakfast in bed of croissants – not at all typical! Bored now with saying the typical bits!

Errr, its amazing how much you can forget. Have got flickr uploading wildly. Honestly Chris P, I put up too many photos even for me, but its much quicker than sorting them out! One day I will, I promise!!!!

playing who's who

Anyway, at sometime after 11 we started taking photos, and not at all sure what went on before that, as that was with Chris whilst I was reading the paper! But when I was surfaced enough to remember we were taking photos and also to interact, we played who’s who. BB insists on playing, so not exactly to the rules, but enjoyed! BB and I then spent some time hammering baby toys and playing with the rainbow blocks to make lots of noise, and then constructing brio and making the trains chug around [always a baby train and a mummy train with BB!]. We also did a bit of looking after and watering the plants in the conservatory.

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I had suggested to SB that she might do some education city as we have paid for it and she hasn’t done any for ages and ages. SHe fancied webland, so whilst chris got the next edition downloaded, I read a story from the barefoot book of mothers and daughters - the persephone and demeter story which SB knows well, having had a mad love affair with greek myths and legends. SB then spent HOURS on webland! Not very interesting to photo! We had also missed april’s edition, so she did all of May followed by all of April. BB also did some poisson rouge. In a moment of pure inspiration I have put a hand sticker on the left click of all our mice! She now knows which bit to click – hooray! Also getting more controlled with the mouse movt. Does have her mother’s patience though. wiggling it wildly when it didn’t go where she wanted.

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Had lunch and SB returned to do some more webland. I was bored with this, and checked the mail – hooray her new sports sunglasses arrived. [should stay on as she twizzles about on swings and cycles]. The low start of ebay price was completely overmade up by postage – 6 times the cost!!! i did factor that in though.

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BB desperate to do some painting, and SB wanted to make a princess hat, so combined the 2 activities. At least half our paints were put into pots though – gradually getting SB to take responsibility for setting out and tidying away crafts. hmm She did sort of set out, I totally tidied! Anyway, she and BB painted the hats, and then carried on with further painting. SB did a particularly beautifully coloured handprint. Eventually they declared themselves painted out, and a quick hose down and they went outside to play.

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SB and BB scootered/triked about for a bit, but SB hurt her poorly knee, so I re-dressed it, and she read a book about food through the ages with intermittent waily patches. I made them some popcorn to eat. BB played Bob the Builder, moving dirt around the garden, and generally enjoyed rampaging about, playing hide and seek etc.

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SB got fed up reading the book, and wanted to make the egyptian breads we have made in the past from the 120 history projects book. it was sold to BB as a snail cake – the word cake enticing her in from the garden to join in! SO we added mess onto mess in the kitchen, and all enjoyed making the egyptian sweet bread. BB and SB enjoyed competitive flour and butter rubbing, so there was a fair bit of loss!!

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Daddy had been to the shops btw as we were all out of food. He returned as the egyptian breads were put in the oven, and didn’t blanch too much at the appearance of the kitchen. BB being up for over 12 hours was swept off to a bath, and SB has been outside again while I have done this and put flickrs onto the uploader. We do plant to perhaps sellotape the hats up before bed, and SB has promised a violin practice of frere jaques – she will moan when she has to do it after tea, but it has been the only non-negotiable thing to do today! SO since we have done all the autonomy, its time to do the violin! I will obviously be adding photos after the girls gone to bed!

follow up! Well, I had set that up, but chris rebooted ‘puter without checking whether I was doing anything! SB did the violin with enthusiasm – and very pleased that a nearly recognisable tune coming! read britannia, and she read a young usborne readers book [and is in fact still reading it]. Joining up the hats will need to wait till tomorrow, as will eating the egyptian breads!

Links to the last 2 photomemes in the sidebar, and this one will join it now the photo’s are added. Look forward to seeing others’ photo days.

A New Ancient Egyptian sweet bread!

Being monitored

SB has been much put out by BB’s 2 year check. she wants someone to check her! I think I’ll give the Nana’s that opportunity rather than the ell ee ay. Honestly!

An out and about day

We got up and went to Merry’s house – amazingly within the timeframe I had given her! Girls all ran away to pay. I met fiver the rabbit [of course he knew i was coming with his prescience] and admire the work on the garden. Also dumped/ generously gave some spare toms and peppers and onion sets.

The stock cupboard STILL didn’t have landlocked in it, nor did it have the egyptian thing Michelle brought back from her visit – honestly!! but both are apparently on the way.

While we were there, BB counted to 10!!!! first time she has done that – usually we have 1,2,3,4,6 err 6,6,6. The older girls had a convoluted imaginative thing going. we adults packed boxes and did a minor stock tidy and lots of tea.

We all went to the mudpud group in the afternoon. Its been v quiet for the last year with the loss of Merry and Tammy, and also as there was an insurance problem. SB was really excited to go and loved it. A gardening theme. Some poor misguided organiser left me in charge of the baking – i obviously don’t flickr photos of the chaos afterwards of flour everywhere! Luckilly SB and Merry’s girls were willing helpers in the tidy up.

When we got home, SB did some violin practice – still starting on A. We all made spanish omelette together for tea – yummy. Sb was going to do some maths, but talked me into letting her have some computer time for the new webland – but I notice she is cbeebing. When I’ve finished blogging, I’ll suggest to her we play a game or 2, and perhaps read a story from the barefoot book of mothers and daughters i bought from ebay.

Anyway – we do lots of conversational ed, which rarely if ever gets blogged. But I will blog this one, as SB is concerned about money, charity and people who don’t have enough. My mother sponsors a child through some charity [well i think it is a village thing rather than an individual] and she got a letter when we were there. SB is very keen that we do something too, so will take recommendations if there are any.

Johari window time

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and also the nohari

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