Parent, Leicestershire
My stories
My School Story
My son always had a huge passion for learning (until he started school!).
Foundation stage was fine but from Year One he started expressing that he wasn’t happy at school.
We kept trying until Year Three when I finally deregsitered him.
He had a great group of friends and was exceeding academically and the teachers had no concerns and told me he was fine at school.
It was when he came home that he would have emotional meltdowns and anxiety at bedtime and in the mornings about going to school.
I would have deregsitered him sooner but my husband wasn’t onboard with home education.
Eventually I got him to understand.
I had worked at my son’s school and this gave me a huge insight into how things were and the education system and it didn’t sit well with me at all. My gut instinct was screaming out that the environment wasn’t good for my son or indeed any child.
Expecting children as young as 7 to sit at a desk for hours a day with very little physical time is just wrong. They even took away the opportunities of playtime with rules that they imposed ( no childhood games like football, hide and seek, tag were allowed!).
My son would often finish how work early and the teacher wouldn’t challenge him and he was getting extremely bored and frustrated. He would draw comic strips when he had finished his work but the teacher would tell him off for this and throw his comics in the bin.
When he told me this it broke my heart. His best friend was told off for ‘daydreaming’ and given a ‘reflection sheet’ which were given out for bad behaviour.
I witnessed bullying not only between children but between staff and children and between staff. A very toxic environment.
Foundation stage was fine but from Year One he started expressing that he wasn’t happy at school.
We kept trying until Year Three when I finally deregsitered him.
He had a great group of friends and was exceeding academically and the teachers had no concerns and told me he was fine at school.
It was when he came home that he would have emotional meltdowns and anxiety at bedtime and in the mornings about going to school.
I would have deregsitered him sooner but my husband wasn’t onboard with home education.
Eventually I got him to understand.
I had worked at my son’s school and this gave me a huge insight into how things were and the education system and it didn’t sit well with me at all. My gut instinct was screaming out that the environment wasn’t good for my son or indeed any child.
Expecting children as young as 7 to sit at a desk for hours a day with very little physical time is just wrong. They even took away the opportunities of playtime with rules that they imposed ( no childhood games like football, hide and seek, tag were allowed!).
My son would often finish how work early and the teacher wouldn’t challenge him and he was getting extremely bored and frustrated. He would draw comic strips when he had finished his work but the teacher would tell him off for this and throw his comics in the bin.
When he told me this it broke my heart. His best friend was told off for ‘daydreaming’ and given a ‘reflection sheet’ which were given out for bad behaviour.
I witnessed bullying not only between children but between staff and children and between staff. A very toxic environment.
My Home Ed Story
Since doing Home Education my son is much happier, healthier and his confidence has soared!
My son has found groups he enjoys going to such as forest school and he attends a computer science class and he now has the time to explore his interests.
He has made new friends and we have also maintained his friendships from school which is important to him.
He has opened up more about his time at school and I’m so glad I took him out.
He used to describe school as ‘like prison’ and I know his friends said the same.
He also has said ‘school is no place for creativity’ which is so sad.
He can now choose what he learns, choose what he draws, we can talk to each other and discuss things whenever he wants to.
The whole education and school system needs drastic changes to make it a safe and enjoyable place for our children.
We deregistered then went travelling to New Zealand!
We have hands on learning experiences now and the freedom to choose what my son wants to learn
My son has found groups he enjoys going to such as forest school and he attends a computer science class and he now has the time to explore his interests.
He has made new friends and we have also maintained his friendships from school which is important to him.
He has opened up more about his time at school and I’m so glad I took him out.
He used to describe school as ‘like prison’ and I know his friends said the same.
He also has said ‘school is no place for creativity’ which is so sad.
He can now choose what he learns, choose what he draws, we can talk to each other and discuss things whenever he wants to.
The whole education and school system needs drastic changes to make it a safe and enjoyable place for our children.
We deregistered then went travelling to New Zealand!
We have hands on learning experiences now and the freedom to choose what my son wants to learn
How I think schools could be better.
Good relationships between teachers and children.
More time outside and more physical time.
The freedom to choose learning topics or at least input from children.
More staff supervision on the playground .
Smaller classes and learning tailored to childrens needs
More time outside and more physical time.
The freedom to choose learning topics or at least input from children.
More staff supervision on the playground .
Smaller classes and learning tailored to childrens needs