I know the title says ‘homeschooling blog’, we don’t use that term generally in the UK, as by law it’s ‘home education’. However for keyword purposes people seem to search from homeschooling blog more than home education! So I will have to use it occasionally if I want people to see my work!
February went past rather quickly, it’s only a day shorter than usual months at 29 days this year. But it felt insanely quick! The kids have been doing their usual activities, although the 12 year old is feeling less motivated. So next month I will be trying to add in a little more structure just for him. Otherwise his apparent go-to is to sit on the sofa complaining he’s bored and annoying the 10 year old. To be fair there have been some bugs going round too, so he’s needed a little break. But a little motivation doesn’t hurt!
We spent a week in the Shetland Islands this month. It was for a press trip, but the kids obviously learnt a LOT. The favourites were spotting otters and Up Helly Aa. You can read more about our visit to Shetland here and specifically the island of Unst here.
Table of Contents
Read More About Our Home Educating Family
- Our Home Education Philosophy
- Best Books For Home Educators and Home Schoolers
- How Do You Teach Kids Without Formal Lessons
- The Cost of Homeschooling in the UK
- Educational Activities For Kids
- A Letter To The New Home Educators
- How To Teach Your Child To Read At Home
History – Homeschooling Blog
It’s something I say every month, but podcasts are really a staple of the kids history learning. We listen to various podcasts on repeat, but the favourite history themed podcasts to listen to are Who, When, Wow and Greeking Out. The kids also have enjoyed a few history books, including a few about the Second World War.
Shetland
As we were away in Shetland we of course came across a lot of history involving the Norse. Vikings first steps onto land that is now British, was on Shetland. So whilst in Shetland we discovered what their boats and longhouses looked like thanks to the reconstructions on the island of Unst. Along with plenty of intersting artefacts in the Shetland Musuem, Lerwick.
We also saw some Norse houses at Jarlshof. However, there were much more intersting Iron Age wheel houses and brochs, and the older prehistoric roundhouses. Jarlshof is such an amazing site with a huge amount of history. It’s a shame that less money is invested up North, as Jarlshof needs a much bigger visitor centre and more excavations due to it’s exciting discoveries. The kids were particularly excited about dressing up and seeing the replica Norse artefacts in the visitor centre.
We also went on a geology tour, learning about the volcano that once stood in the North West of Shetland. There is plenty of evidence of volcanic activity if you know where to look. Fortunately our guide was excellent with this, showing us rocks that were shot out forcefully from side vents, bubbles in lava and even tiny pieces of agate from deep within the volcano.
Another history related place is Muness Castle on Unst, built in the 16th Century. Although it’s in ruins now, you can see the remains of fireplaces and even a bread oven in the kitchens. the kids also loved the tradition of Up Helly Aa, which is only just over 100 years old. But seeing people dressed up in traditional Viking dress leading a procession of fire down to a wooden boat, was an amazing spectacle! They were hypnotised by the flames as the each torch was thrown onto the boat, burning it to ashes.
Edinburgh
Earlier in February the children and I tried out an digital treasure hunt around Edinburgh. We used an app to solve different clues around the city. Most of them were historical emblems or writing. Including the city coat of arms, the heart that was placed where the old entrance to the jail was. Even directing us to the inspiration for Tom Riddle in Greyfriars Graveyard.
Science – Homeschooling Blog
As with our history topics, science always begins with podcasts. Not because we have an idea of any routine when it comes to science learning, we just play them whenever we’re in the car! These include Mysteries of Science, Tumble, Wow In The World, Earth Rangers and How To Be An Earthling.
Both children have been using a few of their science sets. The eldest has had several MEL science boxes unopened, so he tried a new one to make a sugar snake and elephant toothpaste. It involved fire and chemicals, so he was pretty happy with it! The youngest made a volcano out of plaster of paris. Painted it and then used it for the old bicarbonate and vinegar chemical reaction. He’s also been using his Gravitrax a lot, creating various marble runs using the pieces.
Whilst in Aberdeen, waiting for the evening ferry to Shetland, the kids and I chose to visit the Aberdeen Science centre. The science centre was refurbished in 2019 and lots of exciting exhibits. All the exhibits are hands-on, so the kids had a great day time trying everything out. Most children are at school on a week day, which means we had most the centre to ourselves. The eldest had great fun creating and testing different car models. Whereas the youngest was rather engaged with the vacuum tubes and making a slinky continuously move.
Biology is also science! So I’ll include various wildlife encounters and information we learnt here too. We saw both otters and seals whilst in Shetland, enjoying watching the otters feeding and swimming along the shore. Then learning about seal behaviour at Hillswick Wildlife sanctuary, none of us knew that existed! There was also a lot of interesting information about wildlife at Sumburgh Head lighthouse. Particularly about whale behaviour and how much plastic is found in seabirds stomachs.
Geography
The children have learnt exactly where the Shetland islands are, and also why they are sometimes misplaced in a box beside the UK!
We’ve also spent time talking about different maps around the house. With children learning more about where different countries are located.
The geology tour on Shetland also covered volcanoes and volcanic rock. Which is another part of geography education. There was also some discussion on water currents in the Atlantic and wind farms.
English
The eldest is continuing reading all the books around the house. Although he’s getting bored waiting for the last book in the Wings of Fire series from the library!
Littlest has been reading the Princess in Black books to me everyday, to get some practice reading. He’s always had time to practise reading on his own, but if he’s not reading allowed he just tends to look at the pictures. So it’s more important for him to actually read aloud to us. Which is different to his brother who started reading in his head himself. But he’s definitely improving in his reading fluency, which is a win for me!
I’ve also bought the children a new fancy A5 notebook each. Once a week they’re asked to write whatever they want in it. The main reason is just to get them to practice handwriting, as neither choose to write often. Hopefully this will help so their writing is more legible as they get older.
Maths – Homeschooling Blog
The kids have been using Prodigy again for practising maths, although they’ve both now completed the mission of the game. So it’s not quite as exciting as it once was!
With this in mind I think we’ll need to find something else they enjoy to work on maths. Of course we do have day-to-day maths such as measuring, board games and similar.
The Arts
The littlest has still been playing with his marbling kit quite a lot this month. Making some interesting marbled paper designs!
We’ve also visited an art exhibition at Shetland Museum. This was an exhibition filled with wooden sculptures and wall art. They were amazing and many have subtle messages, plus plenty of fishing themed pieces.
Clubs and Groups
The kids have been attending all their usual groups and clubs. Both go to a fortnightly climbing group where they work toward their NICAS qualifications. And both go to Scouts/Cubs, dodgeball and chess groups each week.
Littlest also has 2 drama groups, 2 gymnastic groups, the National Youth Choir of Scotland and 2 dancing groups (ballet, tap, modern, acro and commercial). I don’t think he’d manage all that if he was in school! He also currently has rehearsals for a local theatre show once a week too.
Socialisation – Homeschooling Blog
As you can see above, the kids both do a fair few different groups each, especially the youngest. They have plenty of time to be social in just these clubs!
However, we also meet up with friends and other home educators regularly, at least twice a week. Then there are the other people they meet when out and about around our town, or when travelling. They quite happily chatted to other adults when we were in Shetland, so there is definitely no difference in socialisation to schooled children. In fact I’d argue they get more time to socialise!
Physical Education
Physical education comes in all forms, from walking as a family in the countryside, to playing with their friends at the park. Of course there is also the different activities such as dodgeball, gymnastic and dancing that keeps the kids fit too. This is really a topic we never have to worry about too much.
All Our Home Education Diary Posts For 2024
- January 2024
- February 2024
- March 2024
- April 2024
- May 2024
- June 2024
- July 2024
- August 2024
- September 2024
- October 2024
- November 2024
- December 2024
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