I worked in education before I was a home-educating parent, so I have sat on both sides of this conversation. If you are somewhere between wondering and deciding, start with the seven questions I wish someone had handed me.
Anna outdoors on Dartmoor, mid-morning, three-quarter length. Walking, or stopped and looking out — not posed, not to the lens. Weather as found: flat light and a coat that has been worn are both welcome. Adults only, no child in frame. Documentary, no filter, no stock.
Photography brief
Where you are
Most parents arrive here in one of three places. None of them is the wrong one, and none of them needs fixing today.
Nobody does this because it is easy. They do it because their child is worth the trouble.
Where this comes from
I am not a specialist in home education and I would not trust anyone who said they were. I am a parent doing it, with a working life already spent on how children learn.
I home educate my own children, including through the terms that went badly. Nothing here is theory which has not survived a Tuesday afternoon falling apart.
Primary and secondary, state and independent. I know what school is trying to do and exactly where it runs out of room, which is worth knowing before you decide to leave it.
I helped start Termly because finding a group or a tutor took three Facebook groups and a rumour. It is in development rather than finished, and I will say so every time.
At our table
The figures are the least interesting part of this. What changed was how they felt about learning.
A free guide
Know Your Why
The free guide
Seven questions I did not know to ask, written out plainly. It is not a case for home education. It is the seven things worth being honest with yourself about first.
About fifteen minutes to read, and rather longer to answer.
How we got here
Five beats, in the order they happened. None of them felt like a turning point at the time.
The kitchen table at the end of a working morning: open books, a half-finished worksheet, two mugs, good afternoon light. Objects only, no people.
Photography brief
In 2020 they learned at the kitchen table like everyone else’s children. I noticed something I had not expected: the slower pace and the one-to-one attention suited them.
We had a school in mind and it did not work out. That is a sentence I can write calmly now. At the time it was not calm.
Home education started as a fallback and turned into a decision. We sat down, looked at what each of them actually needed, and chose it deliberately rather than by default.
The academic side improved, which I had hoped for. What I had not expected was how much steadier the house became, or how much we started to like each other’s company.
Groups, tutors, workshops, trips. All of it existed and none of it was findable without three Facebook groups and a rumour. That gap is what Termly came out of.
A worn exercise book open on a windowsill, one page filled in an untidy hand. Objects only. Warm daylight, no styling.
Photography brief
Every plan I have written that ignored who they actually are was abandoned inside a fortnight. Start with the child and the plan survives contact with a Wednesday.
Dartmoor in flat winter light, a footpath and a drystone wall, nobody in shot. Documentary landscape, no filter.
Photography brief
A child who believes they can learn will catch up on anything. A child who has decided they are bad at it will not, however good the resource is.
A quiet corner of a living room mid-afternoon: a blanket, a stack of library books, a cold cup of tea. Objects only, low light, honest.
Photography brief
We do less than most timetables would suggest and cover more than I expected. Rushing is the thing that costs us, every single time.
A home-ed meet-up in a village hall, wide and from behind, adults talking over a table of materials. Adults only in frame — no child is placed until written consent is on file.
Photography brief
Choosing this is not a vow. We have changed how we do it twice, and each change made it better rather than admitting defeat.
I could not find the groups, tutors and activities that were already happening near us. Termly is the answer to that, built with people who had the same problem.
It is in development rather than finished. If it would be useful where you are, you can look, or you can tell me what you need it to do.
In development
An early look. These screens are in progress and will change.