Tag Archives: Granny

Monkey goes to London

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This post is written by Monkey.

On Tuesday I went to London on a train with Granny.  On the way we played I-Spy and we sang “Yellow Bird.”  When the train stopped we got off and went on an underground train.  We walked past Tower Bridge and we saw that the bridge was open so we walked nearer to it.  We saw two boats go under it and we watched it close.  I noticed there was an Olympic sign on the top part of the bridge.  We went to the flat and I saw my bed and bedroom, and also Grandpa.  Then I had supper which was pasta with cheese and tomato in.  After supper, Granny read me a story called “Katie and the British Artists” by James Mayhew, and we watched some football on the television.

Next morning at breakfast I had Oatibix and Weetabix, and then I had a bath and hair wash.  Granny checked that everything was in my backpack and then we went out.  We went on an underground train and a bus to the National Gallery.  First we went to the cafe and I had some lemon cake and juice which I shared with Granny. Then we went in a room with some pictures and we saw one which is in the book about Katie.  It is a picture of a horse and it is called “Whistlejacket.”  It is by George Stubbs.

We found all of the pictures from the book, except for “The Painter’s Daughters Chasing a Butterfly.” I also saw another picture I liked which was called “The Archers” and I decided to draw it in my notebook.  It is by Sir Henry Raeburn.

When we were going out of the gallery, we heard the sound of bagpipes, and a few minutes later we saw the piper.  Then we went home on the train.

Home Ed on the move

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One of the things I love most about the Home Ed lifestyle is that you can take your classroom anywhere.  This is especially useful for us when Suburban Dad is away overnight for work.  The children really miss him and daily life is just that little bit harder for me, so our favourite thing to do when Daddy is away is to go and stay with Granny.  Having lots of extra attention from Granny makes the absence of Daddy more tolerable for the kids;  I also enjoy the company and the change of scene (it helps that my mum lives in a very beautiful rural location!)

Another benefit is that without the regular activities we fill up our week with at home, the big ones certainly get a lot more concentrated learning done, while the little ones are having a wonderful time playing with Granny.  I am not saying it doesn’t work at home – it just works differently. For me it is a good balance to have a fairly busy schedule most of the time, with lots of opportunities for socialising and shared learning, but to get away from it all occasionally and enjoy having more time to develop the boys’ learning and also relax and have fun together.

I really like being able to cover more subjects in one day without having to rush from one to the next.  In two days, we have done Maths, Reading, Spelling, Story Writing, Science, Geography, History, Latin, French and violin practice.  The children have also had plenty of free time for drawing and making things, playing with lego and trains, board games and puzzles, listening to stories, playing in the garden (Grandmother’s footsteps, stuck in the mud, blowing bubbles…) and probably loads of other things I’ve forgotten.

Today we have come home, and it’s good to be back.  We had a great afternoon at our small local Home Ed group, with lots of outdoor play and some brilliant Science activities (making sherbet which was very successful, and using lemons as batteries which is a work in progress!)  The big boys then went to Beavers before returning home tired but happy.

So thanks to mum for a lovely relaxing couple of days, to our good friends who hosted the group this afternoon and to the Beavers leaders who work hard every week, without much thanks I suspect.  Hmm, perhaps I need to go and thank all these people, in case they are not reading this.  It’s good to write all this down – it makes me realise how lucky we are.