Home Grown Kids Newsletter 1 May/June 2007 Welcome to Home Grown Kids. If you home educate, flexi-school or are simply interested in home education, and you live in or around the North Devon area, this is the group for you. In the newsletter, you will find a calendar of events open to all home educators, information relevant to home educators, and a point of contact for anyone interested in finding out more about what we do. Welcome to our first newsletter! I’m a bit unsure about what is expected, and would welcome feedback. I would also like other families to volunteer to edit their own newsletter (I will email all the important bits). Its fun, and you and your children will learn loads! I’m Reb, reach me on reb@realmusic.f9.co.uk.

The backbone of the group is its regular meetings on Wednesdays between 1 and 4pm. Come along if you haven’t already met the group. Activities are available for kids and plenty of parents are around to chat to. Ideas for activities or help are always welcome.
In addition, the group members also offer ideas about what to do together. As the meet is closed over June, July and August, members have offered all sorts of opportunities from barbeques to body boarding, swimming to science. Regular meetings at Funderzone in Barnstaple are arranged on Fridays at 11am, in term time. Check the calendar for dates, and the newsletter for more details of upcoming events.
If you feel you could offer something, email or call me and I’ll advertise it in the newsletter. It doesn’t have to be huge, or include the whole group. A small craft event for under 7’s, for example, can be advertised for your own home and limited to a manageable number of children.
You are always welcome to come and support and offer ideas to the committee. Committee meetings are open to all and are advertised in the newsletter. News: The group has, due to the efforts of a few resourceful and determined members, gained a grant from the Local Network Fund of £3,600. There is a breakdown of the resources and workshops that are offered later in the newsletter. Well done to all concerned, many children will benefit. Important information: Main contacts for the group are:
Hayley (Chair) yarnacott@yahoo.co.uk Gaynor (joint secretary) gthorne@warkleigh.freeserve.co.uk Debbie (joint secretary) dthorne@talktalk.net Helen martin@stephensondesign.co.uk Jo jkaufmanhill@btinternet.com Becky beckyindevon@aol.com Website address: www.homegrownkids.co.uk/ Education Otherwise address: www.education-otherwise.org/ All membership enquiries:
Gaynor Thorne, Warkleigh Barton,
Umberleigh, North Devon. EX37 9DE Next committee meeting May 22nd at Hayleys house 7pm phone for directions 01271 830456 Everyone welcome. Regular events: The Wednesday meet will continue through May but take a summer break from the beginning of June to the end of August. 1-4pm on Wednesdays. Contact Hayley for details.
The Funderzone meets on Fridays at 11am will continue in term time. Contact Becky for details. Comments from children: I enjoy home education because you don’t get picked on and there’s fun stuff to do always. Everyone’s friendly. I suggest trips to the library to use their computers. I had fun with that last time and want to do it again. Come along to the group because you always have fun and meet new friends. John J I find it more relaxed and more fun being home educated. Christopher J Personal note: As a new member, I have been impressed by the warmth and enthusiasm I have experienced in the group. If you haven’t already done so, come along, brave it up and say hello to people. They are a really nice bunch, and have a lot of support to offer. Reb J

A Dying Breed

This was contributed by Hayley, as Elsa has had the poem published. How brilliant are these kids? Well done Elsa.
Many students, especially those who are poor, intuitively know what the schools do for them. They school them to confuse process and substance. Once these become blurred, a new logic is assumed: the more treatment there is, the better are the results; or, escalation leads to success. The pupil is thereby "schooled" to confuse teaching with learning, grade advancement with education, a diploma with competence, and fluency with the ability to say something new. His imagination is "schooled" to accept service in place of value.

Ivan Illich Deschooling Society (1973:9)

I have asked members to contribute an account of some aspect of their decision or experiences of home education. Hayley has kindly agreed to go first.

The Lost Boy

Do you remember that film, the one where if you fell asleep, even momentarily, aliens brought in these great big morphing marrows and… well, I won’t go on, you either remember it or you don’t and I wouldn’t want to give anyone nightmares! The reason I ask is because it always felt like that’s what happened to Callum. We delivered Callum to school at the age of five and were told, by more than one teacher, he was engaged, eager, always the first with his hand up, kind, caring and a credit to us (I’m not bragging here it’s integral to the plot). He flew through two years, and then in his third year, worn down and out, he nodded off for a moment. In an instant the boy I knew was gone.
He started to complain he didn’t want to go to school. He was being bullied he said. Each morning became a battleground with emotions running high and Callum literally hanging onto the door frame as we tried to drag him down the drive to the car. At first he was angry, kicking and screaming, having tantrums. Then he became more and more withdrawn. Meanwhile the school denied over and over again that bullying was a problem. Within six short months Callum reached the point where he would no longer leave the house, let alone go to school. The school completely forgot the boy they’d once talked of and spoke of behaviour management and separation anxiety. They told us he wouldn’t engage and that he’d been overheard saying inappropriate things in the playground. Not even knowing whether it was legal or not, we took him out. Six months later, one of the boys who Callum had claimed was bullying him was suspended for thumping a girl in the face. He no longer attends the school.
The relief of no longer having to get him to school was immediate and our first months were spent mainly tempting Callum away from the safety of the house and the opiate of the computer screen. He improved quickly. He learnt to ride and play the piano, but he still found it difficult to integrate and felt lonely. He wanted to go back to school – but the damage had already been done. We all found it impossible.
It was then I decided to try and set up a support group. I contacted the group in Exeter and Kate was really supportive. She offered to come up and sit with me in the hall while the wind blew and the tumbleweed rolled on past. I rang everyone in the EO handbook, put up posters and contacted The Journal who put a tiny piece about the meeting in the back pages. The response was overwhelming. Twenty-three families turned up on the day! What’s more, there were even people who were prepared to sit on a committee and help create a formal group. It was fantastic.
Callum was obviously chuffed to bits and I noticed a real change in him. Something that I ascribed to a nebulous sense of belonging. He wasn’t the only one. He wasn’t weird. It was after Christmas that I realised (as if I’d forgotten) that Callum had started to smile and laugh again, and I thought yes, that’s right, that’s the way you used to be. I still wonder if he’ll ever be quite the same again, if he’ll ever really re-discover that early love of learning or be able to walk back into a classroom. But now a day rarely passes when I don’t look at him and think, as a result of some little thing he does or says, there he is, that’s my lost boy coming home.
Hayley Graham
The following is a list of workshops we will be offering over the next 12 months. Possible dates are highlighted in red. The costings for each are given for your information. Will you please e-mail Hayley by 21st May indicating which workshops you would like to attend and which children will attend. There will be a minimal charge for each workshop of around £2.50 per family per activity. This may go up slightly if uptake of a workshop is low. HOME GROWN KIDS WORKSHOP COSTINGS

Story Telling Drama Workshop Multistory Theatre Company EARLY DECEMBER 2007 Helping children to find the drama in a situation and to sustain it. Developing their understanding of the physical and visual aspect of theatre making and leaves them with a model for creating their own scripts.	£	£	£
One artist (£60 per hr) for five hours (two sessions of two hours each to take account of age split	300
Village Hall (8 hrs @ 4.75phr)	38	338
Art Workshop Seize the Moment Theatre Company MARCH 2008 Empowering young people through the arts
One artist for one day	175
Village Hall (8 hrs @ 4.75 per hr)	38
Materials (Paints, Paper, Brushes)	50	263
Pot Throwing Workshop Potty Parties OCTOBER 2007 Everyone has a go at throwing their own pot and whilst not at the wheel the remainder of the group will be busy hand building, various options are available. The workshop could be themed ie plants and flowers, sea-life space, self, etc
Potter’s time (5 hrs to allow each child time at the wheel, £20 per hr)	100
Materials and firing costs	50
Village Hall (8 hrs @ 4.75 per hr)	38	188
Starlab Workshop FEB 2008 Educational, stimulating and entertaining presentations designed to support the National Curriculum
One hour presentation "Earth and Beyond"	50
One hour presentation "Light and Sound"	50
Travelling expenses	10
Swimbridge Village Hall (5 hrs @ £4.75 per hr)	23.75	133.75
Endeavour Forest Project/Woodland Taster Day 18th MAY 2007 **Please book NOW** To encourage independence and awareness of the environment to include fire and bivvy making and cooking.
Two sessions (age split) £220 per session for up to 16 children		440
Beach Art Environment Coast Walk Project EARLY JULY 2007 To raise ecological awareness and create art whilst clearing beaches
Artists’ Time	175
Glue String and Wire	30	205
Cheshire Dance Project JAN 2008
Contact time 1.5 hrs x 2 groups £75 each session	150
Village Hall Hire (6 hours at £4.75)	28.50	178.50
Circus Skills NOVEMBER 2007 To develop coordination and self-esteem through juggling, tight rope walking, plate spinning, etc
£100 per session Two sessions to take account of age split	200
Village Hall Hire (5 hours @ £4.75)	23.75	223.75
Techniquest Kits TWO SESSIONS PER TERM BETWEEN NOW AND NEXT APRIL To encourage learning and understanding of the world and space around us Light and Colour (Set A & Set B) Forces (Set A & Set B) Earth and Beyond
Two Sets each term ie six boxes over 12 months £30 for each box	£30 x 6	180
The Ilfracombe Princess JUNE 4th 2007 Boat trip from Ilfracombe to Rockham Bay giving a taste of the coast, viewing lighthouses, hamlets, nesting birds and seals		350
Skern Lodge FIRST WEEK OF SEPTEMBER 2007 Developing confidence and team-building skills through activities such as climbing abseiling and canoeing
£28 per head for adventure day Cost for 20 children		560

Annual Insurance Premium Public/Product Liability £5,000,000	192.50
One scrapbook for each child to collate information on workshops attended and produce evidence of how they have benefited (40 children)	69.00
Disposable cameras x 60 (five per workshop) (£4 x 60) inc developing costs (£3.99 x £60)	509.40
5 reams of paper for children’s work and mail shots for each workshop	21.45
Stamps (2nd class x 30 x 12)	86.40
Envelopes for mail shot	18.99
Pritt Sticks Medium x10	9.99
Sellotape (1 box of 6 rolls of small core)	4.84
A4 Feint Ruled Pads X1 pack of 10	7.99
HB pencils 3 dozen	10.17
Set of colouring pencils One per child for year (40 children)	160
Large Plastic Box Containers x2	12.00
Document Wallets One per child for the year (40 children)	16.00
Sketch Books One per child for the year (40 children)	100.00	1,218.73	4,278.73
Overall Cost			4,278.73

Did you know that home education and its present rights and freedom are under serious review by the government RIGHT NOW?
You may, in the future, be called upon to compulsorily register your children as home educated, submit to regular testing and interviewing of your children and can be more easily coerced into schooling. They are considering access to your children for welfare, checks. They want to impose a curriculum, methods of teaching and testing. Now is a good time to have an opinion about this issue, preferably to your MP! More information on http://www.freedomforchildrentogrow.org/ What happens to them when they grow up? Leslie Barson is inviting parents with older children who have been home educated to contribute their stories, as well as those of their parents to a website. The idea is that home educators of younger childrern can benefit from the experience of families who have already faced the same challenges. "With the consultation in mind, a wiki page has been created on AHED's wiki pages for your stories about where your over 16 year old home educated adults are now..."

http://ahed.pbwiki.com/What-are-they-doing-now
Minutews of Home Grown Kids Committee Meeting (26/3/07). Present: Becky, Hayley, Sarah, Helen, Gaynor, Russell and Reb. Membership. After reviewing the child protection policy it was decided by the committee to begin formal membership within the group. Details of families will be held by the Committee and will be confidential.
Reb will draft a membership form with name, address, telephone number and whether the family is happy to give basic contact information for other home-educators in the area.
Membership will cover a bi-monthly newsletter and access to all group activities. The initial cost will be £5 a year and can be paid in instalments if preferred. Details to be compiled by Gaynor and Debbie and contact list sent to Reb for the newsletter.
It was also decided that there would be a signing in and out book at the meetings in the hall- Helen to organise. Newsletter. To be compiled by Reb.
Bi-monthly-will include minutes of committee meetings, grant news, events, committee contact details, website address, a personal account of home education-to begin with Hayley and Callum. Finance. £102 in the account with another village hall payment to come out.
The need for insurance as a group was discussed. Reb told us of some fundraising ideas to try to get money in hand. Hopefully, we will know about grant success next week. We may consider applying for an "awards for all" grant. Events. Forthcoming events discussed.
Talent Show before Easter. Becky is organising an Easter scavenger hunt.
A beach BBQ, body boarding and surfing, Quince honey farm trip. All details will be in Newsletter to circulate beginning of May.
It is hoped that the Wednesday meeting will continue throughout the summer months of July and August but it will be run in outside venues to make the most of the good weather. So the village hall at Swimbridge will not be used.
Next Meeting: Tuesday 22nd May, 7pm, at Hayleys house. Everyone welcome to attend. Ring 01271 830456 for directions. Advert for science by Sam Did you know that Pterodactyl, Ichthyosaurus, Pleisiosaurus, Dimetrodon and Mososaurs like Liopleurodon were not dinosaurs? Did you know that ‘Big Bang’ is not ‘true’, and there are other theories? Did you know that some bacteria are smaller than viruses and could live on rocks from space? Giant squids are real. There are metals that dissolve in water, catch fire in air or crumble into dust. In previous science sessions, we have designed a craft to go to Mars (Mini Metro did not work), blown up the kitchen and learned maths through chocolate oranges. Try it out, best wishes, Sam. Events: Endeavour Forest Project Friday 18th May and Monday 21stMay. I need to know numbers and ages of children asap. As long as interest is fairly good the cost should be about £3 per family. Contact Hayley. Science for over 10+ Introduction May 17th, Reb’s, 1.30-3.30. If you have a 10+ child who is interested in science we are holding an introductory workshop. The aim is to prepare kids for adult study of science using an Open University format. When we move (to Ilfracombe – by July hopefully) we will run regularly. This is not like school. Kids are expected to participate, have fun, share their knowledge, be sceptical. Call 01805 603024 or email me for more details. Woolacombe Beach – Social and BBQ/picnic Thursday May 24th. Meeting at 12.30 by Mill Rock (first rock along the beach) *The high tide is approx 11.30 so bring something waterproof to sit on. Bring disposable B.B.Q.(if we are allowed on the beach with one ) & food, wet suits, body boards, beach games etc. Contact Becky for more information on 01271 830 804
* If it is raining then the date will be postponed to the following Thursday, the 31st. The Ilfracombe Princess June 4th Boat trip from Ilfracombe to Rockham Bay giving a taste of the coast, viewing lighthouses, hamlets, nesting birds and seals Putts - Body boarding & Social

Tuesday June 19th. Meet in front of the rocks on the beach at Puttsborough at 11.00. Bring Body boards, wet suits, surf boards, etc. Plenty of parking in the car park but its not a free one ! Contact Becky for further details. 01271 830 804 Big Sheep - Social & Educational Day
Wednesday 4th July - Meeting outside reception area at 11.00.
Children £6, Adults Free.
Bring packed lunch as an alternative to buying food in there. Events - Sheep show, Duck trials, Sheepdog trials and training, Shearing, Horse whispering, Sheep racing & more. *All included in the entry price.
*Extra costs for some attractions.

*IMPORTANT* Please contact Becky by the 27th of June to book a place 01271 830 804

Quince Honey Farm Mon 16th July - Fri 20th July - Date to be confirmed. Date and entrance price to be confirmed & negotiated depending on numbers.
Please contact Becky A.S.A.P. as numbers needed for booking. Thanks 01271 830 804 Northam Burrows - Body boarding & Beach social/picnic

Thursday 12th July - Meeting near the bottom of the ramp onto the beach at 11.00. Bring body boards, swimsuits, beach games and packed lunch etc. Contact Becky for further details. 01271 830 804