Why a Home Education Register is NOT a Good Idea

Ideally, I didn’t want to have to write this. I saw a FANTASTIC blog post a year or so ago that explains why perfectly. Now thegovernment has opened a consultation about bringing in a register, can I find that post? Nope! So, I’m going to do my best to explain in my own words. It won’t be as good as the previous one, so if anyone happens to know the post I’m talking about, please add the link into the comments below!

Whilst searching for the aforementioned blog, I did come across (and have shared with me) some other good articles so will list them for you, as they are worth reading anyway:
Response to the Second Reading of Lord Solely's Bill
Response to Lord Solely's Blog

It's Not Home Educators who abuse children

Forcing HE children into schools won't work

No to Monitoring

I started had a mini-rant about registration on a previous post, and whilst I hope this stays an objective article, I will apologise in advance in case it takes a ranty turn! lol

So, what is wrong with registration?

And I'm immediately, going to twist that around and ask, what is right with registration?
What [positive] thing is having a list of home educators going to achieve?

It's important for the government to know how many home educated children there are.

Why? The government knows all births and deaths of children.  The government knows all children who are registered at a state school, and probably those who are registered at independent schools too.  It's not difficult to calculate the number of children who are left.

But what if the children are not being educated properly? The LA has to check!

As opposed to all those children in schools who are not being educated properly? The ones coming out of school without GCSEs or other qualifications. The children with SEN or simply struggling because of the teacher or the environment and are being left behind?  Or what about the academically advanced children, who are not being stretched, so are either sat at the back quietly being bored (because they're "good" children [like I was]) or are being disruptive because they are bored and so get into trouble?  And the many, MANY adults who have left school and think they're "thick" and "can't learn" because of what they have faced at school, not realising that learning is life-long, and some people are not ready to be stuffed with facts at a young age, but mature later.

Incidentally, I'm not 'dissing' teachers - I have great respect for teachers, and think they do a fabulous job with the few resources they are given.  It's schools, and the government's lack of support for them, that I dislike.

Anyway, the legal responsibility for educating children lies with parents, not the government. Section 7 of the Education Act states:

The parent of every child of compulsory school age shall cause him to receive efficient full-time education suitable -
(a) to his age, ability and aptitude, and
(b) to any special educational needs that he may have,
either by regular attendance at school or otherwise.

Which means, in real terms, if your child goes to school and comes out having learned nothing, it is the parents' fault for not changing schools/providing alternative education in order for it to be suitable.  i.e. You cannot sue the school/government - it's not their fault.

But what if the children are not being educated properly?

IF there is evidence that the children are not being educated properly (allowing for differing styles of HE; not just "school at home"), then there is a process in place, and in that circumstance it would be right for someone who has concerns to report them the the Education Welfare Officers in your local LA.  However, it is totally wrong to assume that just because a child is home educated, means that they are not receiving a good education.

But what if people are using HE as a cover for abuse? Or trafficking? Or radicalisation?

Let's take these one-by-one, though I'm going to go through that list backwards.

Radicalisation - Anecdotally, admittedly, but I haven't heard of a single HE kid being radicalised.  The closest I've come, is from the papers about children using illegal schools - but that's NOT home ed.  And even then, I'm not even sure I've heard any of those children actually being radicalised?  All the ones I can think of from the papers, came from schools.

Trafficking - again, anecdotally, I've not even heard of this ever happening.  The closest to trafficking I can think of, are those kids who have been removed from schools in order to become child-brides elsewhere in the world.  These children were in school, so they were known to the authorities.  It is the school's duty to inform the LA that a child has been removed from their school roll.  The LA will then be in touch with the family and offer them support.  Often, however, these girls are not deregistered, but mysteriously do not return to school after the summer holidays.  This is not home education.

And Abuse - Did you know school children are statistically much more likely to be abused than home educated children?  There are plenty of kids in schools whose bruises etc go unnoticed, or where their sudden change in personality is just put down to 'a phase'.  School is not the fail-safe it is purported to be.  Again, I'm not blaming the teachers, they don't have time to go to the loo themselves, let alone understand everything about a pupil's personal life, whilst trying to maintain control of a classroom of 30+ kids, and write report after report to show they're adding value...

But what about [Insert Name of Someone you've read in the Papers]? They were abused and died because of Home Education.  A register would have protected them!

No, just no. Did you know that there has not been a Serious Case Review where Home Education has been identified as the cause/reason for the abuse? In fact, in EVERY SINGLE SCR the child is ALREADY KNOWN to the authorities!  As I've said, children who were in school automatically get referred to the LA.  The LA will then contact the family, so the family will be known.  Being on a register, and being visited once a year won't make any difference.  Even in the case where a boy hadn't previously been in school, his family were reported and nothing was done.  The SCR claim that EHEOs didn't have the power to access the home - which is/was true - BUT Social Services do have that power when accompanied by a police officer; and in his case, it was definitely a Welfare Issue, not an Education Issue, so EHEOs should not have been involved in the first place!

Ok, ok.  But you still haven't explained what's so bad about being on a register?  It's only a list of names!

A register is never just a list of names.  If it were, it would be a waste of time and money for the government and local authorities trying to achieve it.  A list, by itself, wouldn't make any difference to any of the concerns you have mentioned, as once someone has been added would they stay on that list forever?  What if the child goes to school at some point?  Or does the list need to be maintained?  How would it be maintained? Is it enough to trust schools to tell the LA when I child enrolls? Or do HErs need to be contacted every-so-often, to check they're still home educating?  And if they are checked on regularly, this will easily morph into monitoring.

And what's wrong with monitoring?

Read the links above, if you haven't already.

In short, how will a person, who has no training in education or pedagogy, who has no understanding of home education nor different education styles, understand from a brief visit whether the education being provided is suitable to the child's age, ability or aptitude?  Given that home educators do not need to follow the National Curriculum (nor should they have to - imagine HE as the ultimate private school), and the new guidance says that outcomes do matter, you can only truly judge home education at the end point, by which time there is no need for EHEOs to be involved.  Any attempt to intervene earlier, is scope creep towards enforcing specific curricula and eroding the rights of the child for having an education tailored specifically for them as an individual.

So, am I right in thinking that if a child has never been to school, they are not "known" to the LA?  What if something changes - suppose a parent becomes an alcoholic, or starts a relationship with an abuser?  Children should not be invisible and need to be protected!

Home Educated kids are not invisible.  They are registered at birth, at doctors, dentists, opticians.  Many have passports.  Many do "extra-curricular" activities.  In fact, if I even go into the supermarket, my girls will be asked "No school today?" because they are around during the day, and not in school uniform.  Even Graham Stuart MP said, when he was Chair of the Education Select Committee, that Home Educated children are "peculiarly visible".  And everyone who HEs knows he's not wrong.

And what if a child is just kept under the stairs?

Then they are will receive a letter by owl and be accepted into Hogwarts, where their lives will be changed for the better, and they will save the world from He Who Shall Not Be Named.

Seriously, though.  If a child was being kept under the stairs, they are not being home educated, they are being abused.  Despite what the new guidance thinks, education and welfare are totally separate.  If you suspect a child is suffering from abuse, then you should absolutely step in; report to social services, and do your damnedest to save that child.  This is not a home education issue - this is being a decent person issue.

But, but, but...

What magically happens when a child turns 5?  Given how vulnerable babies, by their very nature, are; why are people trusted to bring babies up without interference? Yes, some areas have a good Health Visitor service, but this seems to be a post-code lottery, and even then it's only a 6month check, maybe a 12month check, and maybe a 2or3 year check.  Many people only see the health visitor immediately after birth, and that's it.  

What about schooled children?  Given that they need checking upon everyday they are at school, why are they trusted back to their parents during school holidays?  6+ weeks is a long time to be left over the summer!  And I've already mentioned that schooled children are statistically more likely to be abused than HE children.

I cannot claim credit for coming up with this analogy, and I hope I can do it justice - food.

As parents, we are entrusted to feed our children.  We all know what healthy food is, and we know that if we aren't able to cook and prepare healthy food ourselves, it is important for us to source healthy food for our kids.  Similarly, we know that 'healthy' may mean something different for our individual children - maybe they are allergic to specific foods; maybe they have SEN and will only eat certain things.  And we all know that it's ok to eat something 'less healthy' every now and again.  Certain conditions excepting, a doughnut or chips will not kill you; they're only problems if that's all you eat.

How would you feel if your name was put on a register of people who fed their own children?  To ensure you continue to feed your children, they will be in touch regularly.  They used to accept a signed letter, where you stated that you continue to feed your kids without problem, but due to new guidance that's no longer enough. Occasionally they come round to your house, and check your kitchen cupboards, looking for unhealthy foods.  They'll look at your kids to check that they look healthy - maybe use BMI as an indicator of health, as that's used in schools.  They may even chat to your kids, and ask them what their favourite foods are, and what they eat regularly.  Because it is important to listen to children's voices, they'll also ask the children what they think of you're cooking, and whether they'd prefer their food to be cooked by someone else.  And what if they happened to arrive on a day before you normally go shopping, so your fridge/cupboard is empty, or you have no fresh fruit/veg left in the house? Or maybe you don't own any cookbooks, preferring to find recipes online? Or maybe you don't own a dining table? Or have not enough, or too many, knives and other cooking equipment?  And why do you think you can do better than a trained chef or cook?

I'm not going to labour the point (though I could go on) but I hope that you agree that this would be unnecessarily intrusive, and actually wouldn't solve any of the issues that they were claiming it would.

I've now run out of steam, so I'm going to stop there.
I hope this explains some of the issues that home educators have with being put on a register (and I haven't even mentioned that compulsory registers are used for criminals) and isn't too long-winded.

Response to Elective Home Education Guidance - April 2019

Today, the government has released it's new Elective Home Education Guidance, and it is shocking.
(For comparison, here are the old guidelines that were perfectly adequate and suitable for what they were intended.)

These are my raw thoughts, as I read through the document for the first time, but given the consultation that took place last year, I am not expecting it to be good.

I've only just started reading the introduction and have already come across this sentence:

Educating children at home works well when it is a positive, informed and dedicated choice. However, the past few years have seen a very significant increase in the number of children being educated at home, and there is considerable evidence that many of these children are not receiving a suitable education.

Where is the evidence for this?  Where is the proof?  It's a disappointing, though not surprising, start to a document that shows it will be full of prejudice.

Still in the introduction:

Where necessary - because it is evident that a child is simply not receiving suitable education at home and the use of school attendance powers is not achieving a change in that situation - the local authority should be ready to use its safeguarding powers as explained in this guidance

So basically, if a child is not receiving a suitable education, then the LA should make up some safeguarding concern in order to get the change it wants?

Section 2.4 has take the place of the old 3.13 - a list of 'nots': things that are not required for home education.  Unfortunately, this list has not only decreased, but significantly changed in some areas.

Approaches such as autonomous and self-directed learning, undertaken with a very flexible stance as to when education is taking place, should be judged by outcomes, not on the basis that a different way of educating children must be wrong.

For approaches such as Unschooling, unless the LA is content to wait until the child is of school leaving age, how can the LA judge 'outcomes'? Or is the LA now saying that the child must keep up with school-aged peers?  How does that fit in with SEN?

Section 4.2 is all about the need for creating a register of home educators, even though that word isn't used:

Identification of children who have never attended school and may be home educated forms a significant element of fulfilling an authority’s statutory duty under s.436A of the Education Act 1996 - to make arrangements to enable the authority to establish, so far as it is possible to do so, the identities of children in its area who are not receiving a suitable education. The duty applies in relation to children of compulsory school age who are not on a school roll, and who are not receiving a suitable education otherwise than at school (for example, at home, or in alternative provision). Until a local authority is satisfied that a home-educated child is receiving a suitable full-time education, then a child being educated at home is potentially in scope of this duty. The department’s children missing education statutory guidance for local authorities applies. However, this should not be taken as implying that it is the responsibility of parents under s.436A to ‘prove’ that education at home is suitable. A proportionate approach needs to be taken. 

There are many, MANY, reasons why creating a register is not a good thing (too much of a rant for me to go into detail now) but it looks like that's the way the government wants us headed.   A register, then a prescriptive curriculum, then only school-at-home will be allowed.  DD1 and DD2 have never been to school, so are not 'known' to the LA.  They are, however, known to various specialist teachers (eg dance, gym etc), known to doctors, dentists, opticians, and many more people besides.  We don't want and don't need anything the LA can provide, and do not want to be on such a register.  Until schools can ensure that zero pupils are ever abused or leave school without basic qualification, then they have no right to interfere with my private life.  (Sorry for that mini rant, but you get the gist.)

Section 4.4:

Some local authorities already actively encourage referrals from doctors and hospitals of children whom there is reason to think may be home educated.

I don't know how this fits with a data protection or doctor:patient confidentiality?  My GP and nurses know that my girls are HE as they are often with me for appointments.  Do, I now need to hide them away so I don't get asked the inevitable "no school today?"?

NEVER mention "deschooling" to the LA.  Section 6.2:

"Some parents may go further and describe this period as being necessary for ‘deschooling’. There is no legal basis for such a position. Any statement along these linescould be an indication that the child is not being properly educated."

Deschooling is a really important part of home education.  It is important for the child that needs to work through school trauma, but it is also important for the parent as they learn that education is more than school, and a life set up for learning and natural curiosity means that education never stops.


Section 6.5 says:

"Parents are under no duty to respond to such enquiries, butif a parent does not respond, or responds without providing any information about thechild’s education, then it will normally be justifiable for the authority to conclude that thechild does not appear to be receiving suitable education and it should not hesitate to do 18so and take the necessary consequent steps"

And section 6.6 says:

" although arefusal to allow a visit can in some circumstances justify service of a notice unders.437(1).8"

So, home educators can no longer say no to a visit?  It doesn't specifically say, but I hope that a 'visit' at a neutral location (such as a library or cafe) is allowed, rather than having to be at home.  My involvement with Educational Freedom means I am aware of EHEOs using visits as subterfuge for judging parents and home conditions, resulting in SS involvement.


Section 6.12:

"On the other hand the information provided by parents shoulddemonstrate that the education actually being provided is suitable and address issuessuch as progression expected and (unless the home education has only just started)achieved. It should not be simply a statement of intent about what will be provided, or adescription of the pedagogical approach taken – this would not enable the authority toreach a legitimate conclusion that a suitable education is actually being provided. "

7.3:

" There is no proven correlation between home education and safeguarding risk. Insome serious cases of neglect or abuse in recent years, the child concerned has beenhome educated but that has not usually been a causative factor and the child hasnormally been known anyway to the relevant local authority. "

Actually, HE has NEVER been known to be a causative factor, but hey, why let facts get in the way...7.6:

"Although some cases will berelatively clear-cut (for example if a child was being provided with no education at all formonths)..."

How much do they truly understand and accept unschooling?7.9:

"Such enquiries may yield enough information. If they do not, and in particularbecause the parents refuse access to the child then the authority has a number ofoptions available. It can apply to a court for a child assessment order"

This is in the section of safe-guarding, but we don't know how the LA will apply it.7.12:

"However, an ESO imposes a duty on parents to allow the supervisor(the authority) reasonable contact with the child,..."

Section 7.13:

" The use ofsuch an order is of course a last resort, and should only be necessary in a very smallminority of cases. But the key point for local authorities to bear in mind – and make clearto parents – is that this could be the end result of continued failure to provide suitableeducation and a continued obstruction of an authority’s efforts to ensure that the childreceives suitable education."

8.1:

"It can, ofcourse, be the case that a local authority has no knowledge of a child’s specialeducational needs if the family has not sought assessment or support. However, localauthorities have a duty under s.22 of the Children and Families Act 2014 to try to identifyall children in their areas who have SEN. This includes home-educated children. "

8.3:

" Some parents educate, or attempt to educate, children at home because ofdissatisfaction with local SEN provision. However, educating at home a child who hasspecial needs is often more difficult than for other children"

**Attempt** to educate? Prejudice much!

 Look - Something positive!!!! See, I'm not biased and only reporting the bad things, lol. 8.10:

"When a home-educated child’s EHC plan names a school, some local authoritiesinstruct the school to add the child’s name to its admission register without the parent’sagreement, with the result that the parent is committing an offence if the child does notattend the school. It is not lawful for a school to do this, and local authorities shouldensure that both schools and their own staff know that. "

9.4e tries to soften the bit about outcomes...

"e. although it may well be a good starting point in assessing suitability to assesswhether the curriculum and teaching have produced attainment in line with thenational norms for children’ of the same age, it must be borne in mind that the s.7requirement is that the education is suitable to the child’s ability and aptitude. If achild’s ability is significantly above or below what might be regarded as ‘average’then allowances must be made for that; and similarly the home education maylegitimately cater specifically for particular aptitudes which a child has, even if thatmeans reducing other content; "

9.4f:

"f. factors such as very marked isolation from a child’s peers can indicate possibleunsuitability. Suitable education is not simply a matter of academic learning butshould also involve socialisation;"

Because all He kids are kept locked under the stairs... :

Beware if you don't live in a spacious house... :(    9.4g:

"g. any assessment of suitability should take into account the environment in whichhome education is being provided. Most obviously, home accommodation which isnoisy and/or cramped is likely to make it very difficult for a child to learn and makesatisfactory progress"

Unlike overcrowded classrooms, which are known to be quiet and spacious...

 9.7:

"9.7 An efficient education, within the meaning of s.7, is one which achieves what it setsout to achieve. It is important this concept is not confused with suitability. A whollyunsuitable education can be efficiently delivered – but would still be unsuitable."

Sections 9.8 and 9.9 discuss what it means to be full time.

9.9:

"Despite this greater flexibility inherent in home education, local authorities should beenabled by parents to assess the overall time devoted to home education of a child onthe basis of the number of hours per week, and weeks per year so that this informationcan be set alongside that relating to suitability to ensure that the home education meetsthe requirements of section 7. "

Beware if you admit to learning alongside your kids...  10.1:

If information and views provided by the child castdoubt on whether the education provided is actually suitable in terms of the s.7 criteria(for example, the child indicates that the parent is not providing education suitable to hisor her age because the parent does not sufficiently understand the subjects in question)

 Also 10.1 - I wonder if they ask schooled kids the same thing, or suggest alternatives to their parents..?

" Nonetheless, if it is clearto the local authority that a child does not wish to be educated at home although theeducation provided meets the s.7 requirement and there are no safeguarding concerns, itshould seek to discuss the reasons for this with the parents and encourage them toconsider whether home education is ultimately likely to be successful if their child isunhappy to be educated in this way. "

On a personal point, section 10.12 is about tutors and DBS. The guidelines do not make clear that self-employed tutors can only get a Basic DBS, rather than an enhanced one.

Section 10:15 seems to contradict some of the other points they've made:

"10.15 Children learn in different ways and at different times and speeds. It should beappreciated that parents and their children may require a period of adjustment beforefinding their preferred mode of learning and that families may change their approach overtime. Parents are not required to have any qualifications or training to provide theirchildren with a suitable education. It should be noted that parents from all educational,social, linguistic, religious and ethnic backgrounds successfully educate children outsidethe school setting and these factors should not in themselves raise a concern about thesuitability of the education being provided." 

Overall, these guidelines are disappointing.  As a home educating family, we can expect more disruption and interference to our daily lives.  The LA does not have enough budget as it is, yet is expected to do a whole lot more work, not least contacting families such as mine that do not want any of their "help".

Pi Day

Today is Pi Day!  Yes, it doesn't quite work for us Brits, but since there aren't 14 months in the year, we just have to celebrate with the Americans on 14th March (or 3.14).

I'm giving 3 tutorials today, for a variety of abilities, and will be celebrating Pi Day in each of them.
In my first, and longest, tutorial his morning, I started by labelling the parts of a circle (Circumference, Diameter, Radius and Tangent) and got the students to measure the diameter and circumference of a variety of cylinders in order to calculate Pi. 

Then we looked at the real digits of Pi (rather than our calculated attempts) and used a rhyme found in The Joy of Pi by David Blatner:

Sir, I bear a rhyme excelling
In mystic force and magic spelling
Celestial sprites elucidate
All my own striving can't relate.
Or locate they who can cogitate
And so finally terminate. Finis.

This gives the first 32 digits of Pi, where the 33rd digit is zero.

Personally, I can only remember 3.14159265, and in fact for almost all engineering applications, 3.14159 is all the number of digits you need to remember, if you don't have a Pi Button on your calculator.  22/7 is a good approximation for when you do calculations by hand, but these days there's always a calculator/computer/phone nearby to help.

Then we used loom bands to make a Pi Bracelet: Start with 3 bands of the same colour, then use a bead on a different colour band.  Change colours again, and add 1 band.  Change colours again, and use 4 bands.  Change colours again, add 1 band.  Change colours again, use 5 bands, etc...

After this we talked about ways that Pi is used in physics: angular velocity, radians, cosmology, trigonometry, radio waves, electricity, simple harmonic motion, to name a few.  Obviously, within a 1.5hour tutorial, there was not the time to go into each topic in depth, but just enough to illustrate that Pi is actually a really useful number.

Finally, we played a card game: Deal out 5 cards to each player (removing picture cards), leaving the rest in a pile on the table.  Decide who goes first.  The first player has to put down a 3.  (Ignore the decimal point).  If they can't go, they need to pick up one card from the pile and play passes to the next person.  After the 3, a 1 needs to be placed next.  After the 1, a 4, etc. The winner is the first player to have no cards left!


With my own girls, they made Pi Bracelets from loom bands, played cards, and also made pizzas for lunch and we're having pies for dinner tonight. Most maths can be taught using food. Yum!

Feeling Refreshed

Two days at home, not because of illness, and I'm feeling really refreshed!

Yesterday was a "Snow Day", so I cancelled all the tutoring I was meant to be doing, the girls' dance lessons were cancelled and we  stayed at home.  Even my husband decided to work from home (and he does actually work when wfh, unlike when I was employed...) so we had lunch together and he was 'home' earlier than usual because of the lack of commute.

I was feeling quite emotional after my previous post, so I was glad to have the excuse to hibernate.  The girls played in the snow, and came in to play Minecraft together to warm up. We even watched more Tidying Up with Marie Kondo, and put it into practice, by helping DD1 sort through her clothes!  As she has the smallest bedroom in the house, DD1 also has the smallest furniture; and though her chest of drawers had seven drawers, they are tiny - smaller than half the size of mine.  Well, I've discovered, that by folding her pants and storing them upright I can actually fit 40 pairs in a single drawer - I didn't actually realise she had that much underwear!!

Today, the dance school was open again, but my car is only little and I don't like driving in the snow at the best of time, so I gave DD2 the option as to whether she wants to go in or not.  She chose not to, opting to finish building their snowman instead.  I spent some time in the garden with the girls and helped them with their masterpiece.  It was good to be outside and have fun as a family. In the time it took me to get my phone for a photo, the girls decided that the snow woman should be playing a flower-trumpet, but who am I to argue with their creative genius?

I've even nearly caught up on my washing, my husband has nearly caught up on the dishwashing (I control the washing machine, he controls the dishwasher) and I managed to make Slender choc chip cookies before we watched A Ripple Through Time film.  After the film we enjoyed homemade tomato soup and some more Slow Cooker Bread, which I had left to rise longer this time so was nice and fluffy.

Tomorrow we have a busy day, as the girls will have to go to their various dance lessons, they have exam practice and festival practice, as they are coming up within the next three weeks.  But right now, my husband is taking the girls to bed, and I'm relaxing on the sofa about to watch some TV.

Weekly Update No2

This week, I am exactly the same weight as I was this point last week.  I'm counting that as a positive, considering I haven't done any Body Groove this week, nor have I eaten the best.

Back to being busy, means it is harder to get time at home to exercise.  Today, both my girls are ill, so I will be able to fit it in today, as I've had to cancel all their HE groups and my tutoring.  Neither girl is eating very much atm, they both have a bit of a fever, feeling sick and are very lethargic.  I should have known something was wrong on Saturday, when my elder daughter came home from her theatre class and fell asleep on the sofa!

I still am not back in the habit of using my slow cooker.  It doesn't help that since Christmas, I've had loads of food piled on top/next to it (like crackers for cheese, etc) that don't fit in our cupboards.  We don't have much cupboard space at the best of time, so when we have extra food around, everything just overflows everywhere.  I would like to get the kitchen redone, but I don't see the point if there's not going to be any more cupboard space, as the area to work in is so small. My husband mentioned yesterday about the possibility of having the whole downstairs redone, to have an open plan kitchen/livingroom area.  Apart from the money issue (ie we have none), I'm not against that idea, but it seems quite daunting, and I'd have to study lots of plans before we agreed to anything - and I'm not sure how many people would b willing to draw up plans in the detail I'd like to see for free, before we commit to anything.  It's not helped by a friend having renovation work, only for her builders to try and charge nearly double the agreed quote, and then walking out leaving it unfinished.


 Back to my weightloss plan, though.  This week, I would like to try and lose 1kg.  I am drinking plenty of water, but I do need to up my veg intake again, as it's too easy when tired, to reheat frozen beige food.  Looking over this blog, I found this post where I said I would do some stretches every day.  Well, that fell by the wayside... but if I can't
fit in 30min of body groove, then doing a few dynamic stretches in the morning will help tone my body a little - at the very least, it's better than doing nothing.

Back in the swing of things

Term-time is up and running, and we're back running around after the girls and all their dances and activities.  I am trying to make the most of the time I have, so am currently being good and am sat in the dance studios with my laptop writing this post!

My tutoring has started up again after the Christmas break, as has all the girls' home education groups, leaving me little time at home for everything I need to do, including exercise.  It's now Wednesday, and I for the third day in a row I have no managed to BodyGroove, as I have not had 30min spare.  Technically, that is a slight lie, because I could have tried to wake up earlier, or stay up later, in order to fit it in, but I am someone who needs a lot of sleep. But, I'm not giving up on it.  I do enjoy it, I have noticed it working my muscles and I am losing weight.  I just need to squeeze a bit more out of my day.

I am eating well at the moment though.  The 2B Mindset is firmly implanted in my brain.  I am easily drinking my 90oz of water daily, and for the past 3 days I have had "mix and match" salad for lunch, from the prep I did at the weekend.  I have discovered I didn't prep enough, as I ate the last of the cut cucumber and pepper today, and ate the last of the hummus. I still have portions of vegetables that I can use for the remainder of the week, and some couscous left, but when I meal plan this weekend coming, I will need to prep even more food.

So far, I have managed to keep on top of the Bible readings - I'm aiming for 50 chapters a week.  We had our first meet on Tuesday, and we discussed the verses that spoke to us, and spent some time praying for each other.  Even though we're going at a much faster rate than I anticipated, I think I will get a lot out of the next 6 months.  I had planned to use my study Bible for the readthrough, but I find that I do most of the reading when I am taking my younger daughter to bed (we need to stay with her until she is asleep).  So, I'm reading the Bible on  my phone, highlighting the verses there, and then going through my actual Bible to copy up my highlights.  Only on the second week of the year, but it's working so far.

I'm also reading less than I would usually, as a combination of not having to wait for my children all the time (some days I leave them at dancing or gymnastics whilst I do other things), or because I'm using waiting time to do something else, like writing right now!  I do have 3 books on the go, though: 1 Christian inspirational, 1 non-fiction, and 1 fiction, so I haven't stopped reading altogether - perish the thought! - just getting through books a bit slower than usual.  That said, I am starting to really get into the fiction book I'm reading, so I may end up giving up a few hours sleep for that.

Note to self:
If I can give up sleep for reading, I can give up sleep for exercise. 
I am important and I am worth it!

Christmas is getting closer!

Just over a week until Christmas, and things are finally starting to slow down in the Middle-aged Mum household. 

Most of the presents are wrapped and around the tree.  Now the girls are older, the presents are generally getting smaller, and we don't have to worry about them opening any before Christmas.  They still look, of course, and get excited any time they see one to themselves, but they know they can only touch the label and nothing else.

All the admin stuff I had to do before Christmas has been done: I have finished tutoring for the year, I have completed all the forms for a residential trip I'm organising next year, and I have bought various prizes that we have won for winning Beat the Street in our local area - including donations for a local homeless charity.  The girls have stopped any formal Home Ed they have been doing; their classes have stopped, though dancing continues until the end of this week.

So after having a Tesco shop arrive this morning, most of this weeks will be various Christmas activities.  Lots of baking, we have a HE Christmas Party tomorrow, a friend is hosting a party on Thursday, and we are seeing our town's Pantomime in the theatre on Friday.  Next week, my husband only has Christmas Day and Boxing Day off work, so when we visit family afterwards it'll just be myself and the girls driving up and back.

I will be trying to get the balance between Christmas cheer and eating healthily (water first and veggies most), but will not restrict what I eat.  My aim for this Christmas period is to not gain wait and keep practising the basic principles; any loss will be a bonus. I would like to start getting into the habit of Grooving round the house too, when music comes on.

Merry Christmas everyone, and yes, to the eagle-eyed among you, we do still have our homemade Halloween bunting still up.

God Bless xxx

Spiritual Gifts

Growth group over the passed few weeks, unintentionally (from our human pov) the topic of Spiritual Gifts has come up multiple times, and how we should be using them for the church. God has given each of us at least one gift, and it is our responsibility to use it. I do believe this. However, I struggle to identify what my gift(s) are.

As an administrator you have the Spirit-given capacity and desire to serve God by organizing, administering, promoting, and leading the various affairs of the church. … You will put a plan on paper and start delegating responsibility. You may lean toward organizing things, events or programs, ... you usually organize details and have people carry them out. ... You are serious minded, highly motivated, intense, and have an accurate self-image. You tend to be more interested in the welfare of the group than your own desire. 


As a teacher you are one who communicates knowledge, guides, makes known or relays facts. You are likely more in-depth than the average Sunday school teacher. ... As a teacher you live to learn and teach (or perhaps write if you teach through the written medium). ... You love the Word, enjoy reading, may be a little shy of strangers, are creative and imaginative, and prefer teaching groups over individuals. You are generally confident, self-disciplined, and sometimes technical. You probably love charts, graphs, and lists. … The use of a verse out of context upsets you and you question the knowledge of those who teach you. You are organized and enjoy studying.
x

When I was a teenager I used to attend Good News Crusade’s summer camp as part of their Maintenance Team (now called EdgeFest). I used to really enjoy working hard for God, whether it be erecting marquees, setting out chairs, tidying litter, helping in the kitchen, or my favourite job – operating the OHP screen. Not only do I love worship music, but at camp the worship would seamlessly flow as God’s presence became almost tangible amongst us, and the worship band would go off-course and sing songs that they didn’t plan to. My job, then, was to hurriedly look through the lever arch file of acetates with lyrics on them, and find the correct song, hopefully before the end of the first verse.

As the Holy Spirit was moving throughout us, many people were experiencing and enabling various gifts such as speaking in tongues, healing, prophesying etc. I don’t speak in tongues, and one year I cried out to God about it. I am authentic, and yes, I could have babbled “Lalala Alleluia Lala Rum Tum Tugger Alleluia” just to fit in, but that’s not me. And having heard people speak in tongues, it would have stuck out like a sore thumb. Speaking in tongues is clearly a language, even if I can’t understand it, and is so beautiful. Anything I attempt to make up would fail in comparison.

So, I prayed to God. All things are possible with God. So, why couldn’t I?

Anyway, God answered my prayer. I spoke in tongues and couldn’t believe it. It was not me, I was simply letting the Holy Spirit speak through me. And then God said to me that all things are indeed possible for Him; however, speaking in tongues is not the gift he has chosen for me. I’ve not been able to recreate it since, but am happy to know that God is in charge.

One of the books I am currently reading recommended an online quiz that can help identify what your spiritual gifts are. I do enjoy a good quiz, whether it be “what colour nail varnish should you wear?”, “what My Little Pony are you?” or something a bit more serious like “what’s your IQ” or “how neurotypical are you?”. I finally got around to doing this quiz this morning. It was a lot quicker than I expected, helped that each question only had three options – yes, no and maybe. The quiz does ask for your email address, but it did email me my results. The quiz itself is totally free, but if you want to know more information or dig deeper into what the spiritual gifts are, then you would need to pay for that.

The quiz separates spiritual gifts into three categories: Miraculous Gifts, Enabling Gifts and Team Gifts; and is used to determine what Team Gifts you as an individual have – split into service, ministry, task-orientated and activity (such as teaching).

The website says:

Three categories of spiritual gifts exist 

CATEGORY ONE: The Miraculous Gifts, generally known today as Charismatic Gifts (apostles, tongues, interpretation of tongues, healing, and miracles). 

CATEGORY TWO: The Enabling Gifts, which all Christians have the ability to develop (faith, discernment, wisdom, and knowledge -- qualities possessed rather than activities performed). Many scholars combine these gifts with others, based on the similarity of these gift characteristics and the synonyms used by Paul to describe them in Scripture. For example, some scholars combine Discernment with Prophecy, Knowledge with Teaching, Wisdom with Exhortation, and Hospitality with Serving. 

CATEGORY THREE: the Team Gifts, which are service-, ministry-, task-oriented or are activities performed such as teaching. The Team Gifts are functional and involve speaking or ministering. Chances are, you have several of these gifts that vary in degrees and intensity. In many cases, spiritual gifts may complement your secular employment. The Spiritual Gifts Analysis you took identified your dominant TEAM GIFTS, which will help find your place on God's team in your church.

The results are scored according to the following categories so you can see which gift or gifts are dominant for you: Evangelism, Prophecy, Teaching, Exhortation, Shepherding, Showing Mercy, Serving, Giving, and Administration. Now, I don’t know anybody else who has completed the quiz, so I don’t know if it’s considered roughly accurate or not, but I thought I would share my results with you, so at least I now have a starting point.

My dominant gifts are Mercy Showing, Administration and Teaching. The results then give a long paragraph about each gift. I will quote snippets that I think do apply to me, though it may be that there is some sort of bias in the phraseology such that everybody can pick out bits that apply to themselves? I don’t know.

Mercy Showing

As a mercy-shower you have the Spirit-given capacity and desire to serve God by identifying with and comforting those who are in distress. You understand and comfort your fellow Christian. … As a mercy-shower you are willing to deal with and minister to people who have needs that most people feel very uncomfortable working with. You seem to say the right thing at the right time…. You are easy to talk to, responsive to people, a good listener, peaceable, and agreeable. … In your burden to comfort others, your heart goes out to the poor, the aged, the ill, the underprivileged, and so on.

Administration

As an administrator you have the Spirit-given capacity and desire to serve God by organizing, administering, promoting, and leading the various affairs of the church. … You will put a plan on paper and start delegating responsibility. You may lean toward organizing things, events or programs, ... you usually organize details and have people carry them out. ... You are serious minded, highly motivated, intense, and have an accurate self-image. You tend to be more interested in the welfare of the group than your own desire.

Teaching

As a teacher you are one who communicates knowledge, guides, makes known or relays facts. You are likely more in-depth than the average Sunday school teacher. ... As a teacher you live to learn and teach (or perhaps write if you teach through the written medium). ... You love the Word, enjoy reading, may be a little shy of strangers, are creative and imaginative, and prefer teaching groups over individuals. You are generally confident, self-disciplined, and sometimes technical. You probably love charts, graphs, and lists. … The use of a verse out of context upsets you and you question the knowledge of those who teach you. You are organized and enjoy studying. 

My heart does go out to others: I have been technically homeless as a child (we lived in a Women’s Refuge for 6 months), and have had little money, so I do pray for those less fortunate than myself, and give to the foodbank and charity shops when I can. I do love admin; organising events, groups, anything. At this very moment I am organising a residential trip for fellow home educators next year, I am sorting out (and will be purchasing) what people want to do with the vouchers we won for coming first place in Beat the Street, I volunteer for an online home education website that I co-founded; I am admin for multiple facebook groups and a yahoo group, and there’s probably more that I’ve forgotten. I do genuinely enjoy organising (especially if I get to organise other people). And teaching is something I always wanted to do as a child. As I grew up, I went into industry, and now I have gone back to my roots and have been a private tutor for nearly 10 years. Whilst I don’t feel like I’m qualified for teaching within the church (not least because I’m aware that some of my beliefs are not traditional), teaching “through the written medium” aka this blog, does make sense to me and my passions. And researching and studying? Love it!

So what am I going to do with this new found knowledge? I don’t know yet. I will pray some more, asking God for direction. I will also talk to my church leader about how best to use my skills for the benefit of the church, whatever form that takes.