Latest / The BIG Home Ed Conversations | Home Education / Breaking Free from Sit Down Culture: Movement, Mindset & Real-Life Learning in Home Education

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Breaking Free from Sit Down Culture: Movement, Mindset & Real-Life Learning in Home Education · The BIG Home Ed Conversations | Home Education

0:11
Hello everybody, welcome to another episode of the big Home
0:15
Ed conversations. You're here as always with
0:17
myself, Kelly Rig. I'm a home Ed mum of two and
0:20
founder of Off Roading Motherhood.
0:21
I'm a qualified mindset coach and I have a passion for working
0:24
with home educating parents and a neurodivergent families as
0:26
well as they kind of navigate the transition away from
0:29
mainstream and into home education.
0:32
I'm joined as always by my really good friend Ashley
0:34
Venario. She's a fellow home Ed mum of
0:36
three and an ex primary teacher. We met a few short years ago and
0:41
honestly got on like a house on fire and essentially found
0:44
ourselves sitting around her coffee table.
0:46
Usually the kids playing crazy around us, having the most
0:49
intense conversations about all of the stuff that really
0:52
mattered to us as alternative educators.
0:54
Shifting mindsets, supporting each other with the challenges
0:56
around behaviours, day-to-day struggles, figuring out what
1:00
kind of philosophies to follow, all of that stuff.
1:03
And we were so sick of trying to find helpful information online
1:07
and seeing that most podcasts and places you could find
1:11
information were just so focused on the myths.
1:14
And we thought, honestly, we need to move past this.
1:15
We want to talk about the stuff that really matters to us as
1:19
alternative educators and essentially started the big home
1:22
Ed conversations as a hobby. In the past 18 months, we have
1:27
seen this podcast go from a fun little thing getting ten of our
1:31
friends and family listening to to many, many, many hundreds of
1:35
you listening. And it is just the most
1:38
incredible thing to see so many of you also agreeing that these
1:42
conversations are important. And the comments we get are that
1:45
it offers you clarity, conviction, confidence, and has
1:49
literally encouraged many, many people who've reached out to me
1:52
to actually start home educating their children, which is just
1:56
such an incredible thing to know that we are helping you to do
1:58
that and to feel confident in doing so.
2:01
If you are brand new to home education and finding this
2:03
podcast, then I really want to let you know that over the
2:05
summer, I am going to be doing a series of kind of getting your
2:08
head straight to home Ed. We're going to be talking about
2:12
essentially the basics. We're going to do a bit on the
2:14
basics and we're going to do a little bit about that initial
2:17
kind of getting over those initial fears and sort of
2:20
struggles that you tend to have in those early months.
2:22
And we're just kind of really just plow through them in some
2:25
little short, tidy episodes to help you kind of work your way
2:28
through those feelings. So if you are brand new and you
2:31
do need a little bit of that early kind of handholding, then
2:34
please do listen out for those episodes.
2:37
Obviously, feel free to dig into all the other ones as well.
2:39
They'll all be relevant to you. Even if you're brand new, if
2:42
you've been doing it for 20 years, hopefully you'll be
2:45
finding something useful in these.
2:47
But ultimately we wanted to let you know that you're going to
2:48
have some extra support over the summer, especially as so many
2:52
people do tend to do registers they come to the end of a school
2:54
year. So we thought we'd make sure we
2:56
had that in place for you. Now with no further ado, this
3:00
week we are talking about breaking free from this sit down
3:04
culture. So much of education is centred
3:06
around the concept of children being in a classroom, sat at a
3:10
desk listening to a teacher, then doing active written work,
3:14
et cetera. Now I know that in schools, this
3:15
is not the entirety of what their day will look like.
3:18
They're gonna be doing drama and movement and music and various
3:21
other activities and so they are gonna be integrating movement
3:23
into their education. But I actually really feel like
3:26
we need to take a step further and remember that all subjects
3:30
can benefit from movement and that actually reading is best
3:34
done on the move. Spotting shapes and doing maths
3:37
is best done on the move. There's so many games and
3:40
activities and physical movements and, and all sorts of
3:44
different stuff is super important to helping our kids to
3:47
integrate their learning into like a wider lifestyle as well.
3:52
And so we're going to talk about that a bit today.
3:54
And also kind of how important it is for us as parents to be
3:58
meeting our needs and supporting us as well as we're kind of
4:01
dealing with our day-to-day and remembering that we are allowed
4:04
to move, We are allowed to prioritise our needs in
4:08
education as well. If we're feeling bored, we're
4:11
feeling stuck, chances are they are too.
4:14
So let's try and shake it up and actually see how we can
4:16
integrate more movement into our day-to-day life.
4:19
Now gratitude wise, I hopefully found myself struggling.
4:25
We sat here for a good solid 5 minutes.
4:26
We were just staring at the ceiling being like come on, just
4:29
something, anything, something small.
4:31
You've got so much to be grateful for.
4:33
Stop being so grumpy. I'm in the low point of my
4:36
cycle. I am a woman.
4:37
We have moments when we don't feel very grateful for the life
4:40
we lead and I have felt incredibly anxious this past
4:43
week. My brain has been going
4:44
1,000,000 miles a minute. So many different things that
4:47
I'm trying to get myself organised, get my thoughts in
4:50
straight order so that I can actually do something with some
4:52
of the things that need doing. I really get stressed out
4:54
sometimes when my brain has got so many things it wants to do
4:58
that it gets so overwhelmed that it can't do any of them anymore.
5:00
It's a good old ADHD. So I actually sat down
5:05
yesterday. I found myself thinking.
5:06
I ran an event once for a business and in six months I
5:10
built it from the ground up. I built the full infrastructure.
5:12
I raised £250,000. I recruited 500 kids to come and
5:16
take part. Not literally single handedly,
5:18
but pretty close. I had two volunteer interns
5:21
working with me and we made the whole thing happen.
5:25
It was an absolute slog and ultimately I did all of that
5:29
with a spreadsheet. I found myself thinking, do you
5:33
know what, I'm just going to start treating my life like a
5:36
massive great project. I'm just going to stick every
5:38
single thing that I can think of into.
5:40
It's essentially called a Gantt chart.
5:41
Those of you who've done any kind of event planning or even
5:44
sales and all sorts of stuff, you may have come across these
5:46
in the past, but it's a really simple system.
5:48
So I'm, I'm really grateful for the little bits of work
5:51
experience that I've had a lot, a lot of work experience that
5:53
I've had. But the work experience that
5:54
I've had specifically in that window that reminded me that I
5:57
have actually got the capability to do incredible feats if given
6:01
the right kind of structure and organization to do it in.
6:03
And actually that helped me to keep saying that helps me to
6:05
stop having to worry that I'd remembered to do everything that
6:07
needed to be done and allowed me to prioritize things
6:11
accordingly. So I had literally spent my
6:13
evening yesterday plugging my entire life into a massive
6:16
spreadsheet, which I'm sure this system will only last me as long
6:19
as it lasts until I feel a bit calmer again.
6:21
But hopefully it will just help me to get through this
6:25
particularly busy phase and start to feel a bit more
6:27
settled. So there you go.
6:29
There's me and my my geeky spreadsheet.
6:31
Gratitude. We'll take that.
6:32
That's a good option. Go on, Ashley, tell us.
6:36
Yours, mine is just aside from the extreme heat of this trip
6:43
here in Italy and just being thankful and grateful for shade,
6:49
parking a car in the shade. I have definitely just been
6:54
enjoying the fruits and vegetables here.
6:56
It absolutely changes a salad when your onions taste like
7:01
onions and your cucumbers actually have a taste and your
7:06
tomatoes have flavor. All of these things I, I forget.
7:12
And then when I get back here, I'm like, Oh, yeah, Because
7:15
there are so many local fruit stands where they're really
7:19
bringing these things up from southern Italy, from Sicily.
7:22
And the track is coming twice a week or whatever it is.
7:26
And I had my local stand that I went to for years here.
7:29
And in fact, I, I make it a point to go stop in to the woman
7:33
who owns it because that's how close we were that, you know,
7:38
she's seen my kids grow up. So that's been really great.
7:42
And I've just been appreciative of hopefully the nourishment
7:47
that we're getting from that. And last Friday I was in Bergamo
7:52
for an event that my husband's work had.
7:55
And when I got there, we went to lunch just the two of us at this
8:00
Agaturismo. And in Italy, they're all over.
8:03
So you can really just like search for that in Google Maps.
8:07
And we just found the closest one to where we were going or to
8:10
where we were staying. And what's great about these
8:13
places is they are basically little farms, and they grow and
8:18
raise the animals right there. And that's essentially what
8:22
you're eating. And so a simple plate of pasta
8:24
with just tomatoes and basil, it's so good.
8:27
And they have their own, you know, meats and cheeses and all
8:31
these dishes that are just absolutely delicious and you
8:35
really taste the flavor. It's so different than having
8:39
bought something in the grocery store that comes from a country
8:43
that you don't live in and are then, you know, having to
8:47
prepare it. And by the time you eat it, the
8:49
fruits traveled further than you ever have in your life.
8:51
And yeah, so it's just it's just really lovely to be able to eat
8:59
fresh, nutritious food. You know, that farm to table
9:02
experience happens a lot here in Italy.
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It's so probably underappreciated I want to say
9:09
so if you do go to Italy, I highly recommend finding the Aga
9:12
Turismo's near you, they're so good.
9:15
So let's say that sort of 0 miles eating experience just
9:18
sounds like an absolute dream, doesn't it?
9:20
Just the flavor that must be in those foods.
9:22
And I think definitely one of the biggest problems in the UK
9:25
with our agriculture. Obviously so much is being
9:27
imported anyway, but even the stuff that's grown here so often
9:31
is being grown in farms that have been so over used for one
9:34
specific crop for such a long time that actually they don't
9:37
even taste that good anymore. And it's so true that that like
9:39
a salad might be something we all want to eat a bit more
9:41
often. If it was that flavourful and
9:44
full of real like delicious nutrients, we can taste how good
9:47
it is. I think our bodies know what
9:49
they really want too, right? I've been really trying to be a
9:51
bit more conscious of listening to mine recently and, and
9:54
reaching for stuff which is going to really nourish me and
9:56
support me and make me feel really good.
9:58
I've been feeling a little bit dizzy and yuck and horrible in
10:00
this heat and I found myself think I really need to take
10:02
better care of me. So I think it's, it's really
10:06
fascinating kind of just that thinking about the nutrients in
10:09
food and actually caring about how important that is.
10:12
But I think kind of it's not that we've forgotten.
10:14
We do know how important food is in this country.
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Everyone seems to care so very much about being healthy and and
10:19
taking care of our bodies, but so, so much of it is so
10:21
processed and taken away from its roots.
10:25
That is such a nice thing to get to experience that.
10:27
So yeah, I'll definitely have to look out for something like that
10:29
when I get to Italy next. I think the Mediterranean is
10:32
really good for that in general, isn't it?
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That constant really good nutrients, really good local
10:37
foods. They tend to really value what
10:39
they grow, which is just so special.
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Yeah, and they all have these dishes that they're known for.
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So it's so funny because I'll be at a restaurant and I'm like,
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oh, I'm going to order this. And my husband's like, no, no,
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that's, that's not what you get in this region.
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You get this. And like we were eating over,
11:00
having lunch the next day on our way home.
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And he's like, no, you have to get the polenta here because
11:04
that's what they're known for. Well, I don't want polenta when
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it's 40° out. Thank you very much.
11:09
So I will have something else, but next time, next time I'll
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get the polenta. That must be so nice as well, to
11:15
have his wisdom and like ideas of the kinds of foods that are
11:19
really like what the areas are famous for, and especially for
11:21
your kids as well, getting to experience that as well is, is
11:24
so special. But really understanding the
11:26
point of sort of local foods and why they're local and how
11:29
they've become so popular there and because they grow well there
11:31
and all that sort of stuff. It's so, so, so, so important.
11:34
I think if we try to actually make sure our planet actually
11:36
gets to stay rooted to what it should be.
11:41
Yeah, very, very exciting. I'm very jealous.
11:45
So getting into this week's topic.
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So we're trying to kind of get along this kind of concept of
11:50
breaking free of the sit down culture.
11:52
Now I think as home educators, we're preaching to the
11:54
converted. We're just certainly not
11:56
encouraging you to think, Oh, well, I have to do this much
11:59
more because I'm sure that you are already moving at 20,000
12:03
times more than the average school child gets to move on a
12:05
weekly basis, at least within the school walls.
12:09
And ultimately, as home educators, we do really value
12:14
our time spent outside. I mean, if you just look at the,
12:16
the top level basics, the reasons why I value movement for
12:19
my kids, one is because it helps to keep us fit and well, it
12:25
keeps our flexibility up. It keeps our ability to focus.
12:28
It helps us to feel more kind of vital in our lives.
12:31
If we're moving regularly and we're feeling like we're
12:33
actually engaging all the parts of our body, like every single
12:36
bit of us matters, not just our brains.
12:39
I also really value it for the concept of regulation.
12:43
So obviously I am dealing with neurodivergent children.
12:45
If they were asked to sit still and not meet their physical body
12:49
needs, then actually that dysregulation of their nervous
12:52
system causes meltdowns and shutdowns and them to get really
12:56
super overstimulated or not to be able to enjoy the activities
12:59
that we're trying to do. So I have got to constantly keep
13:02
in mind making sure they're able to meet all the various
13:05
different needs that they have got.
13:07
So it's super important for them to obviously move their bodies
13:10
and to make sure that they're able to meet those needs.
13:12
But I also have found there have been so many moments when I've
13:14
been trying to cover something off with them and ask them to
13:17
come and sit and focus. And they found that so, so, so
13:20
hard to, to actually sustain listening and to participate in
13:24
the conversation if I'm making them sit still.
13:27
And so we found that literally if I'm, if I go downstairs and
13:30
use the, we've got these big French doors, if I get some
13:32
chalk pens and use that as kind of like a board to draw on
13:36
whilst their sing about on the swing, we've got like a sensory
13:39
swing thing and a wobble board. I will actually have them
13:42
engaged in a conversation that's a bit more class like.
13:45
That's the only time I've ever done that is a couple of times
13:47
when it's been fun to actually draw it out whilst I've been
13:49
talking about it. They will actually use that as a
13:51
really great opportunity to move their bodies.
13:54
They'll listen, they'll answer the questions, etcetera.
13:56
If I ask my son maths questions whilst he's break dancing on the
13:59
kitchen floor, he will answer them like that straight away, no
14:03
hesitation, it just comes straight to his head.
14:05
If I ask him to sit and focus, he's spending so much energy
14:08
making himself sit and focus that he actually finds it pretty
14:12
hard to answer the questions. So I know that from his
14:15
perspective, he actually learns on the go like 10,000 times
14:20
easier than he does if I try and force him to sit still.
14:24
Now, I think we all know in schools why it's so important
14:27
for teachers to wrangle 30 children and get them to sit
14:30
down and be quiet. Like I could understand, like I
14:35
could not have 30 of my kids break dancing, chattering,
14:39
flailing around, getting up and down off their chairs, wandering
14:41
around the classroom and stay sane just trying to explain a
14:45
simple concept so that they can all go off and do whatever
14:48
activity we're about to do next. Like 100% there is a time and a
14:51
place for you need to stop and sit and listen.
14:54
But I think the problem is with where we've obviously contained
14:57
children in this space. We've given them a single adult
15:00
who's supposed to be or maybe they're lucky than one TA to
15:03
help them to wrangle this group of kids.
15:06
It's just impossible to maintain that level of freedom and and
15:09
needs meeting that we could actually achieve in a home
15:13
educating environment. So I appreciate this as a
15:14
privilege of 1 to one education, alternative provisions, more
15:18
outdoor education, forest schools, etcetera.
15:20
Like this is a, a concept that works a lot better when you
15:24
haven't got one or two adults trying to wrangle a massive
15:26
group of kids. But I do think there is still a,
15:31
a very important conversation to be had here about how
15:33
detrimental that actually can be to our children's learning.
15:38
So obviously you've been a teacher.
15:39
I can imagine it was, it was really hard to like obviously
15:43
help them to meet needs and to make sure they're sort of
15:45
staying focused, but also to make sure that you're getting
15:48
through the curriculum that you've got to try and cover
15:50
it's. Very challenging.
15:53
I think it's what separates like good experienced teachers from
15:58
those who kind of tend to be more aggressively disciplinarian
16:03
and and just have like that, you know, when you had those grumpy
16:06
teachers like growing up, like I feel like that's the difference.
16:09
They struggle to keep that flow. And then you, if you think about
16:11
those wonderful teachers that you had growing up, they
16:15
probably were more easygoing and they let the conversations
16:18
meander a little bit before bringing it back.
16:20
They, they let the one kid do jumping jacks in the back of the
16:23
classroom. Those are the teachers that
16:26
stuck with you. And, and you probably didn't
16:28
even realize why. And obviously all this varies by
16:32
grade and, and all of that, the age of the child.
16:35
But I think that it is one of those things where you are
16:40
desperately trying to work towards this end goal of end of
16:44
the year. The children have completed
16:46
everything that you're supposed to have completed for that
16:48
curriculum. And you obviously don't have the
16:51
luxury that home educators do of catering TO12345 children.
16:57
And that's very different than a classroom and, and the
16:59
management style that's required for that.
17:00
So, yeah, it's always going to look different in a classroom,
17:04
but there are teachers who are able to find ways to engage the
17:09
students. I mean, if you think about when
17:11
you were in school, were you able to get up and write on the
17:14
chalkboard? And you loved writing on the
17:15
chalkboard, right? That everyone wanted to be that
17:17
kid. Why was that?
17:19
Why did that teacher decide to let the class kick off by each
17:25
row of students? So maybe you had five rows in
17:27
that classroom. You know, one student from each
17:30
row would would write a homework problem on the board, and you
17:32
then would compare your homework to them.
17:34
Did they get it right? Yeah, that's absolutely one way
17:36
to do it. But it also lets movement.
17:38
It lets those children who aren't writing on the chalkboard
17:41
have the ability to kind of move around a little bit in their
17:45
desk and talk to their friend, compare their paper, right?
17:47
So there are all these different things that you probably never
17:49
even realized were letting you exercise movement at that
17:52
moment. But it, it definitely made you
17:55
like that class more, right? And so that's, that's something
17:58
to to kind of be mindful of. It's happening.
18:01
It's just not all the time. Yeah, yeah.
18:04
And I think it's also like I think some subjects we tend to
18:07
pigeonhole into movement based subjects too, right.
18:10
So like science experiments and getting outside for PE and maybe
18:16
kind of art as well. Like I know I did like when we
18:19
had like painting or sometimes our teachers send us out buckets
18:22
of water and paintbrushes, we go paint the pavement outside or
18:26
whatever it is that we were doing.
18:27
Like obviously younger years, this is more than anything, but
18:30
you, you kind of associate certain subjects with movement
18:34
more easily than others. And I think we do tend to almost
18:39
pigeonhole, for example, reading and writing to desk work.
18:43
We, we seem to think that it's the only place that a, a child
18:45
can be practising these skills and as as an, a home educator,
18:50
as somebody who's thought about this a lot and has practiced
18:53
various different rules and ideas around this.
18:55
But actually, I've found that my children do a heck of a lot more
18:57
reading. If we're just reading the names
19:00
of different businesses off the side of trucks or reading menus
19:04
at a restaurant. Or maybe it's we're walking
19:06
around somewhere historic and they're reading all the big
19:09
posters and signs and things and little chunks of text that are
19:12
on those sorts of things or whatever it might be.
19:16
And writing wise, same again, like it might be writing
19:19
messages to each other in the sand at the beach, or it could
19:21
be drawing in the sand, or it could be drawing in the mud or
19:25
whatever. Like there's, there's so many
19:26
different moments where we can use those same skills or work on
19:29
the fine motor skills or work on like skills that lead into
19:33
those. So in leading into writing, such
19:35
as drawing or playing with physical things like playing
19:39
with sand and, and mud and, and touching stuff and feeling stuff
19:42
and like lifting things and working on the strength of our
19:45
fingers, etcetera. All of those things lead into
19:46
those skills later and actually allow for a lot less desk time
19:51
because actually when you do sit down to try and actually do some
19:54
proper sit down practicing and the thing, the fine motor skills
19:58
and stuff have been developed in many other ways.
20:00
And I think it's so much of that is is critical for development
20:05
and isn't and is definitely encouraged in younger years.
20:08
But I feel like it drops away quite quickly once a pencil's in
20:11
their hand and a piece of paper's on their desk.
20:13
And I think we. It like for what of a better
20:16
word? Sometimes it can feel easier.
20:19
Like I get this sensation that's just being really honest here.
20:22
Sometimes I just want to print off a worksheet and sit down and
20:25
just do some addition. I don't want to mess about.
20:27
I don't want to go and get loads of resources out.
20:29
I don't want to spend ages playing with counters and just
20:31
letting them get there naturally all on their own.
20:33
Sometimes I just want to get a piece of written work done,
20:36
stick it in the folder and move on.
20:38
And like, I know I'm not alone in this.
20:40
Like this is 100% a normal sensation to get.
20:42
Like we're busy. Maybe we've not got a lot of
20:44
time. We haven't done a lot of written
20:46
work lately and we're feeling a little bit nervous about what,
20:48
if anybody ever did need to see any evidence of what we're
20:51
doing, whatever it might be. There's loads of different
20:54
reasons why we might kind of get this urge to make them sit down
20:57
and do something. And actually, I find that in
21:00
those moments, I get so much pushback and struggle that I
21:02
then get quite frustrated and irritated with them.
21:04
But like, you hardly ever have to do this.
21:06
I would have had to do this every single day at school.
21:08
Like there's absolutely no way that I would have gotten away
21:11
with just being. I don't want to having a having
21:14
a wobbly and walking away and all these conversations kind of
21:18
come around and around and we do find ourselves getting irritable
21:21
with this sometimes. And actually, it's in those
21:25
moments that obviously from my own, I guess like my own
21:30
limiting beliefs, my own struggles, my own like lingering
21:34
trauma from being forced to do it myself, I have to then have a
21:38
really serious chat with myself and be like, OK, I hear that
21:40
you're getting annoyed. Like it's OK that you're feeling
21:42
frustrated by this. But let's actually think about
21:45
another way that we could make this work.
21:47
And sometimes that's me letting them move around and just
21:51
getting them to come and quickly read the sum and then carry on
21:54
doing what they were doing and shout the answer to me when they
21:57
figured it out. And then I write it down or
21:59
whatever. And I just make a note at the
22:01
bottom saying like they read out the sum and told me the answer.
22:05
I did the writing. It's just that I've got the
22:08
evidence that they did actually do the maths themselves.
22:10
They just didn't want to sit and actually do the worksheet right
22:12
now. So then I've got something to
22:14
put away. Or maybe it's my daughter, for
22:16
example, works a lot better if I, if I give her a load of
22:20
pencils or some other random objects and we use those to
22:23
obviously count out the answer to.
22:24
And she's only 5. Just totally.
22:27
What you should be doing anyway really is kind of giving them a
22:29
physical thing to work with to help them to visualize what it
22:32
looks like that number, etcetera.
22:34
But when it comes to movement and maths, I think we don't
22:38
often put those two together or become movement and reading and
22:42
writing. We don't always put those two
22:43
together. But actually there are lots of
22:46
ways of including movement in those subjects.
22:49
Playing hopscotch, jumping across the room on a letter,
22:52
like there's so many different things that you can be doing
22:56
that do take a little bit more creativity, but actually
22:58
ultimately help to build and really in bed learning as well.
23:02
So I don't know if yours find that certain subjects they find
23:05
really difficult to remember or retain, but actually, if you do
23:08
it as a funny rhyme or you do it as a an exercise, you gain that
23:11
actually suddenly they're they're grasping it really fast.
23:14
It's shocking sometimes how that works.
23:17
I think that I'm going to forget the statistic here, but the when
23:22
you talk about learning something, you have to have
23:24
exposure to it like 100 * 200 times, something like that.
23:28
But when you learn through play, you learn it in five exposures,
23:33
like a dramatic difference. And I can't remember if those
23:36
the exact numbers, I'm going off my memory here, but it is
23:40
staggeringly different like that.
23:43
And so when you think about how fast your kid learns new things
23:46
on video games or if they're playing a card game or if
23:51
they're just outside playing a game that they've created with
23:53
other friends, children learn way more through play.
23:57
And so the more that you can incorporate that into whatever
24:00
you're teaching, the better off you'll be, the more likely they
24:03
are to retain it. And that absolutely makes sense,
24:07
right? And we can think of our just
24:09
watching our children. We observe that I am.
24:11
So for mine, it's definitely that way.
24:15
We also like to just not have regulations around like you can
24:19
only use a pencil or you can only use a pen or you can only
24:21
use this paper or I use a lot of these manipulatives made by a
24:26
company called Jack and Link, which is AUS company.
24:31
And I think if you haven't tried to go to their website here, it
24:33
doesn't work. It's only accessible through the
24:35
US, but you can follow her Instagram and see what I'm
24:40
talking about. I basically like order them,
24:42
ship them to my mom and then forward them back here so that
24:47
we can use them. And they're basically these
24:49
little dry erase manipulatives in various different shapes that
24:53
just make it fun. So if we're, you know, talking
24:57
about writing a letter, I might have the manipulatives that are
25:00
for a letter and sticking them in a mailbox, like check out
25:03
their Instagram. It'll make way more sense what
25:05
I'm saying. But she's just brilliant what
25:07
she's doing. It's a family run company,
25:10
husband and wife, and they kind of created out of a need for
25:12
their own children. But what I think you can take
25:16
away from that is you can do that with everything around your
25:19
house. It doesn't have to be their
25:20
specific things that you're purchasing.
25:22
So you can, you can find ways to make things more engaging.
25:27
And yes, like you said, it does take a lot more work, but I
25:30
think that it does, it does allow for that kind of movement
25:34
and creativity to come into like something that might otherwise
25:37
be very boring, like adjectives, right?
25:39
So, you know, maybe you're even just taking a piece of paper and
25:44
you're drawing the center of a flower and you have, you know, 5
25:48
petals around it. And in the middle is the word
25:50
dog. And your kid is learning
25:52
adjectives. So you say, OK, fill each petal
25:54
in with an adjective about a dog.
25:56
You know, what describes the dog?
25:57
What something, what does it smell like?
25:59
What does it feel like? What does it sound like?
26:01
What does it look like? Right.
26:02
And you can kind of do that to make it a little bit more fun.
26:05
And obviously the more you do this, the the the better you'll
26:09
be about pulling these things out of thin air like I just did,
26:12
right? So, you know, you can do you
26:16
could just I practice makes progress, right.
26:17
So all of that is so really good.
26:20
But I think a lot of this and kind of what you're talking
26:24
about too isn't isn't even just movement, but it's also just
26:27
like that mental well-being, right.
26:31
And I love going back to Charlotte Mason for this because
26:34
I think she just gosh, and you know, 150 years ago, Ray, she
26:39
she really knew what she was talking about.
26:41
And I don't know why we don't have this more prominent in all
26:44
schools, the home education community, home educators just
26:49
rely so much on on a lot of what she speaks.
26:51
And I know there are schools that do this very, very well,
26:55
but it's ridiculous to me that it's still considered
26:57
alternative and not like the way.
26:59
But anyway, you know, she talked about like regulation and mental
27:03
well-being, not just for the child, but for the parent in the
27:05
case of home education. But that that mental well-being
27:09
component is really fostered and like maintained by alternating
27:15
focus with movement and rest. And that that those two together
27:20
created this like positive atmosphere.
27:22
So like any time that you were going to have like a mental
27:28
effort, you would need to balance that with what she
27:32
called restful pursuits. So that could just be a quiet
27:36
reflection. It could be doing chores around
27:38
the house, it could be going for a nature walk.
27:43
And that those types of components really complement
27:47
each other. And all of that comes back to
27:50
basically what she talked about in terms of like a daily rhythm
27:53
versus like a strict schedule. So the rhythm would be first we
27:57
have breakfast, then we do our chores, then we get dressed,
28:00
then we go for a walk where is like a schedule would be
28:03
breakfast is from 7:00 to 7:15. You know, the walk is from 7:15
28:08
to 7:45. We feed the dog at 7:45, right?
28:11
So just a very rigid something that you then feel anxiety over
28:14
if you're not meeting that or maybe you're on a nature walk
28:17
and you're really enjoying it and you decide to go for another
28:19
loop, right? But if you're sticking to a
28:21
strict schedule, you can't do that.
28:23
So anyway, that like regulation component she felt was really
28:28
built by daily habits and that rhythm and then parents modeling
28:34
that themselves. And what I find super hard about
28:38
this is I was like a family by the seat of your pants person.
28:42
There was definitely a rhythm to my day work, gym, lunch,
28:45
whatever. But then but I never really, if
28:48
someone called, hey, do you want to go to this?
28:50
I'm like, Yep, I'm there, let's do that.
28:52
I'll go to the gym tomorrow, doesn't.
28:53
It yeah. And then you have kids and
28:56
you're like, wait, naps, I can't be out of the house for naps.
28:58
And it just changes everything. And so this was a struggle for
29:03
me. And I hate when the masses are
29:07
right, but it's true. Like my kids did do better if I
29:09
was sticking to their nap schedules and if they're eating
29:12
at the same time every day or relatively right.
29:15
And that that little change, like if I was like, oh, yeah,
29:18
stay up and watch that show for an extra hour.
29:20
And I know some children can do this.
29:22
Mine cannot. Perfect example.
29:24
The other night we met friends because obviously we used to
29:27
live here in Italy. My kids were having a great
29:29
time. We started dinner at 7:00.
29:31
We were still there at 10. My oldest who's 11 is coming
29:34
over at Mommy. Can we please go to bed?
29:36
Nope. OK, what 11 year old says that
29:39
to you? Can we please go home and go to
29:42
bed? And then we went home and it was
29:46
a disaster. It was an absolute disaster.
29:47
My 5 year old was a hot mess. My 8 year old was screaming that
29:51
she hated me, she didn't want to be touched.
29:53
How How could I then dare leave her and not give her a kiss?
29:56
Get back here. I mean not, you know.
29:58
Having a really super emotional tiredness.
30:00
Yeah. My son gets like that, yeah.
30:03
So dysregulated, it was a disaster.
30:05
I think we were there till nearly midnight trying to get
30:07
them to fall asleep because my husband and I are actually
30:09
sleeping at my sister-in-law lives down the street and my
30:12
kids are staying at my in laws. And so, yeah, so this is just,
30:16
I'm like, I love these reminders.
30:20
No, your kids cannot fly by this with their pants.
30:22
They need these these rhythms. They need these habits.
30:25
They need their schedule. And I think also like
30:28
integrating a bit of movement, like so saying, for example,
30:31
like actually your kids tend to focus better if they've already
30:34
had a chance to be outside today, then maybe it's a case
30:36
that actually like get out for that walk really early, Like go
30:39
out and move some bodies, get get some wiggles out.
30:42
And then maybe by 9:00 they'll be able to sit down and actually
30:44
do some stuff with you for a little while.
30:45
Or like, I definitely find you've got to get the the
30:49
balance right. And I was actually working with
30:50
a client on this a couple of months ago where she was kind of
30:52
saying, I'm just, I'm so stressed.
30:54
I've got so much work to do and I've got like these coaching
30:56
calls. So I have to go and do my
30:57
coaching calls. He's got to occupy himself doing
30:59
whatever I've set for him to do. Then I come out and I need to
31:02
sit down with him, go through what he's done, take him like
31:04
get through the next chunk of work that he needs my help with.
31:06
And then I've got to get back on another call.
31:08
And it's just a bit like back and forth, back and forth at the
31:11
minute. And I said, OK, so how regulated
31:13
are you feeling like you're coming off that whatever it is
31:16
that you're doing? What do you need?
31:18
And she goes, well, to eat, to have a drink.
31:21
I need to make my body, I'm feeling really restless.
31:23
There's loads of housework that he's doing.
31:24
I'm neglecting this. And then I went, OK, I said, and
31:27
he's also probably sat played on a screen or messed about, like
31:30
done something quietly by himself for a little while.
31:33
I said, so he's also probably in need of a drink, maybe something
31:37
a snack, maybe he needs to get out and move his body too.
31:39
And I was like, so maybe that's not the window to be trying to
31:43
force some sit down work right now.
31:45
Like maybe that's just not going to work for you guys.
31:47
Just whilst you're in this really busy week where you've
31:49
just got a lot going on, what else could you do?
31:53
Like how else could you use the hour that actually would allow
31:55
you both to be more productive and calmer and get through it?
31:58
Like it's 5 minutes of proper reading before you jump back on
32:03
that call. Better than an hour of struggle
32:07
whilst you're both getting angry with each other because both of
32:09
you have got needs to meet and you're both feeling resentful
32:12
that actually it doesn't work. Like an actually we can spend so
32:15
much of our time fighting back against these things.
32:19
And ultimately if we just put some effort into regulating
32:22
first. And I think this is sometimes,
32:24
sometimes we have to regulate after for sure.
32:27
But if we can do our best to regulate first, then it actually
32:30
means that the difficult bits, the bits that do require more
32:33
focus or attention or whatever, come a lot easier.
32:35
Like I know, for example, if I sit straight down at my desk to
32:38
do some work in the morning and I haven't had a drink, something
32:40
to eat and a chance to wake up a bit more gently, maybe gone
32:44
outside for just a few minutes and just had some fresh air on
32:46
my face, whatever, then I know that I'm not going to be as
32:49
productive as I would be if I'd just done a few of those things
32:52
first. So, yeah.
32:53
So I think it's it's really scary, isn't sometimes.
32:55
You can see how dysregulation can obviously then just make
32:58
working together so impossible. And that's the thing it, it does
33:02
come down to like recognizing those needs for both of you and
33:07
for your child and then being able to spot it and, and
33:12
hopefully react or built into your routine.
33:15
And this is another great example.
33:17
I'm sure everyone in the UK is experiencing this right now too,
33:20
with this heat. We are not getting outside.
33:24
Sunday was so hot here that we literally spent the day inside
33:29
doing puzzles, card games and playing with like, you know,
33:32
little figurines and stuff like the Playmobil and stuff like
33:35
that. And then in the evening, my kids
33:39
were going out of their mind like screaming, not screaming
33:42
angry, but like the volume of their excitement was just off
33:46
the charts. And obviously in the evenings
33:50
here, there are so many spit mosquitoes, so it's like the
33:53
worst time to be outside at that dusk hour because you just get
33:57
eaten alive. But I was like, I don't care.
33:59
We're going to just spray the awful bug spray all over us and
34:03
go outside because otherwise I don't, I don't know what we're
34:06
going to do. Like they were just, they were
34:08
climbing on the furniture. They were.
34:11
And it's just like this. This is because we've been
34:12
inside all day, because my kids have got to get outside all day,
34:15
especially my middle. She has got to be able to
34:18
stretch her legs and like for more than 4 seconds.
34:21
So the dog didn't want to go for a walk like all these things
34:26
that day because it was so, so, so, so hot.
34:29
But yeah. And if you, it wasn't until I
34:32
was like, OK, everyone outside, like outside it's it's not super
34:36
cool. But you know, if the sun is is
34:40
hidden a bit, let's go, because otherwise you're not going to go
34:42
to sleep. No.
34:44
And I think it's so like aside from the self regulation as
34:47
well, I think the other thing that keeps coming back into my
34:49
head as we're talking is, is how actually using lots of different
34:53
types of stimuli helps us to retain information.
34:56
So this is the other thing kind of like sort of side stepping
34:58
this a little bit and talking about another element of this.
35:01
If you think about kind of if you just read a book and you
35:04
don't talk to anybody about it, you don't write anything down,
35:07
you don't research it further, you don't go on to watch a
35:09
documentary, you don't do anything else.
35:11
You just read a book about a subject just for fun.
35:14
You just enjoy it, you've read it, you move on.
35:16
Some of that information will stick for sure.
35:19
But actually if you never do anything else with that, there's
35:22
a good chance that that information is going to
35:23
disappear. Now this comes back around to
35:25
relevance in learning as well and how actually a lot of the
35:27
time when we're our brains retain the information that
35:30
matters to us. So if we can then integrate that
35:32
somehow and have them see it actually matter in a number of
35:36
different ways, then those concepts tend to stick around.
35:39
So like for example, if you if you did read something with your
35:42
kids and they've piqued an interest and they're interested
35:45
in learning more about it, then physically going and visiting
35:48
somewhere, running around the walls of a castle or around a
35:50
garden or around a place that's got something to do with that
35:53
subject. Or maybe it's going to a garden
35:56
and instead of just wandering around the garden, you stop, you
35:59
sniff, you smell, you touch, you like play with the different
36:02
leaves. You talk about the different
36:05
types of leaves. You see the different types of
36:08
petals, the different structures of flower.
36:11
You take some photos. You you collect some to take
36:14
home and dry later. You use one of those fun apps
36:18
where it actually identifies them and tells you exactly what
36:20
they are. You maybe take some pens and
36:23
paper and you draw one or you whatever.
36:25
And I know that all this can sound like really like my kids
36:27
sometimes really resist kind of going into great depth like
36:30
this, but it doesn't have to be forever.
36:32
Like it can literally just be for 30 seconds.
36:34
It doesn't even need to be a lot, but it is just that little
36:38
moments, a little kind of mindful moments.
36:40
I guess this is mindfulness essentially is actually taking
36:43
the time to really truly look at something, feel it, touch it,
36:46
smell it. The more elements of our senses
36:49
that we involve in every single learning example and
36:52
opportunity, the more hope there is for them actually to retain
36:56
that information and to keep it. And I know for me that if I go
37:01
somewhere and I chat to someone about something and I then I
37:04
read something really interesting.
37:05
It's a fact. And then I tell three other
37:06
people that fact and then I like find myself Googling it and
37:09
watching a video about it because I'm so fascinated by it.
37:12
Chances are that information is going to stick around for a
37:14
while. Like, for example, right now I'm
37:16
hilariously fascinated by, I think it's agate.
37:19
It's agate. It's a type of rock.
37:22
So like as like things fossilize, you get these nodules
37:26
in rocks when loads of different minerals are seeped into it in
37:29
different layers. And so they create these
37:31
incredible layered rocks inside. So these guys cut them open.
37:33
It's just amazing, like easy watching on Instagram, but it's
37:36
fascinated me. It's it's actually set me off
37:38
down. Like, how do these form?
37:40
What kinds of minerals are those?
37:42
Like what kind of situation has to happen to the rock for that
37:45
to happen? Like all of these questions
37:47
start to fill up in your head and instead of like put them
37:50
down, I've obviously then found myself wanting to to look into
37:53
it more. And I now just want to get out
37:54
to the like a riverbed with the kids and see if there's
37:57
somewhere local to us where we might be able to hunt for some
37:59
of these and try and crack them open or whatever.
38:01
Like just the most incredible opportunities.
38:03
And I think we just have to kind of take these take the lead of
38:07
of what is piquing our curiosity in whatever physical form that
38:11
is. And that could be that they just
38:13
want to run up and climb a hill to see a view or they want to
38:16
climb a particular tree. Or as they're climbing that
38:18
tree, they're noticing a fungus on it and an insect and the type
38:21
of bark it is and how tricky it is to get down because it's not
38:24
particularly easy to climb tree. And why is that?
38:26
Like is it because of the structure of the tree and the
38:28
way it grows or like how separated out the branches are,
38:31
whatever, right? Like there's so much
38:34
information, so much information out there that is found out
38:38
simply through experience. And I guess really trying to
38:43
break free of this kind of culture of learning is done when
38:46
sitting down. It frustrates me so much when
38:50
you kind of, I've had conversations with people,
38:52
they've said to me, don't you want them to be able to just sit
38:54
down and just do a job one day there?
38:56
And I was like, well I'm sure they will be able to just sit
38:59
down and do a job one day if that is what is being called of
39:02
them. However, I do actually hope that
39:05
they will be conscious that they function better in movement and
39:09
maybe take on a kind of job that allows them plenty of movement
39:12
in their day and isn't just sitting at desks.
39:15
And if that doesn't suit them, I would rather they pick something
39:18
that would make them feel more human, more them like, more
39:22
engaged, enjoying it. That that.
39:26
No, actually, I'm, I'm not particularly bothered about that
39:28
as a goal. It's not important for me.
39:32
It's, it's not the goal, it's the, it's the characteristic of
39:35
the work, right. So like, if they're really
39:38
interested in law and they want to become a lawyer, then
39:42
obviously that's a job that requires a ton of studying, a
39:44
ton of work at a computer. But if that is what they're they
39:49
feel called to do, then they'll be engaged in the work and thus
39:54
sitting at the desk won't be an issue.
39:57
Where it's like training them to sit at a desk isn't really the
40:03
goal because there's no job where you just sit at a desk.
40:06
You're you're doing something right.
40:07
So I think I think you're right. And if your kids naturally tend
40:11
to to move towards a more physical.
40:15
Job like that's what gives them satisfaction.
40:17
Then then they just won't even choose that, so it won't even
40:20
matter right, But I think you're right.
40:21
I think people are like, Oh no, we need to condition them to sit
40:24
at a desk. No, you need to condition them
40:26
to be interested in something and to follow their true passion
40:28
and drive to be happy and fulfilled, and that will
40:32
naturally then either lead them to sitting at a desk or out in
40:35
the in the world walking around. I don't know, but like, right,
40:38
it's so it just seems like the priority is isn't right in that
40:42
case, when people say that, I don't know.
40:44
And of course you're just like, OK, whatever, because you're not
40:46
going to dive into that conversation with them and the
40:47
line at the grocery store. But it's it's one of those
40:50
things we hear, right? It's one of those myths that we
40:52
keep getting asked, Well, what if they need to sit at a desk?
40:55
Well, I'm sure they'll be just fine and.
40:57
I think as well, like we're talking in this situation where
41:00
like it's important to condition them to cope in this situation,
41:04
to remember they're one of a crowd to sit and be quiet, to
41:06
sit at the desk to, to listen to authority, to do as they're
41:10
told, to follow instructions. Like these are all things that
41:14
we value quite highly in education.
41:16
But as adults, we want people who are capable of thinking for
41:19
themselves, who are capable of taking the bull by the horns and
41:21
being proactive, who are good team players are coming up with
41:25
creative ideas, solving problems.
41:26
Like we almost want the opposite.
41:28
And I honestly find that really odd, really, really odd.
41:32
But ultimately I think we're we're asking for this
41:35
conditioning. We're asking this of human
41:38
children who are typically not really geared up for that in
41:41
general. And it's actually quite
41:43
difficult for them. It does cause them a lot of
41:44
strain. And most children have periods
41:48
of time where they need to re regulate outside of school.
41:50
They need to go and move their bodies and have fun and play
41:52
with their friends and just really get that runny energy
41:54
out. And we're, we're asking that of
41:58
them. And I don't really know how
42:01
anyone could listen to this conversation and think that
42:03
anything that we're saying is not basically highlighting that
42:07
as human beings, we naturally need these things.
42:11
So why is it that we seem to be so intent?
42:13
And I think this is where we have to really, again, it's a
42:15
coming back around to questioning social constructs
42:18
and social expectations and the reasons why we're worried about
42:21
this stuff. Because ultimately this is
42:22
really reflecting on the fact that as human beings, we have a
42:26
real desperate urge, it seems to make human beings better to, to
42:31
improve on us, to educate us better, to make us behave
42:34
better, to tame our wildness, to tame our actual innate
42:39
animalistic tendencies that we're not allowed to be human.
42:44
We're we're allowed to be a better version of always.
42:48
And that really does come with an awful lot of downsides and
42:52
struggles for us as a creature. Like we wouldn't ask a dog to
42:56
behave like a cat. Some obviously, I'm sure there's
43:00
strange people out there who literally train their dogs out
43:02
like a cat. I'm sure there are, but you know
43:03
what I mean? Like there's we, we don't ask a
43:06
rat to be a bird or a bird to be an octopus.
43:09
Like we, we don't do that. We allow them to be a bird and
43:13
we watch them thrive as a bird and we try and do everything we
43:16
can to make their life as naturally beautiful as a bird as
43:18
we possibly can. We don't take that away from
43:22
them and say you're terrible because you like to fly like it.
43:26
It makes no sense. It's so strange.
43:29
And I think the more we actually start to understand that that
43:32
human beings are human beings. We like to walk, run, climb.
43:37
We're curious, we're open, we like to do different things.
43:40
We like to physically touch stuff.
43:42
We, like most people, will like to learn in a very kind of
43:44
aesthetic ways, like physically doing things, moving, playing
43:49
with stuff, manipulating objects, building stuff,
43:52
creating things. Some children obviously want to
43:55
be quite artistic. Some people love to read.
43:58
Some people do love to be quiet and contemplative and spend lots
44:01
of time in nature relaxed and taking their time with things.
44:04
Some people like to move fast and furious.
44:06
Some people are warriors. Some people are like chilled by
44:09
the campfire kind of people telling the stories like we all
44:12
have different characteristics and natures and personalities,
44:17
but ultimately we are all human beings and we are all actually
44:23
being forced to believe that we are wrong if any of our natural
44:28
instincts go against what the social constructs are.
44:31
So I guess in summary of this, this rant of an episode is is
44:36
really trying to get you guys to understand that if you find
44:39
yourself getting frustrated, getting bored, your kids are
44:42
getting frustrated, are getting bored.
44:44
If things don't feel very aligned, you're you're
44:45
struggling to kind of get them to drop grasp concepts.
44:48
You're wondering what's going on.
44:50
Maybe just sit and have a think about how many different senses
44:54
are being engaged in the conversation you're having.
44:57
Are there other senses that you could engage?
45:00
Is there something else that could?
45:01
Could you make it more visual? Could you make it more like
45:04
sound based to like my kids love a rhyme or a song.
45:07
Sorry. We create songs for things
45:09
sometimes to help them remember bits of routines or like
45:13
concepts etcetera. There's so many great things out
45:16
there, but just try and see how else, like what other senses you
45:20
might be able to stimulate in this situation and just see what
45:24
happens. It's not just movement but all
45:26
sorts of different things as well.
45:27
Taste, touch, like physical movement, all of it counts.
45:32
And so just take a, take a moment, take a beat.
45:35
There's nothing wrong with you and there's nothing wrong with
45:38
your kids. If sitting down doing maths is
45:41
torture, like there's nothing wrong with anybody.
45:44
Just find another way of have a look at it, get a bit creative,
45:48
try and come up with something else.
45:49
It doesn't have to be super complicated, but just think if
45:51
there's anything that could change.
45:54
Because I know that from my perspective, sometimes it's
45:56
really, really difficult to get into that headspace of doing.
45:59
But ultimately, it nearly always results in fantastic outcomes
46:03
with much less stress and anger and frustration on all fronts
46:07
and more retention and enthusiasm to do it again.
46:11
Like, so actually, that's all we want, right?
46:14
We want our kids enthusiastic and, and having fun and we want
46:17
to enjoy doing it too. And we matter as well.
46:20
So if we are not happy, we're not enjoying it, that also
46:22
matters as well. We have got to look at why.
46:25
Like, what is it about this? It's bothering us, even if our
46:27
kids seem to be doing actually quite well with it, but we find
46:30
it really arduous to do with them.
46:32
That is worth looking at as well.
46:34
Like, how can you make that better for you?
46:37
Like, would you do, could you do with being able to get out and
46:39
move your body before you sit down and do some work with them
46:41
at the table? Like what is it that would help
46:43
you as well to cope and to regulate and to get through
46:46
those more frustrating or difficult moments of your day?
46:49
So, yeah, I hope this has been helpful actually.
46:51
Did you have anything else you wanted to add before we wrap up
46:53
for the day? Do you have just something
46:56
really random that I'll try to wrap up quickly?
46:58
I guess it's not random, it is related.
47:00
So you were talking about how the business culture, the the
47:05
employment culture honors like difference of opinions, leaders,
47:08
self starters, like they don't want just, you know, someone
47:11
following they're looking for a little bit of a challenge,
47:14
someone who's thinking differently, thinking
47:15
alternatively. And in an earlier episode, I
47:18
know I had mentioned that there was this post that I couldn't
47:21
find and I've still struggled to find have sense piece
47:24
information together about some of the tech leaders and how they
47:27
had an alternative schooling background.
47:30
And so really quickly, I'll just tell you, obviously Jeff Bezos,
47:33
huge in the news right now with the wedding and everything, had
47:37
a Montessori initial start to his schooling.
47:41
And his mother actually would say that he was so focused on
47:46
the activity that he was working on that the teachers would have
47:48
to like, physically pick up his chair to move him to the next
47:51
activity. And one of her quotes said
47:54
Montessori taught him to be a self starter.
47:56
He gets so absorbed in activities that we'd have to
47:58
nudge him forward. So right there, like such an
48:02
incredible person, obviously he's done a lot, created
48:07
something that no one thought would work.
48:09
And obviously everyone was proven wrong.
48:12
The Google Co founders both attended Montessori Montessori
48:15
schools as children. And I know Larry Page
48:19
specifically has credited Montessori with teaching him to
48:22
think independently and follow curiosity, right?
48:25
And that's all we're trying to do with these kids, right?
48:27
Want them to be self motivated, question what's going on in the
48:30
world. And that's exactly what Larry
48:31
Page said that like different alternative schooling helped him
48:34
do. And even Mark Zuckerberg also
48:36
attended A Montessori school early in his education.
48:40
And obviously, he has been incredibly independent,
48:44
passionate, exploring things in a way no one had thought of,
48:48
thought they needed. So just really interesting when
48:50
you look at those kinds of things, you know, these are
48:53
people that are shaping the way our world is moving forward and
48:56
they they didn't do it solely on a traditional schooling
49:00
background. So I think that's important to
49:02
note every little bit that you're doing differently as is
49:04
helping your children. I think this is so fascinating,
49:06
and I think so many entrepreneurs and incredible
49:08
people out there have just had the most interesting
49:11
backgrounds. It's definitely worth doing some
49:13
reading up on this if you find yourself being curious about the
49:15
kinds of minds that you're trying to create and the kind of
49:19
people who you want them to become like how you want them to
49:22
grow into themselves essentially, because there are
49:25
some really fascinating books out there.
49:27
So, yeah, so I would, I would definitely seriously consider
49:29
having a little look into some of these incredible people, some
49:32
of these different kind of mindsets and, and the people
49:35
who've come up with these great methods in the past of
49:38
philosophies maybe and in how they educate children because
49:42
it's it's so important to be considering what kind of minds
49:44
we're trying to create and what kind of attitudes we want them
49:48
to have. And I think let's let's
49:51
definitely embrace just just just being curious about this
49:55
and being open to different ideas and allowing them to
49:57
become such interesting human beings, so full of ideas and
50:04
thoughts. And actually allowing them to
50:06
recognize that being human and needing to move our bodies or
50:09
needing to eat something or drink something or go pee,
50:12
etcetera, does not make us bad. It doesn't make us lazy or
50:16
whatever their thoughts may be. It literally just makes us human
50:21
beings. And the more this is embraced, I
50:24
think the more hope there is for future generations to actually
50:27
really enjoy education and to really enjoy learning again.
50:31
And to actually become, if you think about the problems that we
50:34
could solve with a nation full of children who are actually
50:38
engaged and excited and enjoying their day-to-day learning
50:43
instead of it feeling like a big slog that they're kind of being
50:45
forced to go to. And again, I'm generalizing, I
50:48
do appreciate there's an awful lot of kids out there who do
50:51
enjoy schooling and do enjoy being there and do enjoy
50:53
learning. I'm not saying that people in
50:55
school are not going to be, but I certainly think that it's
50:58
super important for us to be. I mean, so many conversations
51:01
are being had in government, in big kind of educational
51:04
organisations, charities, etcetera, to try and encourage
51:06
schools to be way more focused on this, to be more aware of
51:11
children's experiences in school and to help them to actually
51:14
enjoy their learning and be more engaged with it.
51:16
So this is not just me getting at schools, This is me saying
51:19
that there's a lot of people out there who really think that
51:21
there's a lot of change that needs to happen for us to be
51:24
really raising those nations of thinkers and actors, people who
51:28
actually do things and fix it. And so if you are feeling at all
51:33
like you relate to this and want them to be thinking differently,
51:37
then it's really worth asking yourself some serious questions
51:40
about what social constructs are forcing you to feel bad or worry
51:45
about them sitting down and learning in such a sort of
51:48
structured way. And of why that feels so
51:50
important. And actually, whether or not
51:52
those opinions need to shift and change, and we're allowed to
51:55
change our minds, we're allowed to change our beliefs and to see
51:58
it differently. But that does take effort.
52:00
So it's worth taking the time to do that.
52:03
And yeah, we hope you've enjoyed this episode.
52:05
It has come with a million interruptions.
52:08
So you will enjoy the edited version of what is going on to
52:12
hopefully not sound like utter chaos.
52:14
I think you've heard about 6 interruptions.
52:16
My computer stopped recording and I had to restart and update
52:19
it. And my kids have come in three
52:20
times. So I I'm just absolutely blown
52:23
away that we have managed to actually finish this thing.
52:26
And I'm going to go jump in a nice cold shower now.
52:30
So we're off and carrying on with our day.
52:32
So enjoy everybody and we will see you again next week.
52:35
As always, take care guys. Bye.
52:44
You've been listening to the Big Home Ed Conversations podcast.
52:48
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53:02
all things about deregistering. So if you're new to home Ed or
53:06
you're thinking about deregistering, this is the
53:08
episode you've been waiting for. See you then.