Life with small children has its own set of demands and wonders. As mums of older children, it’s easy for us to look back on those days with rose-tinted glasses, but if we prod a bit deeper we can remember the exhaustion, the sleepless nights, the sheer physical demands of a baby’s complete dependence and the non-stop chatter of toddlers. They are such precious times, too, and the season really is a short one, though it can seem like eternity some days! So, if you have little ones this is...

We will no doubt all feel differently towards this second, winter lockdown. For some, it might be a welcome respite, a time with a slower pace in an often hectic life; for others it may hold huge anxiety with concerns over finances / increased pressure at work / family tensions. For many of us, we may feel somewhat heavy hearted at the thought of not seeing family and friends for yet longer. We were not made to live in isolation and part of the life blood of home educating is the fun and...

Geography is such a fun subject to share with our children. As we often say, our aim isn’t to teach our kids everything they need to know before they leave home, but rather to inspire a love of learning, nurture their natural curiosity and enable them to become self motivated learners. Our world is so vast and beautiful, with so much to explore. We hope you catch some of our enthusiasm as we chat through some of the ways we have enjoyed geography together from pre school through to...

Two of Molly’s children are dyslexic, so they have had plenty of opportunities to explore all the complexities wrapped up in this particular learning challenge. It does present some big hurdles but also can be seen as a gift, a way of seeing the world which is unique. Grab yourself a cuppa and listen in as we try to unpack dyslexia, offer some practical tips and reflect on a positive approach to our “out of the box” children.

With the covid pandemic, lockdown and now schools restarting the issue of friendships seems to be particularly pertinent. Good friendships don’t just happen, and as home educators we need to be intentional about helping our children develop and maintain good friends. Come and join us as we go back to basics... What makes a good friend? How can we be a good friend? How many friends do we actually need? It can be a difficult one to navigate so we hope you feel encouraged by the end of our...

Easing back into a term time rhythm after the glorious freedom of long summer holidays can be hard any year, but this time around it may be especially tricky... Or you may be longing for some sort of structure and so are raring to go! Come and join us, maybe with a cup of tea at hand, as we chat through some tips from veteran home educators which may help us all to begin the new academic year smoothly and with the assurance that we are giving our children the best possible foundations in our...

In our last episode before we take a few weeks’ break, we share some book and blog recommendations which might help re-inspire us in our parenting and home ed journey over the summer. Check our blog for all the links mentioned: mendedteacups.wordpress.com

I love the long summer holidays, and they are usually heralded by various annual events such as sports day, a home ed camping trip, end of term celebrations and bar-b-q’s. All these mark the end of our academic year. They feel like mini rites of passage, allowing us to move from one season to the next and have some well-earned time off. This year we are without any of these, but I would suggest we are just as much in need of rest and restoration; maybe even more so. In the next two episodes...

“My child won’t sit still... how can I teach him/her?” is a question that has been put to us, and one which I’m sure many of us identify with. This is a subject close to my heart (Molly) as we have been particularly blessed with some high energy, wriggly children. So, do join us as we discuss some practical solutions, some educational foundations, and some ways in which we truly can see this energy as a gift.

Ah yes. The great outdoors. What a beautiful and inspirational place it can be. Many home educators love to incorporate Nature Study into their family learning, but perhaps you find it a bit daunting to launch into. In this episode, Molly and Helen have a chat about how they've encouraged their children to enjoy the world around them - although neither of them have been particularly formal about it.

We hope that despite, or even because of, all the challenges of this time, it will have been a season when family relationships have deepened. When that which is important will have come to the surface, some good memories will have been made and some fun been had by all. As schools gradually start to reopen, or look towards doing so, many will go back into the routine of school. We hope there will be good things both you and your children will have taken from this time. For some, however,...

For those of us for whom home education is our normal lifestyle, the challenge of having children, books, craft activities, science projects, outdoor gear, sports equipment, laundry, dirty dishes, and toys all competing for the same space can be quite overwhelming. Is it possible to create order out of such potential chaos? I don’t think it’s realistic to have an ultra tidy home while we have the blessing of children within it; mess is a sign of life being lived, fun being had and learning...

As we caught up before we set about recording, we began by acknowledging that we both feel weary and heavy-hearted. Day to day life in this new reality can be draining, and the recent uprisings in the States bring deep-rooted injustices to the surface, which we too need to face. So join us as we try to grapple with some of what is going on around us - and how, as mums, we are in an incredibly empowered position as we raise up the foundations of the next generation.

In this time of Covid and lockdown, it’s been interesting to see the change in some of the ways in which we communicate. At one end of the spectrum, local communities are coming together and friendships are being formed amongst neighbours. At the other end, those from across the country - and even the globe - are able to come together via platforms such as Zoom. One such example of this was the Learn Free home educators’ conference. This is usually held in Coventry but as this was now not...

Home educators have coined the term “de-schooling” to describe the change in philosophy and approach to learning which needs to happen if a child is transferring their place of education from school to home. This doesn’t mean that one is wrong and one is right, but that they are different. There would usually be weeks and months for this to happen, but in 2020 Lockdown you don’t have that luxury. We’d love you to gain a glimpse of the joys of home educating, to develop a gentle rhythm and...

A fun few minutes in which we both share our enthusiasm for reading aloud to our kids. We could have gone on for much longer, but we didn’t! Come and join our conversation and then continue it at home.

This is a great question, and whether we home ed or not, we all know that head spinning feeling of questions and needs being expressed from all sides! We are no experts, but we offer some of our thoughts from our years of home ed to this common dilemma. And a question from me ... why is it children always need something urgently as soon as I get on the phone?

We’re all learning new things, from how to do our supermarket shop and how to make bread without yeast, through to how to deal with the much larger threats which face us. Here are a few of our lockdown lessons, some light-hearted and some deeper. We’d love to hear from you... Let us know what you’ve been leaning and we can encourage each other.

I’m sure we’re not the only ones struggling to cope with all that is unfolding around us. Today we have some advice from an experienced counsellor and some practical suggestions to help us as we walk through this strange season. Listen in and be encouraged!

As we reflected on these past few weeks in lockdown, we both realised that despite, or maybe because of, spending the entire time together with our families, we’ve spent less quality time with each other. We’ve had to contend with shock, uncertainty, deep health and financial concerns and the overriding anxiety which has swept across our nation. However, this is also a time of opportunity; time when we can deepen our relationships. And for those of us who are believers in Christ, we can...

At a time when each day rolls into the next with very little difference, we can easily feel overwhelmed and lacking in purpose. In this episode we suggest a few ways in which we can establish a gentle rhythm to our days and weeks and thus add meaning to this home season.

With the worry and uncertainty facing us in these strange times of lockdown and global pandemic, how can we still celebrate? This episode is being published just before Easter - how can we enjoy this time and make it different when we can't go anywhere and it's tricky to get special meal ingredients? Molly and Helen discuss whether and how to celebrate when life feels topsy-turvy.

The second of our mini schools shutdown podcast series. A much asked question at the moment is whether our children will have fallen behind their expected levels of attainment when schools start back. Join us as we address this with a perspective that sees opportunity in this time. Whether you are a long term home educator or a parent unexpectedly landed with the task, we hope you find something to encourage you. Please visit us at mendedteacups.wordpress.com for further information and show...

We are all living through extraordinary times; times of fear and anxiety, times of loss and sickness, times of financial disaster and daily uncertainty. On top of all of this, schools have closed indefinitely in the UK and elsewhere, and home education has been thrust upon already overloaded parents. While I know teachers are doing their utmost to provide some continuity, the day to day education of our nation’s children is now firmly the responsibility of us parents ( though I believe this...

A lovely friend joins us to share her experience of the various ways her children have made use of courses via the internet. Subjects range from Middle Ages Literature to “fun” maths. Come and learn along with us about another way to enable our kids to fly high... Apology: We keep talking about "Medieval Literature" in this episode, but the course title is actually "Middle Ages Literature". Sorry for our error!