Hello
We've just moved house in France. We moved to France last year, to a 'holiday home' size house which we'd been renovating over the past 5 years. We wanted to be near to my Mum and Dad who retired here almost 20 years ago ... we thought it was time we were near enough to be useful. We love it so much here that we've just moved to a bigger house, and we have (somehow!) found ourselves with around 3 and a bit acres.
Being more self sufficient, in a very ish way, has been a dream of mine for a long time. We home educate our two kids, and what better education could they have than learning a bit of self sufficiency?
Looking forward to getting to know you all a little better while we start out on this adventure.
Hello
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lucy.lists
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Lois-
Ratty
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Welcome aboard Lucy. I'm new too but absolutely loving all the useful advice & friendly messages on here.
Ratty
Ratty Rattyhttp://shop.ebay.co.uk/merchant/in_memory_of_joeb - Raising money for charity selling lots of things! Please take a look!
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The Riff-Raff Element
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More people in France - good!
Welcome. I am sure that you will find this board most informative.
Forgive me for prying, but I'd be very interested to hear more about your home educating in France. How are you dealing with getting the children's French up to the standard expected by the dreaded inspectors away from mainstream school for instance?
Welcome. I am sure that you will find this board most informative.
Forgive me for prying, but I'd be very interested to hear more about your home educating in France. How are you dealing with getting the children's French up to the standard expected by the dreaded inspectors away from mainstream school for instance?
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red
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welcome
I'm a fellow home educator too.. would be interested in hearing your experiences in France. 3 acres is nice...
I'm a fellow home educator too.. would be interested in hearing your experiences in France. 3 acres is nice...
Red
I like like minded people... a bit like minded anyway.. well people with bits of their minds that are like the bits of my mind that I like...
my website: colour it green
etsy shop
blog
I like like minded people... a bit like minded anyway.. well people with bits of their minds that are like the bits of my mind that I like...
my website: colour it green
etsy shop
blog
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lucy.lists
- Jerry - Bit higher than newbie
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- Joined: Sun May 25, 2008 6:33 pm
- Location: Deux-Sevres, France
Hello again and thanks all for the welcome.
The Home Education stuff is very different, here. When we were in the U.K we could be doing something different - with other groups of HE'd children - every day of the week if we'd wanted to. Here in France it's taken us months to make contact with just one or two French families with home educated kids. But, now we're starting to socialise, and do activities with other kids, I'm hoping the girls' French will improve too. I'm just starting an arrangement with one French family where we swap cds, dvds etc in English and French, and the mother will talk to my girls in French and I will talk to her boys in English ... and we'll see.
It's definitely a hurdle.
The Home Education stuff is very different, here. When we were in the U.K we could be doing something different - with other groups of HE'd children - every day of the week if we'd wanted to. Here in France it's taken us months to make contact with just one or two French families with home educated kids. But, now we're starting to socialise, and do activities with other kids, I'm hoping the girls' French will improve too. I'm just starting an arrangement with one French family where we swap cds, dvds etc in English and French, and the mother will talk to my girls in French and I will talk to her boys in English ... and we'll see.
It's definitely a hurdle.
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tim&fatima
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hedgewitch
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The Riff-Raff Element
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If you've not already been in contact with them, these people might be useful to know - a French home ed association. http://www.lesenfantsdabord.org/index.php I'm peripherally involved with education in France (volunteer English teacher, unqualified. Story of my life, that.) and one thing I have learned in the past few years is that the inspections are harsh: home ed's are expected to achieve similar levels in key subjects to children in mainstream education. And one of those is French language.lucy.lists wrote:Hello again and thanks all for the welcome.
The Home Education stuff is very different, here. When we were in the U.K we could be doing something different - with other groups of HE'd children - every day of the week if we'd wanted to. Here in France it's taken us months to make contact with just one or two French families with home educated kids. But, now we're starting to socialise, and do activities with other kids, I'm hoping the girls' French will improve too. I'm just starting an arrangement with one French family where we swap cds, dvds etc in English and French, and the mother will talk to my girls in French and I will talk to her boys in English ... and we'll see.
It's definitely a hurdle.
Generally the inspectors (definately not fluffy types) will allow one unsatisfactory (by their measure) inspection but another and they will act to get a child into school. They have considerable power and no discernable sense of humour. There is no requirement for them to make an allowance for a child who does not have French as their first language.
Good luck in your efforts. If you think of any questions PM me and I'll do what I can to answer them.
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Brij
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It does sound like you're up against it a bit on that one, but welcome, I'm sure you'll find this forum really useful 
"Only after the last tree has been cut down,
Only after the last river has been poisoned,
Only after the last fish has been caught,
Only then will you realise that money cannot be eaten"
Cree Indian prophecy
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Only after the last river has been poisoned,
Only after the last fish has been caught,
Only then will you realise that money cannot be eaten"
Cree Indian prophecy
My Blogette
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Thurston Garden
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Ahoy Lucy! 
Thurston Garden.
http://www.thurstongarden.wordpress.com
Greenbelt is a Tory Policy and the Labour Party intends to build on it. (John Prescott)
http://www.thurstongarden.wordpress.com
Greenbelt is a Tory Policy and the Labour Party intends to build on it. (John Prescott)