If your child has dyslexia, ADHD, learning differences, food/chemical sensitivities, migraines/headaches, difficulty retaining information or reading (especially for long periods), sensitivity to light, behavioural difficulties, or any of the other things listed HERE, then it would be a good idea to consider whether or not they might have Irlen Syndrome.

Irlen Syndrome, formerly known as Scotopic Sensitivity Syndrome (SSS), is corrected by wearing specially coloured lenses, but Irlen Syndrome is not an optical problem. It is a problem with the brain's ability to process visual information. This problem tends to run in families and is not currently identified by other standardised educational or medical tests.

The brain of a person with unidentified Irlen Syndrome works way harder than is normal - under MRI, huge areas of their brain are "lit up" when carrying out simple tasks. This is extremely tiring, and thus tends to lead to headaches, frustration, anger outbursts, exhaustion and so on. Put the correct lenses on that person, and their brain calms right down. 

People with this condition are affected in a variety of ways. When reading, they may see halos or shadows on the page, words moving, shimmering, undulating, exploding, dividing into strange columns or shapes, sinking into or rising above the page, static, or may have difficulty discerning the letters against the page background. No wonder reading is hard for them! But not all folk with Irlen have reading difficulties (just as not all dyslexics have reading difficulties). One of my children who has severe Irlen syndrome learned to read at age 4 with no problem whatsoever. But my husband and the other 3 of my kids who have Irlens did have various reading issues, or were "late bloomers" with reading. 

I will not go into too much detail here of all the ins-and-outs of Irlens - my main purpose is to mention this so you have heard about it, and invite you to investigate further. 

Getting diagnosed, and the right Irlen lenses, can be life changing! Exactly what the effects are vary from person to person, but for the 4 out of my 5 kids who have Irlen's lenses, between them we have seen: improved reading and retention of information, prevention of headaches and migraines, total mood improvement, less tiredness, reduction in clumsiness, improved safety in driving (!!) (both of those due to improved depth perception and increased peripheral vision), dramatic improvement in food/chemical sensitivities, ability to function under florescent light (previously an impossibility!), increased calmness, greater ability to cope with life in general and so on. 

To learn more about Irlen Syndrome, visit the international website HERE and/or download the information pack HERE. The information pack includes some simple questionnaires you can do at home, which will give you a good idea whether or not it is worth pursuing further Irlen investigation. 

There are Irlen screeners around the country who can do a pre-screening for Irlen Syndrome - very worthwhile in my experience, and much cheaper than going straight to the full diagnostics. 

There are then a scattering of opticians around the country who can do the Irlen diagnostic, in which the exact colour of lenses (filters) for the individual person is prescribed. There are a HUGE number of possible combinations and permutations, and it is important to get just the right combination of colours. 

However, Irlen diagnostics and glasses are not cheap - but there are ways of reducing cost, including:
1) If you have a community services card, then the annual $287.50 allowance for glasses for children 15 and under can be used towards the cost of Irlen diagnostics/prescription.
2) In some areas, there is funding available you can apply for - eg for those in the Rangatikei/Bulls/Sanson/Foxton area, there is funding available through a trust - for more info contact screener Prue Deighton (her contact details are in the info pack download).
3) Shop around - if you live somewhere where it's reasonable to choose which optician who does Irlen diagnosing you will drive to see, compare prices first. There is quite a lot of variation. 

If you suspect your child has some struggles that might be related to Irlen Syndrome, then I highly recommend you investigate further - it could change their life for the better! (And yours too - who doesn't want a calmer, more focused, happier child?)

In reviewing government documents to write a post about home education in NZ for foreign-born children, I noticed an anomaly which affects foreign born children of NZ citizens and residents. I have spoken to the Ministry of Education and confirmed that this is indeed as I interpreted it, but few people are aware. So, if you are bringing your foreign-born, non-NZ-citizen child to New Zealand, it is important to understand this. 

​First, read my other post HERE to understand the information about "domestic student status."

Assuming you have read that other post, you will now realize that in order for a child to have access to free education in NZ (or be able to/need to get a home education exemption), that they need to have domestic student status. Children born in NZ or who are NZ or Australian citizens living here have domestic student status, as do foreign-born children who fit one of the definitions in the Gazette.

HOWEVER: Children born overseas who's parents are NZ Citizens or Residents, where the child has come here on a Visa (eg visitor or student visa) and none of the other definitions apply, then they do NOT have domestic student status. 

People aged 17 years or younger are eligible for publicly funded health services if they are in the care and control of a parent, or legal guardian, or person in the process of legally adopting them or becoming their legal guardian, who is eligible for such health care (as all NZ citizens and residents would be). For more info see HERE. 

This means that a foreign-born child of a NZ citizen/resident who does not have domestic student status is still entitled to:

• Free primary health care for under 13's
• Vision and hearing checks
• Free dental care under 18
• Publicly funded health and disability services such as a hospital, primary health care doctor etc

Some families who find their children do not have domestic student status might consider this to be good news, because it means they can carry on home educating without having to engage with NZ bureaucracy and get an exemption. My contact at the Ministry tells me that some families she has spoken to are reluctant to get domestic status for just this reason.  

Where a child does not (yet) have domestic student status, a local school might still agree to enroll them under a principal's discretionary 28 day waiver, and the Ministry of Education would continue to extend it until the child obtains domestic student status. This is usually used where the child is intended to live her permanently but for some reason there are delays in obtaining or proving their domestic student status. 

This does not apply to home education - if your child does not have domestic student status, you can carry on home educating them; there is no paperwork to complete.

Then just carry on! Do be aware, though, of the details of what might change your child's status, and therefore legal requirements, and be aware that this whole anomaly situation could change at some point in the future if the Ministry of Education decides to do something about this strange anomaly. If that happens, I will post an update on this page, so bookmark it and check back now and then. 

People who are moving to NZ, or who are only here temporarily, are often confused about the requirements and rules regarding school attendance and/or homeschooling for their children. This post is an attempt to provide an overview, and also provide guidance regarding some common questions/issues that arise.

There are two key things to understand, and a very important phrase to interpret correctly in regards to your child:
1) The law requires that every person in New Zealand who is not an international student must be enrolled in and attending a registered school (primary or secondary) from their 6th birthday until their 16th birthday.
2) If a family who's child is otherwise required to attend school wishes to home educate, then they must apply for an exemption from the attendance requirement (aka a "home education exemption"). How to do that is fully explained in my guide HERE or you can see more information on the Ministry of Education's website HERE.

The phrase "not an international student" is important to understand....

So, if you are a foreign national, or your child is, living in New Zealand, and you wish to home educate your child, then the first thing you need to do is go to the Gazette link above, and read through each category to see if your child has domestic student status, and therefore whether or not they will need an exemption in order to be home educated. If they do not have domestic student status, then you can go ahead and home educate without having to apply to the government for an exemption.

It is a long list. For quick reference, here is a paraphrased summary of the general scenarios where the child would have domestic student status and therefore need an exemption (be sure to check exact details in the Gazette):

• A child who has a student visa, and who is the dependent of a person who is a NZ citizen or resident and who's own application for residency or citizenship is currently being considered by Immigration NZ.
• A child who has a student visa, and who's parent/guardian has a current work visa for NZ
• A child with a student visa who has entered NZ for the purposes of adoption
• A child with a student visa who's parent/guardian is here on a military visa, as a recognized refugee or someone who has made a claim to be recognized as a refugee, or who is here to study under certain schemes.
• A child in the custody of the Ministry of Social Development (our version of Child Services) under certain orders
• A child with a student or visitor's visa here on an approved exchange program
• A child who has been confirmed as the victim of trafficking, and who has an unexpired temporary visa
• A child who is protected by diplomatic immunity
• A child who is unlawfully in NZ but holds unexpired approval from the Ministry of Education confirming they meet certain criteria

Note that some of these criteria are are open-ended, and some are time limited, and it is important to know which applies to your situation so you can take appropriate action when needed (more on this below).

In reviewing the Gazette domestic student status article to write this post, I noticed an anomaly that affects the foreign-born children of NZ citizens or residents. This is an important issue, so I will write a separate post about it HERE. If you are a NZ citizen or resident, make sure you read it, as well as the rest of this post.

When an application for a home education is submitted, proof of domestic student status must be provided - for NZ-born students, a photocopy of the birth certificate is used. For most other domestic students, it will be a photocopy of their passport and relevant visas, and in some cases there will be other paperwork involved. Information on proof required can be found on the Ministry of Education's website HERE.

If appropriate evidence is not submitted with the exemption application, Ministry staff will not begin processing the application until it is provided.

When any student is enrolled in a NZ school or gains a home education exemption, they are entered onto the national student database, which is called ENROL. Once on the database, a student will remain on it, but will be moved from one section to another depending on their current status. For example, when enrolled in a specific school, they are on the database under that school. When they get a home education exemption, they are moved from that school to the home education section. If they travel overseas for an extended time (and the Ministry is informed), they are moved to the overseas section for that time, and so on. The database is used to keep track of all students in NZ, and is the basis upon which funding is allocated and so on.

If you apply for a home education exemption on the basis of domestic student status under a category that is time limited, then the expiry date will be loaded into the database, and when that date approaches, you can expect to be contacted by your local MoE office asking you to provide proof of updated/ongoing status (eg new visa).

A time-limited domestic student status is one that has a specific expiry date, as listed in the Gazette definitions - for example a student who has a student visa and is the dependent of a person with a work visa remains a domestic student until the end of the year in which the work visa expires.

It is very important that all home educating parents know both their rights and obligations under law, and do their part in meeting their obligations, while also being aware of their rights so that if Ministry staff take erroneous steps, they know what can be done to get them corrected. In relation to the subject of this post, be aware of the following:

If you have further questions, leave a comment below, or visit NCHENZ, contact your regional MoE office, or use the Contact page to email me. 

For the past 20+ years, the question most asked of homeschooling parents has been "But what about socialisation??" The world believes that if you don't send your little darling to hang out with their peers for 6 hours a day, 5 days a week, for 12 years they will emerge into the "real world" lacking in social skills by which they mean the ability to communicate & interact with people in a meaningful, appropriate and healthy way. (Truly, socialisation is something else all together, but I'll leave that for another day's post).

I want to share with you an article recently published in Home Schooling NZ's term newsletter (courtesy of Todd Roughton). Read it, think about it...more comments below....

Do you get that folks?? Public school students with enough ability to get into Otago Uni, have been proven to be so lacking in appropriate social skills that now the uni is going to include courses to teach them the lacking skills......and meanwhile, a psychology graduate who attended uni as a adult, shares their observations of how socially advanced home educated students are.

Of course, I'm not surprised! But I just love how these two things counterpoint each other, and turn the whole socialisation myth on it's head.

Maybe the next time someone tells you their child goes to school, you should slap your hands to your cheeks, look horrified and say:

"You send your child to public school?? But what about socialisation??!!"*

Last week, I was invited (along with Todd Roughton of HSNZ and Meredith Connolly of NCHENZ) to attend the Ministry of Education's Home Education Hui for their regional staff involved in processing Home Education exemption applications. We had the opportunity to present to Ministry staff information about the various home education philosophies/approaches, and discuss various issues. Shortly before the hui, the Ministry sent us a list of questions they hoped to have us speak to, and one was a request to share with them some success stories.

Todd and I both put out a request for families to share their success stories. Todd compiled ones from HSNZ families, and I compiled the ones I was sent. Both sets were shared with the Ministry of Education.

And, of course, I know that many home educating families, especially those who are new to home education, or those who are deep in the "trenches" and sometimes wonder whether it really will all turn out right in the end, need to hear these success stories too. Therefore, I have compiled the stories into a pdf document which you can download and read. I have also asked Todd if we can share the stories from HSNZ families - he needs to ask permission of those families first; if they agree, I will be adding those stories here too soon, so do check back.

Meanwhile, click HERE to download this sampling of home education success stories. I know there are lots more great stories out there, so if you'd like to add yours to updated editions, email me - details on the first page of the download. You will need a pdf reader to open the file - if you don't have one, then go to https://get.adobe.com/reader/ to download the free reader.

I hope that these stories, generously shared by fellow home educators, will encourage you!