FAQ: "I'm writing applications for more than one child. Do they have to be totally different, or can I just change parts of the first one for the next child?" 

Your applications do not need to be completely different for each child. After all, teachers don't have to have completely different plans for each child in their class! However, you do need to provide some evidence you are taking into consideration the individual needs of each student. Whether that means they are working at different levels in core subjects so using a different grade/year level of program, or that you are setting some differing assignments in family unit studies in accordance with their abilities, or one is learning piano while another is into dance, or what have you,  will depend on your children, their ages, interests and needs.

​After you've written the first application, just save an extra copy, use the Replace function to change the name throughout (if you're written it in Word which makes this so much easier, otherwise you'll have to do it manually), and then go through and edit the parts that need modifying for the next child - if the children are fairly close in age this is likely to be primarily English and Math, then Science and Social Studies depending on your planned approach, and the rest is most likely just about individual interests where they apply. You also must have a different Topic Plan for each child. If they are more disparate in age, then the changes may be more significant.

If you are writing an application for, say, twins, you may not be sure how to personalise the applications at all. Do try and think of at least some areas where you can add comments about differing abilities or interests. Eg one might be particularly strong in spelling while the other really enjoys creative writing. You could comment on these, also indicating how you will continue to encourage them in these things. Or they might both like woodwork, but be keen on building some different projects. 

With children who are twins or very close in age, you might also consider a combined application. For more on that option, read THIS. 

General application hints:

• You do not have to use the Ministry's form to write the application - though it is recommended you use Section One of it. 
• For the rest, it's often easier/better to write it in Word or similar. This gives you better control over formatting, avoids the tech meltdowns the Ministry form often has, and makes it easier to change out additional copies for the next child. You would then just attach this separate document along with Section One in an email to send to the Ministry (no need to insert it into their form at all)
• I have a guide to walk you through the application requirements and help you write your own, including a template you can use. See HERE 

A summary of what should be different in each application:

• Child's name (and pronouns where applicable)
• Special Learning Needs where applicable
• English and Math program if they are of different ages/stages in their learning
• Any other graded program content if not working at the same level
• Info about individual interests, special abilities, or perhaps weaknesses you are working on
• The Topic Plan - use a different topic for each child's application, even if you intend to do them all together

Now, the main question is, are home educators required to include the seven learning areas in an application? The answer is no...and yes. Bear with me....

The legal requirement of an exemption application is that it demonstrates that "the child is to be taught at least as regularly and well as in a registered school." This does not mean "the same as" but it does mean the expectation is there that the child will be taught to at least a comparable standard, across a curriculum "at least as broad in scope" as they would experience in school. What that looks like is open to some interpretation and is not legally defined (which is a good thing), but this leaves Ministry staff looking for some kind of way of deciding whether applications meet that criteria. It's understandable that they fall back on their understanding of what a curriculum ought to look like, based in the NZ curriculum. When staff see an application which does not cover some of the above areas, they usually ask for information about them, and this can cause outrage amongst homeschoolers who like to insist that "we are not required to teach the same subjects as schools." 

It is true that we are not legally required to teach specific subjects. However, if one sets aside the idea of "required subjects" and sits back and looks at each of the learning areas and what they include, I think most reasonable people would agree that each of these are really just natural areas of learning that we ALL cover in some fashion with our children - the only exception being older teens who are at a level where they narrow their focus to prepare for specific further study or careers (and the Ministry are fine with that). Not sure about this? Read each of the following statements, and ask yourself whether you agree with them:

English (literacy): I do not want my children to learn to read, write, speak or listen. We're absolutely not going to include this learning area. 

Math (numeracy): no counting, adding, subtracting, multiplying, dividing, telling time, handling money, understanding days, or measuring anything for my kid!

Science: I plan to ensure that my child does NOT explore the natural world around them. We will not watch bugs, the clouds, ask questions about the stars and moon. There will be no experiments conducted here. I want to ensure my child remains ignorant of gravity, motion, centrifugal force, the seasons, weather, plants, insects, animals, hot, cold, etc etc. Nope, no science in our program! And we definitely will not be reading any books or watching any videos about inventors and inventions or any topics such as those above.

Social Sciences: my children will not be learning about people, places, events, the planet, volcanoes, earthquakes, oceans, how to read maps, who is in our community, emergency services, how to relate to other people and so on. We can definitely leave this learning area out of our program!

Technology: we wish to prevent our children engaging in any practical or hands-on learning. Solving problems is for the birds! There will be no cooking, gardening, sewing, woodwork, model making, financial skills, business skills, animal care, metal work, electronics, or life skills taught in our home thank you very much! And my child will NEVER learn to use a computer or other IT device. 

Health and P.E: Nope, my child will not run, climb, bike, play any sports, go for walks, swim or otherwise engage in physical activity. I much prefer them to be couch potatoes. And teach them about hand washing, personal hygiene, dental health, basic first aid, how their bodies change over time, how to have healthy relationships, how to deal with emotions, personal safety etc etc? Of course not!

The Arts: I don't have any pens, pencils or art supplies at home, and I certainly would not encourage my child to paint, draw, or do crafts. They will not listen to any music, let alone try to learn an instrument. We'll never visit art galleries or museums, or enjoy a public concert, play or other performance. Dancing will not be permitted, and they can forget dressing up and making up their own plays! And singing? Definitely not!

Now, I hope you have not been offended by my deliberately tongue-in-cheek sarcasm. My intention is to help the reader see how crazy it generally is to say we will NOT be including any of these areas in our children's lives. Many of these things will happen naturally in life, even if we have no particular plan, program, curriculum or whatever for them. And that's ok - for the purposes of the applications such things can and should be included by taking some time to think about and identify the kinds of things that are likely to be covered one way or the other, and ways in which your children might explore them. 

The purpose of this article is not to tell you what to include in the application for each of the learning areas (though the above might give you some clues). I will say that, in general, more detail and a degree of structure is expected for the "core" subjects of English, Math, Science and Social Studies in an application. That structure can be based on curriculum, unit studies, child-led learning, hands-on learning or whatever you choose. The Ministry will basically be looking for sufficient ideas, topics, resources and enough of a general approach to make sense in these subjects. When it comes to literacy and numeracy, those are considered key, and reasonable detail, given the age of the child, on next learning steps and how you will support them will be expected.

For the "non-core" subjects - Technology, the Arts, Health & P.E (and languages if you choose to include them) - these can be as unstructured as you like - they are mostly about identifying and writing down the kinds of things that are a natural part of life, or things you want to try with the kids or help them learn, and opportunities for engagement that they have. Where a child also has a particular interest, involvement etc already, then you will of course want to include these (eg in a sports team, dance class, having music lessons, learning coding etc). You don't need a ton of detail - but to show that the child will receive appropriate opportunities to engage with activities in these learning areas.

If you would like more specific guidance on the content of an application, then my exemption guide pack will be of great help. It is available HERE. 

 Conclusion:
I hope this article has helped you to understand why the seven learning areas are both natural and appropriate to think about in terms of your child's learning program or home education. You do not have to call your learning areas by the same labels as above. The key point is that you show a broad program with no obvious gaps in appropriate engagement opportunities. 
And, please, can we experienced home educators stop jumping up and down when the Ministry asks an applicant about what they will do for a given learning area (I used to do that too until I realised the above), and instead focus on helping parents understand what that might include?  There are certainly some things we should resist, but I suggest this is not a hill to die on.

The current Ministry of Education application forms (published 2016) are designed to be used for a single, individual child. This is because at the time of publishing, the Ministry felt strongly that "each child must have an individual application." However, since that time through ongoing meetings and conversations with the Ministry, they have come to see the sense in being able to include more than one child in a single application in some circumstances. As a result, they have promised updated forms that allow for the inclusion of information on more than one child in a single form, but that hasn't happened yet.

Meanwhile, keep the following in mind:

• You do not have to use their forms for your full application. It is, however, best to use Section One of their forms - that is the part that asks about name, date of birth, parents details etc etc, and includes an important declaration. It's a waste of effort to replicate this section elsewhere, and all the info it asks for MUST be included. Since on the current forms this is only set up for one child, then I recommend you complete one copy of Section One (it's only 3 pages and can be filled in on the computer and saved) for each child. 
• For the rest of the application, use your own document, such as one written in Word or Google Docs and then converted to pdf before sending to the Ministry. My exemption guide pack contains a template in Word. (This advice applies whether you're applying for 1 or more children)
• When writing in your own document, you may include multiple children if it sensible to do so, but bear the below advice in mind.
• If you want to use the Ministry's application forms for the full application (Sections 1-4), you will have to do them individually until the new forms come out.

If you are writing exemption applications for 2 (or more) children who are very close in age and/or in stage of learning - eg twins, or often children 1-2 years apart in age, or where one is behind or advanced, bringing them closer in level, or in some cases where the program is very multi-child, such as unit studies based - then it often makes a great deal of sense to combine their information in one application. Otherwise you might be essentially supplying two almost identical sets of documents, with just the name changed. If you feel like that's you, or close, then yes, write them in one document if you like. 

Note, however, that is is absolutely ESSENTIAL that if you choose to do this, that you show sufficient and suitable information that demonstrates that you are taking into account each child's particular needs, which might include areas of strength or weakness, particular learning needs, next steps in learning, or individual preferences in things like sports, music etc etc.

Here are some examples of applications I would write as one, and the ways I would personalise them:

• Twins working at essentially the same level. If their program of learning is identical (and it may well be) I'd make a particular effort to include info on what each one enjoys or wants to focus on, or needs to improve in. Eg Jack might want to learn to play the drums and take part in rugby. John might play the guitar and prefers soccer. Or Jill might love to write stories and needs to develop her writing-reviewing-editing process while Jane has strong ideas and would enjoy the challenge of writing succinct, persuasive letters to the Editor. Anything relevant where you can include some personalisation will benefit your application.
• Two children close in age, working at the same level in literacy but a year apart in math. I would include the different math program/topics for each child, but much of the rest would be the same. Again, I would add personal interests, individual goals etc whereever applicable. 
• Multiple children where the family is using a strongly unit study approach with all children working on the same topics together. This one is a bit trickier to do all in one, but I would outline each subject content, then show how it will be tailored to each child - for example in literacy and numeracy you would set tasks and have specific goals and next steps for each child according to their age/stage/ability. Likewise in Science and Social Studies while they may study the same topics, they would apply that learning in different ways - an older child writing an essay after doing research, for example, while a young one might draw pictures and add captions with parental help, and meanwhile the middle child is expected to write a short report or complete some worksheets or whatever.

Note: No matter how you format your applications, you must have different topic plans for each child (even if you are planning to have them all take part in each topic). So if it's all in one document, have Topic Plan 1, Topic Plan 2 etc, each centred around a different child.

For the last few years, I have written or supported families writing quite a number of multi-child single applications through all regions of the country. Most have been twins or children just 1-2 years apart working at the same level. In only one case I know of, did the Ministry turn around and insist they needed completely separate documents for each child (it happened to be twins). So the parent changed the name/s in the document and printed two copies. I hope that that office later realised it was a bit silly. If someone strikes this, I would be happy to discuss the situation and provide support if needed. 

The reality is that a lot of the time it's actually EASIER to write the applications separately. That doesn't mean it's double or triple or whatever the work - you write one, then use it as as template for the others, saving a lot of time. It's ok to have a lot of similar or same content in applications for different children - that is normal - so long as their individual needs are covered where applicable. 

​But by doing them individually, it can be much easier to just focus on the one child at a time and what their individual program looks like. Unless your children are very close in age/ability and are therefore doing essentially the same program as discussed above, it makes more sense to write them up individually. If you're trying to cram a lot of different info about multiple children into one document, it could become very long and potentially confusing.

After you've written the first application, just save an extra copy, use the Replace function to change the name throughout, and then go through and edit the parts that need modifying for the next child - likely to be primarily English and Math, then Science and Social Studies depending on your planned approach, and the rest is most likely just about individual interests where they apply. You also must have a different Topic Plan for each child, regardless of the format of your applications. 

A question I get asked from time to time is how to complete an exemption application that meets the requirements if the child has significant intellectual disabilities that affect their learning. Several times, the child has had a "mental age" of about 2-3, though is around 6-7 years old. The following is some general advice on how to approach the content of the application form for a child who is obviously not going to be engaging in a "typical" program of learning in the next 12 months, which is what the content of the application essentially covers. 

There are no compulsory subjects for home educators, though we do have to show an education at least as broad in scope as they would recieve in a registered school. In practice, that usually means it's easiest to address the 7-8 learning areas of the NZ curriculum, as in reality most folk are covering all of these in some manner anyway, as they are simply logical, natural areas of learning and development. Those learning areas, or "subjects" are: English (literacy), Math (numeracy), Science, Social Studies, Health & PE, Technology, the Arts, and finally the optional subject of a second language. Don't worry about the last one, unless you have a bilingual family, are teaching sign language, or particularly wish to include language other than English for your child. 

As for any child, but most importantly for one with significant disabilities, an application should clearly show:

In addition, for a child with special needs, you need to outline what their special needs are and how it affects their learning, and any specific ways in which you will provide them with additional support or modify the program of learning to meet their identified needs. This might include things like assistive technology, speech therapy, occupational therapy, allowing more time for tasks to be completed and so on and so forth. For a significantly disabled child such as is the focus of this article, I would include a brief statement that sets the tone for the rest of the application about the level they are performing at and how the content of the proposed program takes that into account. 

Remember, the content of any program of learning should be appropriate to the needs and abilities of the individual child. No one could reasonably expect you to write about developing, say, essay writing skills in a child who cannot hold a pencil and has limited lanugage ability! So, what you do include will likely be fairly simple. The main point is to consider what the subject area is really about - what skills are we focussed on, what ideas do we want to expose them to etc - and what activities and learning are reasonable along those lines for your child. Here's a brief synopsis of each subject as it would apply to an effectively "early preschool" child:

English/literacy: This subject is about developing reading, writing, listening and speaking skills. For a child performing at the level of a 2 year old, for example, you might be focussed on reading them stories, talking to them about the things you see and do, incorporating suitable activities to develop gross and fine motor skills (essential to pre-writing development), and generally exposing them to language in appropriate ways. If there is speech therapy involved, formal or informal, talk about that. If the child is capable of responding in some way to stories that are read, discuss that. Essentially, think about early childhood type activities that are aimed at laying foundations for language development, and focus on those. Also, if your child has, for example, a physical disability that limits their ability to write with a pen, but is more advanced cognitively, then discuss how you are providing means to enable the child to advance in the areas where they are able without undue limitation due to areas where they are less able (this applies to all subjects). 

Math/numeracy: the development of understanding and skills around colour, shape, measurement, number, time etc, appropriate to the child's ability. You could talk about how you show him and talk to him about colour and shape, his ability to identify objects, group like objects, count pegs, identify bigger and smaller, shorter and taller etc. Maybe these things are mostly being modelled to the child with limited participation yet. The point is that you know the kinds of things for him to learn, and are using ways to help him with those concepts. A child with more ability might be working on recognising written numbers, counting to 100, measuring objects, helping with baking, playing with money, learning about clocks etc. 

Science: The focus here is on exploring the physical world - things you can see and hear, smell and touch or taste. Usually the natural world around you. Discuss how your child is exposed to ideas/things/concepts, how you talk about them with her, how you help her engage with them. Growing some plants? Watching a rainbow? Splashing in puddles and then discussing rain, wet vs dry, mud etc. Watching an ant trail then looking up a short video about ants. Mixing baking soda and vinegar to make a "volcano." Making things with play dough, learning to care for animals. It's all science! Do these activities sound too advanced for your child? No problem -think of what they can do or watch. I have a not-quite-2-year old living here right now. If I think about science and him, it would be water play, sand play, visiting the animals and trying to say their names, some playdough activities, exploring the garden - dirt, plants, bugs, feeling the grass under his feet and the sun on his face - talking to him constantly about the things he points to or we experience etc. 

Social Studies: In the early years, this is usually focussed on developing an awareness of self, family and local community. This can be through story, discussion, actitives, local visits etc. How do you help the child understand who they are, who their family are, and where they live - at a very basic level? 

Technology: This is about practical and problem-solving skills. So for a young child, very life-based usually. Can your child participate in some fashion in cooking (measuring, stirring, shaping, tasting)? How about gardening? Hitting a half-inserted nail with a hammer or comparing lengths of wood and watching/helping mum or dad with a small project (woodwork)? Or perhaps you will focus on life skills - which can be anything at all really, so long as it has a practical focus. 

Health and P.E: Two sides to this - describe how a child is regularly physically active (in keeping with their abilities), and talk about how you will help them develop appropriate health knowledge. The latter will depend on their understanding at this stage, but probably will focus on things like washing hands, cleaning teeth, brushing hair, getting dressed, toileting etc. Later you will talk about being sun smart, stranger danger, basic first aid etc. If there is any OT/PT being done, I'd include info on that here. 

The Arts: art, music, dance and drama. How does your child participate in any of these? Finger painting? Listening to music? Dancing to music? Bashing on a xylophone or drums? Dressing up?

I hope the above has given you some ideas. Remember, you are not alone; there are lots of families home educating children with disabilities, and both local support groups and Facebook home ed groups are a great place to connect with others. 

The exemption requirements overall apply to all children and families. The specific content will vary according to the child's age, needs and abilities. My exemption guide pack will walk you through the requirements if you like, and I'm happy to review applications to provide more specific guidance case-by-case. See HERE. 

You can do it! Just take it one step at a time! :-) 

2020 NB: Please see my updated post on this matter HERE, as new legislation has come into effect. This original post remains here FYI.

With the recent passing of the Education (Update) Bill, the resulting changes of which will come into effect on 3rd July, there has been considerable discussion among home education groups about what effect this will have on parent’s ability to home educate their young children or the processes involved. 

The purpose of this post is to clarify what the changes do and don’t mean. 

Legislation and Links:
The current Education Act 1989 can be viewed online here: http://legislation.govt.nz/act/public/1989/0080/latest/DLM175959.html?search=qs_act%40bill%40regulation%40deemedreg_education+act+1989_resel_25_h&p=1&sr=1

The Education (Update) Bill can be viewed online here:
http://www.legislation.govt.nz/bill/government/2016/0160/latest/DLM6928611.html
In time, the amendments will be incorporated into the Act, but for now it is necessary to read them side by side to see the entirely of what a section will say once the updates come into effect. 

Ministry of Education's information regarding the Education (Update) Bill:
https://education.govt.nz/ministry-of-education/regulatory-impact-statements/updating-the-education-act/ 

My step-by-step guide to getting a home education exemption can be found HERE.

The Ministry of Education's information about home education exemptions can be found HERE.