Для учнів 22 ок

A DAY IN THE LIFE OF LEO THOMAS

My name’s Leo. I’m sixteen and I’m a student. I study for about twenty hours a week bit I don’t go to school. No, I’m not breaking the I rules — I’m home-educated. That means that I study at home and my I parents help me with my education.

I started home education about twelve months ago and I really like it. I didn’t like my old school because I didn’t learn very much. And the uniform was awful! I prefer wearing my old clothes every day. I like organizing my own timetable, too, with my parents’ help! They are quite strict, so I have to work hard. I do my exams at my old school, but that’s only once or twice a year. I use the Internet a lot for my studies and we’ve got lots of books at home. I sometimes use the local library, too. This week, I’m doing a project on the environment.

So what do I do every day? Well, I get up at about 8 a.m. and have breakfast. I start studying at about 10.1 don’t have formal lessons, so I sometimes work with my parents and sometimes alone. I study the same subjects as in school, but I organize my own work. I finish for dinner at about 12.30 p.m. I usually study again in the afternoon and I always do some music practice. I play the saxophone until about 5 p.m. I’m practicing for a competition at the moment.

Some people think that home-educated kids are lonely but my life is the same as most teenagers’ lives. I still get on well with all my friends from school. I get together with them every week and go swim­ming, watch a DVD or go shopping. I also have a lot of friends in the Internet. I e-mail other home-educated kids and we exchange ideas and information.

Are there any problems with home education? Well, I never go on school trips and I can’t take part in school plays or concerts. 1 don’t really mind that because I prefer learning at home to being at school.