Arthur continued on his way, on the west coast of Ireland, further south. From Inishkea, the sailboat went to Achill Island and its splendid golden beaches. Then, almost in one go to Valentia Island, a little below Dingle.
There was a project for a 200 berth marina in Knightstown that did not succeed. What remains, for the last ten years, are the massive concrete pontoons to break the chop, to which anyone can come and moor for free. These pontoons are connected to the land, just at the foot of the main street of the village.
A half-hearted start to the new school year
This is where Arthur's crew started school on the boat. Like last year, we continue our family education. Charlie is starting his year of CM1, Axelle the CE1 and Tristan is at the age of the small section of nursery school.
The children are not overly enthusiastic about returning to lessons and, frankly, neither are the parents. It's not that on-board instruction isn't going well, but rather a lack of motivation for the strain it creates.
Family education requires time and energy
Home schooling can take many different forms, depending on the pedagogy used and the tools available. Nevertheless, in most cases, it requires a significant investment of time on the part of the parents to prepare the learning, to build the lessons, to design the tools. It takes a good half-time! And it is not always easy to reserve it on the boat.
We have chosen, as we go along, to work in the mornings at the table with textbooks and exercise books. Other, more informal learning takes place during the rest of the day, when we visit a museum, discover shellfish at the beach, write correspondence, keep a travel journal or cook, for example.
A routine not conducive to motivation
The morning sessions, around the square table, are therefore quite routine and not very captivating: French, mathematics, science, history and geography lessons, English. From time to time, we add drawing, learning knots or music...
However, the energy and enthusiasm of the beginning has left us a bit. We will need renewed motivation to make school an enjoyable and productive time of instruction for all.
