A question I often get is how I plan my topics and how I educate my children with their different ages/abilities. So this is a step-by-step guide to my planning process, complete with examples from our current topic: festivals & cultural celebrations, and an explanation on how I make it work for a ‘would be’ Year 1 child and a ‘would be’ Year 3 child. … Continue reading Topic: Festivals & Cultural Celebrations
It’s the third week of our seasonal home education topic and we wouldn’t be worldschoolers if we didn’t explore Christmas Around the World! Continue reading Christmas 2020: Christmas Around the World
It’s the second week of our seasonal home education topic and we will be looking at Christmas traditions! This week we will be exploring our own family traditions and the history of popular Christmas traditions. If you missed what we were up to last week, you can check out last week’s blog here: This blog post is an overview of my intentions for the week … Continue reading Christmas 2020: Traditions & OT
This first week of the Christmas Season we will be focusing on Christmas Songs & Stories. Songs & Stories are part of our normal routine, allowing for a smoother transition into the Christmas season which can be an overwhelming time for some neurodiverse (and neurotypical!) kiddos. I will be using this week to introduce a story and song the boys will perform as part of … Continue reading Christmas 2020: Songs & Stories
We are now entering our fourth year of education otherwise, or as I like to call it ‘homemade education’. I am loving it. W would be entering Year 3 this year and B would be entering Year 1. But in our little Home Ed world, they are just entering a new cycle of learning. So, what does that look like for us this year? Education … Continue reading Homemade Education
Confession: I am BAD when it comes to using social media. I’m not the most tech savvy person out there, but I’m kind of okay with that. One thing I do know about is #childhoodunplugged. If you’re new to parenthood, or the concept of #childhoodunplugged this blog will give you 3 Steps To A Childhood Unplugged. Step One: Limit Screen Time We have a screen … Continue reading 3 Steps To A Childhood Unplugged
‘Twas the night before school, when all through the house
Were pencils and pens and sticky back plastic.
Mum was stressed out and lost in translation,
Feeling less than fantastic and full of frustration… Continue reading ‘Twas The Night Before School
I have a confession to make. I’m a fraud. You see the photos of the boys reading books? It wasn’t always that way. I am an avid reader and we are a relatively screen-free family. But dragging my children away from their Lego, imploring them to READ A BOOK, was a battle not worth having. Screaming, crying (and that was just me) turned what was … Continue reading 5 Ways To Raise A Reader
The ‘Great Mask Debate’ is upon us. Wearing, or not wearing, a mask is now a political statement. And all I want to do is shout JUST WEAR THE MASK! But I won’t, this post is dedicated to the people who claim that wearing a mask interferes with their perfect breathing systems. Today I am going to ‘teach’ you to know the signs of breathing difficulty. Because if you don’t wear the mask, you or a loved one may end up catching Covid19. And breathing difficulty is one of the more serious symptoms.
Yup, I’m not a doctor. I’m not a medical profession of any sort and I would never claim to be. You should always seek medical advice when you have concerns, I’m just sharing a piece of critical information that I received over 7.5 years ago that could save a life.
7.5 years ago, baby W was born at 28 weeks gestation. He was resuscitated, intubated and incubated almost immediately. When it was time to take him home from the NICU, I had to do a crash course in baby first aid, on what was a laughably large baby CPR doll. What I learned came in handy as I soon discovered W had a penchant for rapid deterioration after catching a virus, resulting in breathing difficulties and many trips to A&E. He got a reputation for being my ‘poorly/sick’ child as he was extremely vulnerable to any viral infection.
Fast forward a few years to 2016, and we were sat in A&E again waiting for some bloods. W had picked up a virus when visiting my mum in hospital. After a few hours of observation we were sent home and my mum lost her battle with cancer 24 hours later. It had been less than 2 weeks since mum has passed away and B was inconsolable. He had been very attached to her and at 1 years old, didn’t really seem to understand that she wasn’t coming back.
He was a little warm, but it was summer. The thermometer showed a normal temperature. I checked for rashes and his skin was clear. He had been crying since morning and it was now bedtime. I wasn’t convinced he was just having a grumpy day.
Suddenly, I remembered the signs of breathing difficulty and I checked him over. Sure enough, he was struggling. I called the ambulance and while we waited he stopped breathing. It was terrifying, we jumped into the ambulance and he was blue lighted to the children’s hospital. He had pneumonia and was hospitalised for 3 days. They told me how lucky we were that I hadn’t waited until the morning, he probably wouldn’t have made it. But, I know that I wouldn’t have called the ambulance if I hadn’t checked for the signs of breathing difficulty. And I wouldn’t have checked for them if I didn’t know what they were.
You can find more signs listed here.
Of course, I would prefer everybody wore a mask to help protect people like my children or my mum. As a result of W’s prematurity and B’s pneumonia, they both suffer a bit more with common viruses than other children their age. We were on first name basis with most of the staff at our local A&E, and they’ve been put on oxygen more times than I can count. Pneumonia is one of the most serious side effects of Covid19, which is why I wanted to share our experience with you today. I hope you find the information above and below useful. Stay safe!
Learn First Aid for Babies and Children with the British Red Cross.
This educational video showing respiratory distress in an infant.
NHS 111, if you have any concerns about somebody aged 5 or older.
Continue reading “Know the signs of breathing difficulty”