Farm Day or Curriculum Day? No One Really Knows

What started as a wholesome little home education day naturally found its rhythm, structured enough to guide the learning, but relaxed enough to let it unfold.

Helen kindly let me bring Eliza and her friends along to the farm (thank you again, Helen, you absolute angel), and before anyone knew what was happening, I had worksheets out, children in “learning mode,” and animals unknowingly participating in what can only be described as an educational takeover.

We’ve actually fallen into a bit of a routine now, we do Thursday worksheet days with them. Except the girls don’t really clock it as “work,” which is exactly how I like it.

This week we covered:
animal behaviour
safe handling
what horse ears are secretly trying to tell us
grooming tools and how to use them
and how to exist respectfully alongside a whole variety of animals

All disguised as “fun.”

The small animals were first on the agenda. Gentle handling, calm interactions, learning how to read their body language… all the important foundations. The kind of skills that look simple, but actually matter so much, especially when you’re working with therapy animals.

Then came the practical side.

• Rabbits were groomed.
• Chickens were politely observed (and occasionally negotiated with).
• The big pig made an appearance, as expected.
• and taking a look at the gorgeous sheep who are soon to be sheered 

The children didn’t just observe though, they got fully involved, building confidence with a range of animals like Monty Pithon, Smokey the bearded dragon and Dory the tortoise!

Watching their confidence grow with each interaction was one of those moments you wish you could bottle.

And of course, Buttercup and Eddie stepped in as the main event.

There’s something about seeing children take what they’ve just learned and actually apply it. Watching them slow down, notice the small things, adjust their approach, and build quiet confidence… it’s the kind of learning you just can’t replicate on paper.

Although, ironically, I did still give them paper.

At one point I had to stop and laugh because it genuinely reminded me of my earlier years.

I grew up living in the Middle East, travelling, experiencing different cultures, and being exposed to so many different ways of living and learning. Alongside that, I had a strong background in acting, dance, and musical theatre, which eventually led me to move to London at 15/16 on my own to study a vocational musical theatre course.

I’ve always been drawn to hands-on, practical learning. The kind you feel, not just sit and listen to.

Alongside all of that, animals were always there. I spent much of my childhood around rescue centres, helping where I could, learning through experience, and naturally bringing home animals along the way. It got to the point where my parents told me, “when you get your own place, you can have as many animals as you like.”

And I took that quite literally.

Looking back now, they probably didn’t expect this level of commitment.

By 18, I was teaching Saturday morning stable management sessions to groups of young children, something I genuinely loved. Early mornings, sandy yards, that unmistakable desert stable feel, and lots of little personalities to manage. We’d cover the practical side of horse care, and part of the sessions often included taking them out on hacks too. It was one of those roles that quietly shaped everything that came after. Let’s just say my younger self learned very quickly how to show up, no matter what, and bring calm, structure, and energy to a group.

Looking back now, I can see how much that experience has shaped not only the way I work today, but also my approach to home education and parenting. The importance of hands-on learning, reading each child as an individual, and creating an environment where they can build confidence at their own pace, it all started there.

Alongside that, I went on to teach pony club groups throughout the week in the Bahrain heat, as well as supporting children with additional needs through horse riding. I also worked with families from a wide range of backgrounds, including Bahraini royal families and children of international ambassadors. It was an environment that taught me how to adapt, read people, and meet every child exactly where they are.

And if I’m honest, looking back now, I sometimes wonder how my ADHD went unnoticed for so long. I have a combined type, and yet so much of my life naturally leaned into movement, creativity, high-energy environments, and practical learning, spaces where I thrived, even if I didn’t fully understand why at the time.

For this particular day, I also brought along Francesca and Georgina, the daughters of the owners of Mighty Oaks Wellbeing Club. Both girls are neurodivergent in their own ways, and it felt like such a natural fit having them there.

There’s something quietly powerful about those environments where children just get each other without needing it to be explained. Different ways of thinking, moving, and learning don’t need to be corrected, they just exist alongside one another, and somehow it all works.

Fast forward to now, I’m 26, an Animal Assisted Therapy Practitioner, and a mum to a 6 year old who shares that same deep, instinctive love for animals.

Home education wasn’t part of some big, carefully laid plan. It came from recognising something didn’t quite fit, that not every child is able to thrive in a system that expects them all to learn the same way, at the same pace, in the same environment.

And when you really see that, you can’t unsee it.

So instead, we’ve built something that works for us. Something slower, more connected, more real.

And somehow, it’s led right back here, to animals, to learning, and to days like this.

It wasn’t a formal Furry Friends Animal Therapy session. It wasn’t something we advertise or offer as a package. It was just one of those days where everything came together naturally, learning, animals, curiosity, and a bit of chaos.

The best kind of day.

And if the animals have come away with a sudden understanding of home education principles, well, I’m taking that as a win.