The Touring Teacher

26/08/2026

"Their parents just aren't tough enough on them."

I hear that one a lot. Closely followed by — "kids didn't have these problems when I was at school."

And you know what? They're not entirely wrong. Something has shifted.

But that's where the comments stop being fair.

Because what people don't see is what these families are actually dealing with. The specialist appointments. The waitlists. The assessments and the re-assessments. The therapy sessions scheduled between school runs and work. The forms, the referrals, the phone calls, the "have you tried?" advice from people who've never even met their child.

So no, these aren't soft parents. They are some of the most determined people I've ever worked with — fighting through the maze of a seemingly endless battle and leaping through hoops just to get their kid the education every child deserves.

So no, they're not lacking toughness. They've got more of it than most of us will ever need.

Have you ever been on the receiving end of a comment like that? Or know someone who has? What didn't you say that you wish you had?

If you know someone going through this, share this with them to let them know you really see them.
If it's you dealing with the endless roundabout - please know that we truly see all that you do.

24/08/2026

One of my students has been having a hard time lately — overwhelmed, anxious, not feeling up to their session before it even started.

I must admit, at first I thought that they were not wanting to learn with me - or at all. But when I sat down with mum, we worked out something simpler: mornings are just hard for this kid. The overwhelm wasn't about the learning at all. It was about the when.

So we moved their session to mid-afternoon.

That's it. No new program, no pushing through, no big intervention. Just meeting a kid at the time of day they can actually manage the stuff that needs to get done.

I think this is one of the most underrated truths in education: a child who looks like they're refusing to learn is very often a child whose environment isn't quite right for them yet. Change one thing around them, and the capable, curious kid who was there the whole time gets to come forward and is able to step up for themselves.

Sometimes the answer isn't asking more of the child. It's listening a little harder to what they're already telling us.

20/08/2026

My husband keeps teasing me that I'm doing myself out of a job. He just might be right.

You see, over the last while I've had several students who no longer need me. Not because anything went wrong, but because it went right. We did the work, they found their feet, and one by one they've been able to walk back into a school classroom and actually cope. A couple of them are properly thriving there now.

When a family first comes to me, that isn't usually the goal. Mostly they just want to know they're on the right track. That their kid isn't falling behind. That someone who genuinely gets how their child learns is in their corner. Especially the kids who learn a little bit differently, the ones who've been told they're too much (or not enough!) or the ones with neurodivergences who need learning to feel safe before it can even begin to feel possible.

So I start there. We build the confidence before we build the content. And somewhere along the way something shifts. The child starts to see themselves as a capable learner again, or maybe even for the first time. For some of them, that quietly opens a door back to school that everyone thought was shut for good.

I'd be lying if I said it didn't make me a bit emotional watching them go. But that's the whole point of what I do. My hope was never to keep your child needing me. It's to help them believe they can do hard things, wherever they end up doing them.

If you want that for your child, whether it's confidence at home or a way back into school one day, send me a message. Tell me a little about your kid and we'll have a chat about what might help.

20/08/2026

My husband keeps teasing me that I'm doing myself out of a job. He just might be right.

You see, over the last while I've had several students who no longer need me. Not because anything went wrong, but because it went right. We did the work, they found their feet, and one by one they've been able to walk back into a school classroom and actually cope. A couple of them are properly thriving there now.

When a family first comes to me, that isn't usually the goal. Mostly they just want to know they're on the right track. That their kid isn't falling behind. That someone who genuinely gets how their child learns is in their corner. Especially the kids who learn differently, the ones who've been told they're too much or not enough, the ones with neurodivergence and who need learning to feel safe before it can ever feel possible.

So I start there. Together, we build the confidence before we build the content. And somewhere along the way something shifts. The child starts to see themselves as a capable learner again, or maybe even for the first time. For some of them, that opens a door back to school that everyone thought was shut for good.

I'd be lying if I said it didn't make me a bit emotional watching them go. But that's the whole point of what I do. My job was never to keep your child needing me. It's to help them believe they can do hard things - wherever they end up doing them.

If you want that for your child, whether it's confidence at home or a way back into school one day, I invite you to send me a message. Tell me a little about your kiddo and we'll have a chat about what might help.

19/08/2026

The report is written before I've even pulled the bus away from the kerb. 👩‍💻‍💻

Every session. Every child. No exceptions.

When the learning's done, your child doesn't just get a great lesson and a wave goodbye. You get a written report that maps exactly what we covered and how it links to the curriculum — backed with photos and descriptions of what your child actually did, how they engaged, and where they're heading next.

This isn't admin I tack on when I get around to it. It's the backbone of how I work, and it's been non-negotiable since day one.

Because a qualified teacher doesn't just deliver a lesson. She documents the learning, links it to outcomes, and hands you the evidence — so you're never left wondering whether you're on the right track.

Here's what that consistency gives my families:

→ Peace of mind that the learning is real, purposeful, and progressing
→ Moderation-ready evidence already done, so review time isn't a scramble
→ A genuine sharing of the load — someone qualified in your corner, every single week

It matters even more for the kids who learn differently. When progress doesn't always look like a finished worksheet — especially for our ASD and PDA learners — having it documented properly is everything.

That's the standard. Every week. Every child.

📩 Booking spots for homeschool families across the metro area — I would love to hear from you, so please feel free to send me a message.

19/08/2026

Only government, Catholic and non-government school options were offered on the census this year. Do you think home schooling should be an option in the next census?

Home educators say the census does not recognise thousands of children in alternative schooling, with about 49,000 Australian students educated at home.

12/08/2026

Sitting on the fence about home schooling support? Let's fix that. 👇

Whether you're already homeschooling or just weighing it up, I bring my mobile classroom to you with real teaching, curriculum-linked feedback reports, and the evidence sorted for your moderation visit.

If you've got a child who learns differently, you want peace of mind that you're on the right track or you are looking for someone who genuinely understands homeschooling life, then let's talk!

Together, we'll work out what's right for your family.

10/08/2026

Hands up if you like the sound of your own voice when you hear it on video or recorded somewhere... anyone?

Me either!! And yet, I still said yes to the absolutely fabulous Sharon Wilkes-Burt when she asked if I would consider being interviewed on her great podcast 'Unravelling: The Diary of a Midlife Crisis'. Not only does she produce the podcast but she is the brains behind The Glow Up Guide and facilitator of The Glow Deeper Retreats and so much more!

If you want to hear a slightly zany chat between two women, both with ADHD and 'of a certain age' - and hear the story about how The Touring Teacher came to be then this is for you: https://www.buzzsprout.com/2460534/episodes/19620467-when-imposter-syndrome-buys-a-bus-with-sonia-bell?t=0

10/08/2026

The distinction between a tutor and a teacher is not always immediately obvious but it is definitely there, and it really matters in a homeschooling context.

So then what is it that a tutor does? Generally, a tutor works to support, reinforce, or fill the educational gaps — helping a child grasp a tricky concept, catch up in a subject, or prepare for a specific test. It is usually reactive and targeted: it responds to an immediate need rather than driving the overall direction of learning. In Australia tutors do not need to hold teaching qualifications, and they don't usually take responsibility for assessing against or reporting to a curriculum. In essence, a tutor is a great resource if your child is learning fairly well overall, but could do with some extra guidance in a specific area.

A teacher in WA, on the other hand must have a university degree and needs to be registered as a teacher with the government body TRB, who monitor teachers' ongoing learning and adherence to a range of standards. In their role as teachers, they focus on the learning itself — designing what gets taught, how it's sequenced, and how it's assessed. A teacher plans a program with an end goal in mind, considers where your child is developmentally, differentiates for how they learn, and measures their progress against the relevant curriculum.

A tutor is a good fit when a child is largely on track but needs help with, say, fractions or essay structure. A teacher is who you turn to when you want someone to genuinely share the educational load — to plan the learning, understand how your particular child learns, adapt accordingly, and produce curriculum-linked evidence that stands up at moderation.

That's the fundamental difference I can help with; not just "help my kid with X," but "help me know we're on the right track and show me how that looks."

09/08/2026

I am so very excited to introduce our new jingle and accompanying clip. An absolutely HUGE shoutout to Anne at Southern Elsewhere for her wonderful work in producing these for me. I absolutely love them and hope you do too. PS sorry, not sorry for the possible earworm resulting from this 😉🥰