How to Home Educate for Free in the UK with Oak National Academy

Editor's Note: This guide shares our genuine experience using free resources to home educate our children in the UK. Last updated: 12.11.25.

When we first considered home education, we were excited but worried about the cost. We quickly discovered that providing a quality education doesn't have to be expensive. In fact, with incredible resources like Oak National Academy, it's entirely possible to home educate for free in the UK. This post will show you exactly how we use this platform as the backbone of our children's learning.

What is Oak National Academy?

Launched in 2020 by UK teachers, Oak National Academy is a non-profit organisation that provides a complete, free online curriculum. We've been using it since it started, and it has become our number one free resource for home education.

Their website offers a full curriculum for Key Stages 1 to 4 (ages 5-16) across all core subjects like English, Maths, Science, History, and Geography.

Why We Love Oak National Academy for Home Education

It's Completely Free: No subscriptions, no hidden fees. You can access everything without even creating an account.

High-Quality Lessons: The curriculum is developed by experienced teachers and perfectly aligns with the National Curriculum of England, which gives us confidence we're covering the right material.

Structured but Flexible: Each subject is organised into clear learning journeys with video lessons, quizzes, and downloadable worksheets. This gives us structure while allowing us to move at our children's pace.

Saves Planning Time: The lessons are ready to go, which saves us hours of preparation time each week.

Our Step-by-Step Guide to Using Oak National Academy

Here's exactly how we structure our learning using this free platform:

1. Schedule and Planning

Create a Simple Routine: We follow a basic daily schedule, typically doing Oak lessons in the morning when our children are most focused. We might do two or three subjects, with breaks in between.

Weekly Planning: Each Sunday evening, we spend 15 minutes looking at the Oak learning journeys for the week ahead. We don't plan every minute—just note which lessons we'll cover each day.

Integrate Other Activities: We use afternoons for hands-on projects, reading, outdoor exploration, and other free activities that complement the Oak lessons.

2. How We Use the Resources

Video Lessons First: We start each topic with Oak's video lesson. The teachers are engaging and explain concepts clearly.

Quick-Fire Quiz: Straight after the video, we do a fun, 5-minute quiz to see what they've understood. We might ask quick questions like, "What were the three main points?" or "Can you explain that to me in your own words?" This helps solidify their learning immediately.

Follow with Activities: After the quiz, we use Oak's downloadable worksheets to reinforce what they've learned.

Make It Hands-On: Our children love creative learning, so we often extend Oak lessons with simple activities. For example, after a history lesson on the Romans, we might have a quick, fun debate where one child pretends to be for the Roman invasion and another argues against it.

Supplement with Other Free Resources: While Oak is our main resource, we sometimes use BBC Bitesize for additional explanations or Twinkl's free section for extra worksheets.

3. Our Approach to Encouragement and Support

Interactive Learning: We always encourage our children to think deeper. During lessons, we pause the videos to ask questions and discuss how the concepts relate to their own experiences.

Adapt to Their Style: Since our children love hands-on experiences, we try to make every subject creative. We might turn a grammar lesson into a silly sentence-building game or use building blocks to demonstrate a maths concept.

Celebrate Everything: We celebrate both small and big achievements. We use golden stars and their favourite superhero stickers in their workbooks so they can visually see they've done well. This positive reinforcement has been incredibly motivating for them.

Making Home Education Truly Free

Beyond Oak National Academy, here are other free resources we use regularly:

• BBC Bitesize: Perfect for quick topic reviews and games

• YouTube Educational Channels: For science experiments and history documentaries

• Nature: Our backyard and local parks become outdoor classrooms for science and PE

• Museums and Galleries: Many offer free virtual tours and have fantastic online resources
  
  

Staying Flexible and Supported

Adapt as Needed: Some days the planned Oak lesson doesn't work—maybe the children are tired or particularly interested in something else. We've learned it's okay to switch gears and follow their curiosity.

Learn Together: Home education has become a journey of learning for us too. We discover new things alongside our children, which makes the experience rich and rewarding for everyone.

Final Thoughts

We started our home education journey with just pens, paper, and free online resources, and Oak National Academy has been the cornerstone of that approach. It has given us the confidence that we're providing a solid education while keeping costs minimal.

The most important investment isn't money—it's time, patience, and a willingness to learn alongside your children. With Oak National Academy and other free resources, you have everything you need to begin your home education journey today.

The Uwah Family

Ready to get started? Visit: Oak National Academy