Joe Wicks explained why he pulled his five-year-old daughter out of school.
When he kept us all fit during lockdown, the nation’s PE instructor became a national treasure, and he’s now expanding his reach to other places as he tours the world with his family.
Joe and wife Rosie have a daughter Indie, a son Marley, four, and a baby Leni, 11 months, and the family of five is presently in America, with Joe explaining that the round-the-world tour is one of the reasons they’ve taken Indie out of school for the foreseeable future.
‘It’s not a permanent thing, but we want to have another year together,’ he says, adding he ‘just loves being with my kids.’
He clarified in his interview with The Times however: ‘It’s not like I’m saying, I’m going to home school my kids and go and live on a farm in the middle of nowhere. It’s really just about our lifestyle.’
Joe faced some backlash for taking his daughter from school, but he points out that in other parts of the world, such as Scandinavia, schooling begins later.
That said, he admits he found the backlash difficult, and ‘if I was getting attacked [online] every day, that would be hard.’
Joe has previously published photos of his children completing schoolwork on what looked to be a boat, while Rosie cradled the infant and gazed out the window.
Indie was busy with maths problems, while her younger brother Marley drew a drawing to teach him the alphabet.
He said in a Q&A with fans that the homeschooling decision came as they ‘just love being together as a family and want to spend more time with the kid while we can.’
‘[Indie] had a great year in reception but we have always loved teaching the kids at home and want the freedom to travel more and explore the world.’
He maintained, though, that his ideas are not fixed in stone.
‘She might go to school next year,’ he said.
‘We have no idea long term but want to do at least a year of home educating.’
