CAN YOU BE SOCIAL IN A HOMESCHOOL SETTING?

By Shelley Duncan
President, ProfessorMom.com

This is one of the biggest myths about homeschooling. How can your child possibly have a social life? Shouldn’t your child be with others his age? How can he learn to get along with other people?

Most people have this image of families sitting around the house all day, doing homework, reading books, never seeing another sole. This is far from the truth. A typical week for me includes: Boy Scouts, gymnastics, volunteering, community college classes, and band.

Socialization was never an issue for me and from all the comments I get, I hear just the opposite: too much socialization. There are so many opportunities for social activities; you have to pick and choose. Homeschool support groups offer field trips and outings. There is 4-H, Boy Scouts, sports, music classes, community education classes, church socials, etc. Going to the park, the grocery store or museum.

One of my favorite forms of socialization is volunteering. This gives your child an opportunity to interact with people of all ages and social classes. Your child might be teaching a lesson, helping with crafts, feeding the homeless, taking care of animals, etc. At the same time your child is able to learn valuable skills, giving them a hands on way of figuring out whether or not they might want to pursue that field as a career. My daughter and I volunteered on the Zoomobile. We brought small animals out to schools and taught the kids about the animals. My daughter interacted with K-2 aged children, the other volunteers who were mostly seniors and the teachers who wanted to know why she wasn’t in school.

When referring to socialization in school, I like the analogy of this being compared to running with a pack of wolves. Your child would hang out only with others his age. The friends challenge each other, known as peer pressure. They think they all have to be alike. Respect for teachers and parents is soon a bad thing. Adults are the enemy. They only talk to their friends. Is this the real world? Your children are taught to listen to the teachers and do what they are told, not to listen to what their hearts are telling them. Is this the socialization you want for your child?

The only concern I can see with homeschooling families and socialization is for those who live in extremely remote areas, where they have no neighbors for miles and towns exist of a grocery store and a gas station. These people will have a little harder time trying to socialize, but there are ways. The Internet has become a common bond for these families, a way for them to reach out to others and talk to them. They might also look for outside organizations and church for social gatherings.

The Internet alone can create socialization. There are many great pen pal sites as well as chat rooms. Don’t forget to talk to your kids about Internet safety before letting them in the chat rooms. A couple of pen pal sites:
www.kidsmc.com/penpal
www.nfgcc.org/gkids.htm
http://expage.com/pages/kidspenpalclub

Sites that offer socialization opportunities:
www.bsa.scouting.org – Everything you ever wanted to know about the Boy Scout program. You’ll find national news, plus thousands of links to troops in your own neighborhood. Find out what’s required, about merit badges, summer camps and lots more.
www.girlscouts.org/index.html – Everything you ever wanted to know about the Girl Scout program. Just like above.
http://www.4-h.org/fourhweb/ - This is the national site for 4-H. Find state and/or local groups plus what 4-H is all about.
www.campfire.org - Everything you ever wanted to know about the Camp Fire Boys/Girls Clubs.
www.capnhq.gov – Did you say your child wants to fly? This is the site for all you need to know about the Civil Air Patrol.
www.serviceleader.org/advice/index.html - This site offers advice for volunteering plus thousands of positions available.

Shelley Duncan is founder and president of ProfessorMom.com, a website focused on educating parents on home schooling methods and procedures. To contact Shelley or for more information on alternatives to public education, visit www.professormom.com