The Socialization Question??
When homeschooling, especially when just starting, every parent worries about the socialization aspect. Will our children know how to interact with others their age? Will our children know how to speak with adults? Will our children get to lonely? Will they have friends? Will they be able to play sports, or be in the band if they want to? The questions go on and on, and every so often a new question will come out of no where and you will be worried again. I have to say that I worried about this a lot at the beginning of our journey, and I still worry about it now, and I am sure I will worry about it in the future. However, I want you to know that there are many opportunities for our children to socialize. And honestly, some of that socialization that goes on in public schools, I'm glad my children are missing! I do want my children to be well rounded individuals, and I do want them to have friends, and I do not want them to be lonely. Here are some examples of how I get our children involved in activities so they are around other children their age.
1. Church-Our church has a good number of youth that attend regularly and they also have several extra youth events throughout the year that we attend
2. 4H- All three children are now in 4 H. They have meetings every month and most months there are extra activities they can choose to attend.
3. Homeschool groups-We have been a part of 3 different homeschool groups throughout the years. They each have been a blessing to us. We have attended field trips, taken co-op classes, science fairs, history fairs, and had many picnics and play dates. I think being a part of a homeschool group is essential to happy homeschoolers. One of the main reason is so you know you are not alone in your journey, because it does get tough at times.
4. After School Youth Programs- We just started this, the children are loving it. It is held at another church and is an awesome thing to be a part of.
5. Host events at your home- We have done this several times. We hosted a fall fun day one year, we had a hot dog social this year. We really should do this more. Hopefully in the future we can.
There is also now the opportunity for homeschool students to be involved with public school sports, band, and other programs offered through the local public schools. We have not utilized this yet, but we plan to soon. Logan will be participating in Trap Shooting with the Arkansas Game and Fish through a local school.
I read an article this week about socialization and homeschool that really got me to thinking. It stated that what concerns the "experts" about homeschool children's socialization is not the social aspect, but homeschool students are at a disadvantage because they never have the opportunity to problem solve in a group setting with their peers. At first, my mind went to racing about if my children ever problem solve in a group setting. They do. A lot. They solve problems as a group with each other, we do lots of group activities in our daily homeschool schedule, we also do several STEAM projects together throughout the year. They solve problems with a group at 4H on a regular basis, including STEM projects. They solve problems as a group with the church groups. Then my mind started wondering who these "experts" are? I am sure there are homeschool families somewhere where this might be a problem. I do think it is unfair to say that all homeschooled students will be at a disadvantage at some point in their lives.
Your homeschool adventure can be whatever you make of it. Don't let the fears of unsocialized children stop you from trying to homeschool. People will always give you advice on how to raise your children, or how to school your children. You must process that advice and make the ultimate decision on what is best for your family. You get to choose how your homeschool will run, how many hours on book work, how many field trips per year, how many play dates to attend. The decisions are yours. What is best for your family may not be what is best for another family, and that is ok. You are accountable for your family, so you make the decisions for them. Try not to fall into they comparison trap, remember God made us all different for a reason and a purpose.
1. Church-Our church has a good number of youth that attend regularly and they also have several extra youth events throughout the year that we attend
2. 4H- All three children are now in 4 H. They have meetings every month and most months there are extra activities they can choose to attend.
3. Homeschool groups-We have been a part of 3 different homeschool groups throughout the years. They each have been a blessing to us. We have attended field trips, taken co-op classes, science fairs, history fairs, and had many picnics and play dates. I think being a part of a homeschool group is essential to happy homeschoolers. One of the main reason is so you know you are not alone in your journey, because it does get tough at times.
4. After School Youth Programs- We just started this, the children are loving it. It is held at another church and is an awesome thing to be a part of.
5. Host events at your home- We have done this several times. We hosted a fall fun day one year, we had a hot dog social this year. We really should do this more. Hopefully in the future we can.
There is also now the opportunity for homeschool students to be involved with public school sports, band, and other programs offered through the local public schools. We have not utilized this yet, but we plan to soon. Logan will be participating in Trap Shooting with the Arkansas Game and Fish through a local school.
I read an article this week about socialization and homeschool that really got me to thinking. It stated that what concerns the "experts" about homeschool children's socialization is not the social aspect, but homeschool students are at a disadvantage because they never have the opportunity to problem solve in a group setting with their peers. At first, my mind went to racing about if my children ever problem solve in a group setting. They do. A lot. They solve problems as a group with each other, we do lots of group activities in our daily homeschool schedule, we also do several STEAM projects together throughout the year. They solve problems with a group at 4H on a regular basis, including STEM projects. They solve problems as a group with the church groups. Then my mind started wondering who these "experts" are? I am sure there are homeschool families somewhere where this might be a problem. I do think it is unfair to say that all homeschooled students will be at a disadvantage at some point in their lives.
Your homeschool adventure can be whatever you make of it. Don't let the fears of unsocialized children stop you from trying to homeschool. People will always give you advice on how to raise your children, or how to school your children. You must process that advice and make the ultimate decision on what is best for your family. You get to choose how your homeschool will run, how many hours on book work, how many field trips per year, how many play dates to attend. The decisions are yours. What is best for your family may not be what is best for another family, and that is ok. You are accountable for your family, so you make the decisions for them. Try not to fall into they comparison trap, remember God made us all different for a reason and a purpose.
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