# Home schooling children



## *Venus*

Curious as to how you all feel about the subject. I thought of this when a friend mentioned that she wanted to homeschool her kids. 

Is this a good thing? 

Should it be appropriate only during certain points of a childs education (elementary, middle, high..?)

Benefits/disadvantages

Are most parents who do it qualified?

Anyone been homeschooled?


Personally I think its generally not a good thing for kids. I wouldn't want my parents to teach me, even if I got one on one attention. 


Thoughts?


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## shal

I think home schooling would be tough for several reasons. 

Firstly, in my opinion the mother/father would need to be qualified in some form. Education is like any other career and to become a teacher means studying for many years. 

Secondly, I would find it to be quiet tedious being at home "ALL" the time and certainly being around a parent all day and night. Basically living with them constantly.

And finally, home schooling would be very socially isolating. Schooling is about education, but to me also about learning to interact with people, social skills, and meeting new people. It's a foundation of which you friends and learn to socialise and develop those types of skills. 

Home school would be very restricted in that sense.

So I guess Im not really for home schooling, but in some cases it may not be avoidable.

shals :D


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## dbighead2

if you do it at all...I'd say go with elementary.

But I think a person learns most of their social skills at that age level?

personally, I'd be against Home school.



here, put yourself in that situation....would you have wanted to be homeschooled? Because your kid will probably share some of your characteristics.


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## fizzygirl

I'm against it.  I know some people that have done it very well, but I'd prefer to be very involved in a public school that my children went to than to homeschool them.  I remember loving the whole process of school...getting on the bus in the morning, lunchtime with friends, having the library to go to most days, and a new teacher every year to meet and adapt to.  When Jr high came I had the chance to join chorus and quiz bowl teams that allowed me to go on trips all over the state and various other cities in the Eastern U.S.


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## misscelestia

I'm very much against it.  

First of all, our public school teachers are trained for their jobs - and it seems that most of the time, there is little "quality control" with homeschool mums/dads.

I also believe that social interaction is an important part of growing up - including getting picked on.  I was picked on constantly growing up, and it toughened me up to the real world.  I understood that not everyone was going to be nice to me.

That said, I know there are plenty of successfully homeschooled kids out there that are completely normal, well adjusted, well educated people.  I just think that is the exception more then the rule.


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## *Venus*

By the way, I mentioned that I was against it Bighead. 

I know there are some people who totally disagree with me though. I've spoken to both homeschooled people who wouldn't want it any other way and those who wish they hadn't been. 

I just have a hard time believing that most parent teachers are more qualified than someone who has studied the subject extensively, let alone that they've taught it before.


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## rock_lobster

I have to agree with everyone so far. Personally I'd be against it.  For a few reasons,  but mainly for a non academic one.

As others have mentioned, school is going to be the primary source, outside the family, of human interaction. After you've learned your " Three R's " school in my opinion has served its purpose. It does however do a very good job of teaching you how the world is not fair and is indeed a very shit place altogether. Not the sugar coated affair you're likely to live at home.   This is really important I think!

Also, I wouldn't say its entirely a good idea to let a parent take their childs education directly onboard. As, despite whatever qualifications they may have,  they could never be objective enough.


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## Belisarius

I have a low opinion of kids of all ages, so I'd say that for those who want to do homeschooling, go for it; that's just more bullshit than I think some kids should deal with.  But hey, for those who feel social interaction--or the lack thereof in a social setting--is somehow character-building, so be it.
It just wasn't for me, and I can honestly say I grew more socially in a few years of college than I did in all my grade-school years combined.  Grade school, with all its trimmings is a "Seinfeld" episode; the real-world is "Macbeth."  One is clearly worth more than the other, IMO.


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## Dandy

I'm studying to be a teacher and feel that homeschooling is not a good option. There are absolutely *no* benefits of it. Any positive effects of homeschooling are overshadowed by too many negatives associated with the practice.  
You could even look at theories of gender identity as just *one* argument to support going to school and not being home schooled. _Socialisation_ plays a huge role in gender identity, it is not the sole theory but it is the one with the biggest effect on this particular thing. Breaking away from that home environment is crucial to the development process of children, in so many areas - self-awareness, self-esteem, gender identity, criticism (constructive or other).  

I find that the reason the families I know want to homeschool their children is because they want to protect them from the world. This is not the right approach because they are aiming for something that is ultimately unattainable. They will be exposing their child/children to a susceptibility of greater damage.  

School environments are so crucial to our development as people they should not be avoided.


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## MissTwitch

beaner oh beaner where are you?????????


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## honEbee

We've had this discussion before.  Although it started out in a thread regarding a spelling bee.

this link  provides the positives of homeschooling from someone who actually does homeschool and not just theorize about it.   

Happy reading.


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## chrissie

*cue beanergrl* :D


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## beanergrl

**see honEbee's link** 
I don't have time for educating the masses anymore. 

I will say that in addition to to my children's daily work this year they meet on a weekly basis for something everyday. They have homeschool swimming, homeschool ice skating, homeschool rollerskating, (bowling which we are skipping right now) and baseball. 

They take piano lessons, guitar lessons, art lessons, plus a homeschool science class that is ran by the Asheville Science Center and an eco class called Nuts About Nature (my oldest (twins) are taking compass skills and survival classes) at the Pisgah Nat'l School of Forestry. All for homeschoolers. There are almost 30,000 in my area. 

If that isn't enough for you they also joined the Culture Club where they study a different culture every month. They learn all the games and stories of that culture and the last week of the month they have to come dressed in native costume and bring a native dish of that culture. Our first month is Greece. 

But wait, there's more. In addition to computer classes this is a sampling of the homeschool co-op that i joined. My sons each pick three classes at a time (fall, winter, and spring) . Classes are an hour each and they are once a week. I have also shortened this list: 

Course Description 

All Ages 


Impersonating Famous People    Class B 


Each week we'll pick a theme (famous artists, 

musicians etc) and a corresponding  "famous person" to 

research.  The next week, come to class in costume, 

and share some facts you've learned.  The rest of the 

class must guess your identity!  Great fun and great 

way to learn history!       



All ages  Teacher  Linda Gerge 
Younger Kids 




ELEMENTARY ANIMALS  Class A 


We would discuss different animals, their habitat, diet and where in  
the world they might live. I would like to concentrate on form and  
function (for example: Why to camels have a hump?) and how an animal is  
adapted to suit it's environment. The goal would be for the children learn  
how animals are suited to their environments and how important it is to  
try to maintain these environments for them.  

Ages 4-8    Teacher Terri      

American Kids   Class A 


Would be somewhat like the American girls, but without the fictional  
characters. Each week we would pick a time period from American History  
and learn in an informal way about what the kids from that period did  
and experienced. We'll play games that kids from that time would have  
played, cook foods from the time period, do authentic crafts, play  
dressup, role play, and anything else we can think of.   



Ages 5-8    Teacher Tracie Lemire 

Spanish   Class B 


In this class we'll focus on introducing the spanish language and  
culture through games, stories,food and music. We will learn simple  
vocabulary as we sing spanish songs, sample traditional foods, and immerse  
ourselves in the cultures of Spain and Latin America.  



Ages 6-9    Teacher Jo/Lori 

 Crafts from Around the World  Class B 


 Each week the children will make a craft that would be representative  
of crafts made in different countries around the world. 



Ages 8-10           Teacher Tamara Rutledge 
 Clay  Class A 


Creating with clay we'll make functional objects as well as decorative  
pieces and sculptures. Projects include; pinch pot rattles, coil pots,  
slab built boxes and serving dishes. The hand built projects will be  
fired and then glazed.  



Ages 8-14     Teacher   Diane 

 Pirates! Class  A 



Did Pirates really bury their treasure? What sneaky trick did  
Blackbeard use to scare the people of North Carolina? Who was the "Gentleman  
Pirate"? Learn fun and amazing facts about the men and women who sailed  
the high seas. Through story, song and crafts we will learn all about the  
Pirate's world of adventure! This class is for 3-5th graders Maximum  
size 10 students  



Ages 8-11   Teacher Wendy 
  Discovering Mime Illusion   

 This class will explore the movement and techniques necessary to  

creating mime illusions. We will stretch our bodies as well as our  
minds in the discovery process of seeing everyday actions and how they can  
be 

recreated in a convincing way without props or words. Bring an open  
mind, good concentration, and a willingness to expand your movement  
potential. 

 Ages 10 and up.      Teacher Katie Birchenough 



* This is a 4 week course beginning in Mid October 

 Older Kids 


The Poem in Its Skin   Class A 
 We'll explore eight verse forms, different types of meter, and some  
shaping forms. There will be handouts with 10 or 12 poems to read in class  
and at home. Poetry writing assignments will be given. The requirement  
is for strong readers with tolerance for somewhat mature content and  
the occasional expletive. 
Ages (Upper middle/high school)     Teacher Joan Humphreys 
Career Hunt  Class  B 


Hiddle School/High School 

Katrina Kaeck 

First class we will poll the kids and find out what careers the they  
are interested in pursuing. Then I will line up speakers who work in  
those professions to come in and tell how they became interested in that  
career and what educational/apprenticeship type path it took to get  
there. Also address the realities of that particular career. 

~~ my children get to learn fun stuff that they enjoy and get to choose themselves.plus they learn much much more then they would in conventional schooling.
 For their basics we belong to this school (to follow) plus we supplement with the Saxon math which is the best math program. 
http://www.globalvillageschool.org/ 

Now i have got to go. But please read my full response and the remarkable stats about homeschooling that i have already addressed on honEbee's link.

opps and how could i forget my 4H-HEArts group that meets twice a month?
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/4H-HEArts/


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## MissTwitch




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## anna!

I really don't know anything about homeschooling, although I think beaner's outline sounds great 

I'm actually just interested in how someone (anyone) homeschools multiple children of different ages?


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## beanergrl

They way i have my day arranged Anna is that my youngest does his computer work first and watches an educational movie from our homeschool video library (kind of like Netflix) and while he is doing that i am going over our twins work which is highschool. 
After going over it they work independently on it and then they also have computer work such as online classes and a blog they have to keep. When they are doing that i am with the younger. We have everything wrapped up by one usually and then we go to our fun classes or field trips .Bi- weekly we have an early homeschool activity that meets at 10. 

One teacher can't effectively reach every child because they can't focus solely on every child's needs let alone teach according to that child's learning style. Heck, my SIL who is a public school teacher (3rd year) didn't even know that there were different learning styles. She never heard of John Holt either. When i asked her just what style of teaching she did learn to teach she looked at me all confused and said "the Sunshine State standards" or something like that which means she went to college to learn how to teach the way the govt wants her to in the Florida public school system. She is also dumber then a box of rocks and then the school system put her in kindergarten to teach her first year. Even i know a first year teacher should never be given kindergarten because they have to work their teaching kinks out so to speak and kindergarten is an important year in the devolopment process..  

Anyways, that is off topic but my point Anna was meant to be that it is much easier to teach a small number of children individually then it is for one teacher to teach and reach an entire class.

Also, i'll let you in on a really good Live Journal i stalk that i found on the friends list of another bluelighter. She's a writer who pulled her son out of public school  when he was in 3rd grade to homeschool after some traumatizing situations in public school with her son. She has her son's homeschool journal also linked here that you can check out. I think i have a secret crush on her. She has inspired me to give my son Jacob his own site this year:
http://www.livejournal.com/userinfo.bml?user=gnomeygirl

her cookbook also makes me want to consider eating meat again too


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## shannabanana

^^you'd have to give up pies, cookies, cakes, breads, etc... don't do it! :D

And I'll just add this - I used to be "against" homeschooling for all the reasons listed above but I've pretty much changed my mind on that one...


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## beanergrl

^ i know but i want body by gnomey :D


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## anna!

Thanks beaner! This is all very interesting.


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## SA

You''ll be losing your kid basic social skills.


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## raverchik

Well I have a very positive view on *home schooling* , mainly because I used to be tutored by a mother who home schooled her kids from about year 7 I think (start of high school)..

Firstly you have to be qualified to home school children, you cant just take it on yourself to tutor them, because their is a curriculum to follow etc.

This lady I had contact with, was wonderful, She taught her kids with the same rules as normal school, started at the same time, ended etc, same amount of homework etc.
Her kids were *brilliant* students, They send their work away to be marked unbiasedly for exams etc. The kids excelled in so many areas of their study, One was choosen to perform over seas for her musical talent etc.
The kids also had a good social ,life friends just like any normal child.

I understand that not all home school situations would be as effect as this one and The reason was probably because the mother/teacher had the most *amazing* teaching ability Ive ever seen.

I think homeschooling probably wouldnt suit all situations, Only if the teacher was confident that she could carry out alll the duites.


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## DarthMom

Beaner, I will PM you sometime in the future. I am thinking of bringing my son home. He hasn't been tested yet (it is a long process) But he is highly intelligent, yet has (in my opinion after a lot of research) a language disability. Communication of basic commands are lost to him. I have it to, just not to his extent. I can't speak in person to someone. I stutter a lot, and can't remember the words I need, or understand what people say. Oral teachings are lost on me, I have to "see and do".  And I am 99.9% sure my son has the same problem, and he won't get what he needs in a public school. I am sooo scared though, since I am very impatient, thanks to the damned problem that I have too. You should hear me and my boy talking to each other trying to explain things lol what a hoot, we are idiots. 

Anyway, glad to see you are so involved, and I will DEFINITELY be getting in touch with you soon, after I have more plans, and questions. Hope you don't mind!!


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## beanergrl

^^ It sounds as if your son (and yourself) have a kinetic approach to learning. Do you have to see and do to learn? Like do you have to be the actual driver in a car before you grasp directions? Or does the teacher sound Greek to you and then later you would try to figure it out for yourself?
A large percentage of dyslexics also fall into this range.
This is certainly one type that is very hard to reach in conventional pubic schooling. 
There's many techniques to reach him you just have to learn the right methods.This is not hard and you would enjoy reading and learning about it. I have plenty of homeschool sites that offer links and books about the subject as well as test to take to determine your learning style for sure. Feel free to PM me anytime. I homeschooled in Florida for 6 1/2 years and can probably answer all your questions. If youre in the Orlando area there are some great homeschool groups there i could suggest joining. They have a very large network of homeschoolers there. ~ Staci


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## DarthMom

sounds great. I have found a group here, just need to contact them. Independent Homeschoolers Network. 

Not being christian, I had to find a group that wasn't fundified!! Some of the christian groups are downright nuts, as I am sure you know from your experience. 

I have the contacts, just haven't gone that far yet. I am really not sure how successful I would be, because of my problems. Ideally, I need other moms, that I would be with on a regular basis, so I can use their help for what I can't do, and when I get frustrated. Not just the weekly get togethers. 

I am in palm bay BTW, just south of melbourne. remember from the other thread, ask Frances, she will tell ya where I am, she is heading right for me!!


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## nephron

I was homeschooled when I was a kid.  It wasn't ideal, mostly 'cause my mum is a fruit loop, but it was still better than school.  I didn't get stuck waiting for all the other kids in a class where the teacher couldn't & wouldn't handle or challenge me.

Extension classes /= an extra 2 pages of easy math problems.


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## jaymie

I was homeschool half of seventh, eighth, ninth, and tenth then I took an exit exam and enrolled in college at 17. I was pretty much left to my own devices after ninth grade because my parents didn't have the energy or resources needed to properly school me anymore. In seventh/eighth grade I went to a homeschooling/tutoring group kind of like beanergrl describes. 

Like any decision it had negative and positive consequences to deal with. I gained a lot more confidence in college than I think I ever would have in High school. I'm still working on the social skills part. I don't think being homeschoold isolated me to the facts of how the world works because right after I took that exit exam I took myself to San Francisco and saw for myself just how the world really works. 

Seems to me there are plenty of people who were in high school who also could be isolated to how the world works too. High school is not the world, the world is the world and it's up to you what you make of it. I had some pretty negative early schooling experiences and wasn't going to let others define my life for me anymore. Maybe it's good, maybe it's bad, but it worked for me because here I am today right on schedule and with loads more experience than I otherwise would have gotten having stayed in the public education system. If I had stayed I would have continuously floundered and become very bored. I'm not about to be polite just so the school can get the state money meanwhile I'm not getting the quality schooling I deserve. Fk that.  

Peace.


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## PlayBoy

I was homeschooled half my life, benifits are you get to do it at home get it done much quicker but you have no friends....


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## faris

i simply have no faith in public school systems and can't afford private schools.  i am not confident enough in myself to be any kind of "teacher", which is why i never became a soccer coach - which is why my child will not be homeschooled by _me_.  i haven't looked into private tutors yet, i can imagine they are equally as expensive as a private school.  i've got some time to decide all this stuff so i'm not sure what will happen over the next 5 years...


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## cbussecret

Heres some things that I know.  I was homeschooled for 1 year as a sophmore.  My mom took me out of school because I was getting into a lot of trouble( mind you a went to higher class school not a run down school).  I hated her for a very long time because of it but as the year went by i liked it more and yes i did go back to school the next year but she still homeschools my siblings and they love it.  And yes they do get the social stuff as well.  My mom actually runs a class that runs all day once or twice a week and they teach spanish sign language, social studies english you name it.  They also have at least in Ohio where the state has a program were they take classes online and each student gets a computer and school supplies.  Another thing about the social part of it my 18 yr old brother got to go to Mexico for his homeschool studies with 30 other homeschoolers where they worked in orphange and learned the culture.  I can't say that it is for everyone but for some people it does work.  I also for a 3 year old and I am considering having her homeschooled by someone not me. For one i couldn't stay at home with her all day i would go nuts but with the way public schools are now.  I don't want something to happen to her


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## cravNbeets

Dandy said:
			
		

> *There are absolutely no benefits of it. Any positive effects of homeschooling are overshadowed by too many negatives associated with the practice. *




wow, has your coursework reached the oh so critical "how to NOT contradict yourself within the same paragraph" lesson?  let me know if you need to borrow some notes or study guides as that exam may be a rough one for ya8) 

not having children i dont really know where i come out on this argument.  i think in the past home schoolers got a bad rep due to the types of people who were home schooling ( aka social misfits / religious fanatics).  i think more recently a wide variety of people have lost faith in the public school system and are taking matters into their own hands, and if we're using beaner as any type of measuring stick they're bloody organized.

i think that homeschooling has a lot more to offer children than it once did but im not sure that i would choose it for my own kids.  seriously this kind of decision is what makes me wonder if i ever want kids.  the idea of loving someone so much and raising them in a certain way and having all that dashed in a few short bus rides would be enough to send me on some sort of rampage

actually venus if this is an area that interests you there's an awesome book you should check out, a work of fiction called "alice i think" which basically is a light hearted story about a teenage girl's struggle to assimilate into a "normal" school setting after being home schooled

link to the book on amazon


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## fizzygirl

Is it really still homeschool if you're going to a lot of group meetings with other children?  At what point do you move from homeschool to charter school (legally)?


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## cbussecret

fizzygirl said:
			
		

> *Is it really still homeschool if you're going to a lot of group meetings with other children?  At what point do you move from homeschool to charter school (legally)? *




Yes it is,  because by going to the group meetings you are in a way selecting the type of people you going with because you set goals, rules and standards.  Most of the time you have the same faith as the other people.


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## tranceaddict420

I was homeschooled as well for my jr. and sr. year.  I would have dropped out otherwise.  I feel that it was good for that reason, but I also feel that I did not learn as much as I could have if in a normal school.  As for social life, since I was a jr. I knew many people and never was lonley.


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## Pantomime7

I was homeschooled all through elementary and middle school, and now I'm a junior making high B's to high A's. I don't think that homeschooling does anything bad to a child except for maybe keeping him/her from meeting people. But I met many people when I was homeschoioled; almost all the friends I have now I made when I was homeschooled. I think that students can get a better education at home because they get the one on one experience. Kids at school get told something and if they need help the teacher may not make time for them because the rest of the class may be ahead of them. In homeschooling if you need help, you can spend all the time you need on that one thing. You don't get left behind and you dont have to wait for the teacher to get done with other students. I also got to go on many trips that my peers didn't because I didn't have set school times. I think that homeschooling is something beneficial to a child. Of course, I dont recommend it for eveyone but I think that for some people, such as myself, it's great. It also helps to have someone to teach you that is patient and knows how to many things such as science, math, history, etc. But, I think that homeschooling should be done through high school. High school is a great experience.


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## doofqueen

I would think that kids need social interaction with other kids of all different types of gender, ethnicity, class etc so they know about the "variety" of people in society and how to actually communicate with other people as they grow and learn.

To become a teacher you study for four years. I don't think just anyone can home school a child.

Although there are alot of kids with learning disabilities and kids who think on different levels that the traditional school environment doesn't work with them and they need to be taught a different way. So i guess it cmes down to the individual.


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## quintessence

>>Is this a good thing?

I think it depends on the family. If they're dysfunctional, of course the kid's not going to turn out well, but that's obvious even if the kid goes to school. A mostly stable family should do fine. 

>>Should it be appropriate only during certain points of a childs education (elementary, middle, high..?)

Probably best during elementary or middle school. Not sure about high school. I know someone who was homeschooled and then went to high school and thought the system was complete bullshit, but lots of others have had good experiences with it. It depends on the school, I guess. 

>>Benefits/disadvantages

Benefits: advanced education (in most cases), and more time to oneself to read, travel, volunteer, explore and LEARN. 
Disadvantages: loneliness, if one's family is the type to hang around the house all day... oh, and having to explain yourself to every damn person who asks. 

>>Are most parents who do it qualified?

If they are generally stable and intelligent people I think they'll do fine. 

Anyone been homeschooled?

I was homeschooled from first grade until college. I liked it for the most part, though in my early teen years I wanted more of a social life than I had. Certainly made up for it later, though. Now I have too much of a social life... lol... But it's hard to grow up in an "alternative" way and have to deal with all the negative stereotypes that people have about it. I get tired of trying to justify myself to people who claim that I'm probably socially, mentally, and educationally deprived etc. Giving explainations becomes redundant and useless, so now I figure that people can just meet me and decide for themselves whether I'm a maladjusted retard or a nice, interesting person (I think most decide the latter )


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## Squeaks

Not to make a mockery out of this thread but did you guys see this thread yet.. this man lives minutes away from me....

Pennsylvania Man Homeschools Children because.... 

Just like one poster said it's people like this  social misfits/religious fanatics that give homeschooling a bad name.....

I was never homeschooled but did go from a Public elementery school to a private school for middle then back to public for high school.....

Of course I got a better education at the private school 24 sudents to each class.. Only one class per grade in the school... It was very hard to "adjust" to private school life.... going back to public school was a sinch though

If I where homeschooled I dunno I wouldnt want to be homeschooled during my high school years... This is where I met great friends and started to make decisions about MY future not my parents vission of what they wanted my future to be......


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## iluvhottsk8r

no way in hell are my parents homeschooling me. Thta like my worst nightmare. I couldnt stand it. Id just run away


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## ebola?

>>I would think that kids need social interaction with other kids of all different types of gender, ethnicity, class etc so they know about the "variety" of people in society and how to actually communicate with other people as they grow and learn. 
>>  

Excepting gender, this sure as hell didn't happen at my high school.  With continuing gheto-ization on one hand and suburbanization on the other, is this likely to be happening in other high-schools?

>>You could even look at theories of gender identity as just one argument to support going to school and not being home schooled. Socialisation plays a huge role in gender identity>>

What if you stand in radical opposition to our culture's set of gender-roles (and the binary construction of gender)? 

>>Firstly, in my opinion the mother/father would need to be qualified in some form. Education is like any other career and to become a teacher means studying for many years. 
>>

You have a good point.  Intelligence is one thing.  Teaching is another.

ebola


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## doofqueen

^^ so you didn't interact with anyone that was different to yourself at highschool? Everyone was from exactly the same backgrounds?


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## ebola?

Everyone at my high school was upper-middle class (with some from the petite-bourgeois and bourgeois classes).  90 percent or so of the students were white.  There were some Asians, and about 3 black people out of 1000 students.

now, of course I interacted with people different from myself...but not in terms of the demographics you listed.

ebola


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## MaliceNwunderland

My brother was home schooled for grade and middle school.  He wanted to spend time with my disabled dad, but mainly because he was a loud mouthed little kid and the public school system wanted to pump him full of drugs.

He turned out fine.  He goes to public high school now and aces all the work and is one of the most popular kids there.

Home school is a very viable option if done right.


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