But What About Socialization...

I'm tired of this argument about homeschooling.  Why do some people, when they hear the word homeschooling, immediately think that all homeschooled children are locked away in some compound, shielded from the world, and will be socially impaired forever because they don't learn how to walk down a hallway with twenty-nine other 6-year-olds learning how to keep their fingers over their mouths.  Sorry, about the ranting run-on sentence, but I couldn't stop.  I sometimes wonder if these brilliant people even know what the word means.

Here's one definition:  Socialization:  The process of learning one’s culture and how to live within it; The act of interacting with others, of being social.

It doesn't say how to be obedient and quiet in a classroom with twenty-nine other 6-year-olds.   It says learning how to live within one's culture, which means everyday life.  My homeschooled children are plunged into everyday life, well nearly everyday.  They accompany me to the grocery store, the feed store, the bank, the doctor, traffic court(well, luckily that one doesn't happen too often, but homeschool moms get tickets too) and everywhere else I go.  They have to interact with all ages and all types of people.  They have their little groups of same age children with their scouts and sports and art classes and music classes, and I could go on and on, but you get the point.

My goal is for them to be just as comfortable talking with 90-year-olds as they are with 9-year-olds.

Anyway, I'll shut up about it and just show you my little unsocialized hermits. Oh, and I am in no way putting down those of you who choose a public school education for your children.  I am fortunate enough to be able to stay home and teach my kids or maybe it's crazy enough to, I'm not sure some days. 

Here's Peyton with her little Daisy Scout friends.  That's her "BFF" Audrey on the left.  Clearly she's miserable and lonely, right?

Cutting out Icelandic snowflakes is serious business.  She had a blast at Girl Scout "World Thinking Day".  She was introduced to many different countries and their cultures(and she didn't even have to step foot in a school).

This is some of her Daisy troop with Abbi, our big Girl Scout helper.  Peyton says Abbi is the nicest teenager she's ever met!

Here she is at her troop meeting.  Poor little unsocialized child.  Her mother should be ashamed.

Reece's Cub Scout troop is working on the coolest project.  They are building Soapbox racers.  How cool is that?  I don't remember ever doing such cool stuff when I was a kid.  I need a thesaurus.  What's another word for cool?

He learned how to use a hand saw and drill.  I was thankful that no power tools were involved.  Next week they get to paint them.  I can't wait to see them race!

I even got to log an hour of math.  It's truly amazing how much learning is done in day-to-day life.

I think they'll be just fine.