Socially challenged?

Homeschool Kids are "Socially Challenged"

From Jennie von Eggers, for About.com

I was recently in a checkout line and the clerk asked if my kids were home schooled. When I answered "yes", he responded as any caring citizen concerned about the social welfare of my children would, and asked, "aren't you worried about them not getting enough socialization?" The "socialization" question seems to be the old-standby, passive aggressive attack, by those outside spectators of the homeschool movement. How would my children be able to integrate into society, without first learning the valuable "social skills" that only a public school experience could provide? After all, the socialization part of a typical day-in-the-life of a home schooled child, looks nothing like the government school experience. Many homeschoolers spend their day doing things such as; helping out with family business', running errands, going on field trips, visiting relatives and friends, doing odd jobs for neighbors and partaking in family responsibilities. As the "socially challenged" homeschool kids are out and about, partaking and interacting in real life situations, the government students are "socializing" under a controlled environment, behind four walls with a controlled group of people (also known as their peer group). Yes, the sales clerk that offered his unsolicited opinion on my choice to homeschool, was right! My kids are "socially challenged" by not going to public school!

This "social" problem comes out in other areas as well. For instance, when a group of home schooled kids are playing together, it is typical to see older kids playing with children years younger. Don't they know that "social rules" dictate you only play with kids of your own age group? You also might find boys jump-roping along with girls! No one told these poor kids that jump-roping for boys is an open door to being labeled a "girly boy", a reputation that could follow you all the way through high school! And the way these homeschool girls dress is so out-of-style, and dare I say… modest. Where's the low cut pants and the revealing spaghetti string tops? Without learning how to focus on their sexuality, how are these "fashion misfits" ever going to make it in the real world someday? They might have to rely only on their talents, skills and abilities to get by in this world, such a shame. Speaking of the "real world", did you know that a vast majority of these home schooled, social-misfits are sheltered from the mainstream media by their parents not having cable hookup? Without unlimited access to cable t.v. shows like MTV how will they know the pillars of our society like Brittney Spears, Paris Hilton or Snoop Dog? Without the influence of these pop culture icons, they will be totally in the dark to what society values in people...it's a crying shame!

So the next time some well meaning stranger decides to bring up the "socialization" question, my answer will simply be, "Yes, my children certainly are socially challenged and that's fine with me!"

Homeschool Video-too funny!!

Inch by inch it's a cinch!

I think it is part of Seussian literature, that states "Inch by inch it's a cinch, yard by yard it's just too hard!" Too bad I'm realizing this in April and not last August!

Since the school year began I've been giving our two oldest children a lesson plan that spans the week from day one to day five. The idea is to start on day one and check off what you complete for that day. The next day you start checking off the items on day 2 unless you worked ahead. Either way, by Friday all work should be completed. Our 12yo gets this. He completes each day and checks the assignments off. Sometimes he works ahead. Sometimes not. The point is he does it. He may whine about it a little bit, but he does it.

How did I forget that not all children learn alike? A mother of 4 should ALWAYS remember this. You can guess where I'm going with this. 12yo is done and 10yo is not. She's on day 4 in this subject but day 2 with that one. These over here she's done with but she never started day one in that thing. Yikes! It takes me sitting side by side with her to get her day completed. It would be fine if she were an only child. The fact is that there are three other people walking around the house calling me "mother".

Last week I had an epiphany! I never handed her the lesson plan on Monday morning. I just told her which pages to do in English. When she was done I asked for her religion book. We read the chapter together and she answered questions (this was actually two assignments for two different days). She was done in minutes. Then I assigned the next pages due in reading. The day went on like this for three hours. When we decided to stop, she had completed two days worth of work in half the time it usually takes her to complete half of one day. Amazing.

Apparently, the lesson plan was too overwhelming for her. It looked like a big stack of "things to do" and she froze. The job was too big. But when I gave it to her in pieces(inches)it was more manageable.

I think we both learned a lot this week.

Kindergarten at all hours...

I thought I prepared myself for the most likely challenges of homeschooling. I've purchased many books on the subject and have navigated online endlessly in search of the tools I need to prepare myself. Leave it to my 6 year old to stump me with a problem I haven't anticipated. He loves school so much that he wants to do it all day long! This may not sound like much of a problem, but walk a mile with me in my moccasins if you would.

We get up in the morning and I do the Distar Reading Program with the little ones first. Then they do their writing tablets. I move on to the older children and then focus on math with the 6 year old. The children go out to play while I fix lunch. After lunch I'm focused on the older children so we can finish up before ballet/soccer/piano/art lessons/choir etc. During this last stretch of school work, 6yo wants to work further in his math or phonics book. "What does this say?", "What do I do next?", "Is this right?", "Can you help me?", are being endlessly chanted to the point of getting annoying. I really need to be with the older children, but how do you bark at a child who only wants to work harder?

After our afternoon activities, we come home hungry for dinner and I'm busy cooking, cleaning up "school" from the table, continuing with the laundry, and/or helping the older children tie up any loose ends.

"Can I do another math lesson?"
"Not now, I'm busy."

Minutes later I find that he did in fact continue with his studies and has done an entire chapter incorrectly in his book because he couldn't read the directions. Uggh!

This continues through to bedtime where he wails that he can't sleep and wants to do phonics now.

I love his enthusiasm, but when does the bell ring to signal that school is out?