Socialization

Homeschool kids get a bad rap.  Apparently they are unsocialized...blah, blah, blah.  I'm not opening up that discussion.  Just come to our house and see if my kids won't drive you nuts with all their questions and comments that will be directed at you.  Seriously, they make our guests feel like celebrities--to the extent where we have to tell our kids to leave our guests alone.  Yeah...poor unsocialized homeschooled kids....ridiculous notion!

BUT, I will say that homeschool moms have the tendency to be unsocialized.  4-5 days a week must be fully dedicated to school.  I try not to answer phone calls.  I try to keep people away while I teach, because, well, I am responsible for giving my kids a decent education and part of that means removing distraction.  It also involves a deliberate intent to create and preserve a solid learning environment.  For me this means I have to KNOW what I'm teaching the kids everyday which involves extensive preparations.  I have to have their work marked.  I have to ensure corrections are made and that they understand the material given them.  I need to make sure we are covering a good amount of material everyday.  This all takes a lot of time.

Then, when the school day is done, a homeschool mom still  has a family to take care of and a home to maintain.  It's not unusual for me to see 6 loads of laundry on a Monday.  Meals need to be put on the table.  There are little ones who need attention.  Floors need sweeping, bathrooms need cleaning, kids need bathing, and chores need to be delegated and supervised.  Discipline needs to be meted out.  The list is never done.  Pretty soon a homeschool mom feels the pinch. 

Now, I LOVE, and I mean I really LOVE teaching my kids.  I think it's a good option for our family, if not the BEST option for our family right now.  Maybe things will change in the future--that I can thankfully leave in the Lord's hands.  But the road can be hard at times and it can get lonely too.

Let's face it, when you get busy, I mean really busy, you stop answering phones.  You don't talk to friends or family much and the circle starts getting very small.  Discouragement and loneliness creep in and yet the excuses for keeping yourself unsocialized continue unabated--and the reasons are usually very good.  'Can't have people over tonight, I need to plan my lessons for next week.  Not answering the phone, I have to teach.  After I drop the kids off at Kid's Disciple's Club/birthday party/catechism, etc, I'll do my groceries since I haven't had a chance all week.  I've GOT to catch up on my marking.'


I think homeschool moms run a much higher risk of being unsocialized than their kids do.

If you're a homeschooling mom who's reading this and are expecting to now read a solution to this problem, my answer is that I don't have one.  I've come to the realization that I, myself, need to get out a little more.  I need to enjoy the company of other Christians more frequently.  I need to ask people to pray for me more often than I do.  I need to stay involved with a congregation that I love.  How do I do this?  I'm not sure.  Right now it feels like one more thing to add to my to-do list, and that's already starting off with the wrong attitude towards the very matter I was talking about!  One day I'll increase in wisdom and have this all figured out.  Until then, I'll just keep treading water.