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How To Homeschool Without Making Your Child An Outcast
By Michael Nelson, Sat Dec 10th
If you are currently homeschooling or considering homeschoolingyour child, you probably know all the benefits homeschooling canprovide. You’ll have more control over the curriculum, be ableto customize teaching to your child’s personal learning style,and avoid the pressures and dangers of public schools. However,are you aware of the major mental and social damage you cancause if you don’t make the right choices? Children need friends. Usually, they meet their friends inschool. Take a child out of school, and where will they meetpotential play partners? What will the other kids think of yourhomeschooled child? Like it or not, children in public schoolsoften think that homeschooled children are not in public schoolbecause of mental disorders, behavioral problems, or “freaky”parents. Your child might be made fun of or picked on because heisn’t considered normal. These challenges must be overcome ifyou want your child to have a positive social life and be ableto function amongst their peers when they get to college. By deciding to homeschool, it becomes the parent’sresponsibility to find friendships for the child. This task isjust as important as the actual schoolwork. The following tipswill get you started towards placing your child on the track ofa positive social life.
Know your neighborhood: Start with where you live. How manychildren close to your child’s age live nearby? Do you know theparents? If not, you need to. Seek out parents nearby. Let themknow you have a child that you’d like to set up a play date for.Since you’re the one initiating these meetings, you’re also theone who needs to do the organizing. Have a party. Hire a clown.Invite all the local kids over. Invite other kids and theirparents to a ballgame, fishing, bowling, or any other activitythat children enjoy. Or even offer to baby-sit. Sports are important: Next to school, sports teams provide thebest environment for your child to form deep bonds with otherkids. They spend a lot of time at practice and root for eachother in games. Also, you’ll be meeting other parents whilewatching all the games. If your child has physical problems orwould embarrass himself on a playing field, get them involved inactivities like Boy/Girl Scouts or any other local organizationfor children. Let Pop Culture into the Home: Some homeschooling parentsmaintain strict control over what their child is allowed tolisten to on the radio, watch on television, and what they do onthe internet. While it is important to keep them away fromdangerous situations, it is also important to let them beexposed to the same influences as other children. Remember thatyour child is already facing an uphill battle to not beconsidered “weird.” Imagine how much worse it would be for themif they didn’t know any of the hot bands, cool TV shows, or whatclothes other kids wear? Without being exposed to mainstreamculture, they will have little to talk about with other childrenand will have a hard time relating to others. About the author:For a complete collection of homeschooling articles, visit www.homeschoolingsecrets.info
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