The first question raised by those opposed to homeschooling is the social one. These people believe that social skills can only be learned in public schools where children are in a structured situation where they can socialize with other children of the same age group.
Is this objection valid? It can be a valid objection in an extreme situation where the homeschooled child has no interaction with other children and is confined to the home with only the parent for company. If this was a regular occurrence for homeschooled children there would definitely be more facts available to prove that homeschooled children are social misfits.
On the contrary, there is very little research available to show that homeschooled children have problems to fit into society. Most homeschooled children are found to be great achievers with social skills as good or bad as any other child of the same age group.
Parents who choose homeschooling are concerned about the well-being of their children and won’t allow the children to miss out on something as important as social skills.
Socializing doesn’t have to happen in a controlled school environment. There are various ways for homeschooled children to learn social skills.
At Home
Many social skills are learned at home. Things like basic respect for the people you share a home and a life with, is learned at home. Tolerance for people who are different from you can be learned at home. Siblings are very seldom blue-prints of each other. Brothers and sisters very quickly have to learn how to deal with different personalities.
Sport and Culture Clubs
Most communities have this available and it is the ideal place for children to interact with other children. The children encountered here might be from very different backgrounds, cultures, race groups and religious conviction. Here the child will learn to understand and be tolerant with these diversities.
Social Groups
In areas where there are many children in homeschooling, parents can have organized outings in groups which can be educational and also provide a platform for social interaction between the children.
Work Groups
Parents can decide to let children work on some of the curriculum projects as a group. A specific day in a week can be set aside for group projects where all, or those children who want to, can get together and work on a shared project. The child will immediately get the opportunity to work in a group, but won’t be constantly jeopardized by lazy or naughty children, as can happen in a public school.
Socializing is not as big a problem as people tend to make it.
