The Moms, The Dads

 

I spent the afternoon hanging out with a few of the homeschool moms in our homeschool group. You know, I am, again and again, so impressed with the parents in our group who have chosen to homeschool.
We all know the stereotypes of homeschoolers: repressed, scared of society, highly religious, long skirts, Bible thumpers, sorta hippies...
But I have not found that to be the slightest bit true! While I goodly number of families in our co-op are raising chickens in the city (!) these parents are generally highly educated, highly involved and motivated, proud of the people their children are growing to be, highly inquisitive and dynamic, interesting, successful in their chosen paths, caring, funny, and hugely entertaining! Almost none of them own long, denim skirts.
As a group at that table today, of four people, there were six advanced degrees! We talked about esoteric literature and anime, home-cooked meat and potatoes and organic vegan foods, wonderful days at home and allowing the kids to run around at the mall, family vacations and kid vacations, family educational projects and individual projects and interests.
But why am I mentioning this?
Because I am proud to be among them!
We are "average" and we are extraordinary! Each of us!
Homeschooling parents take the leap of faith that homeschooling is the best thing that they can do for their children, for their families.

I got to thinking about the usual questions that I get asked about homeschooling. I know that many parents are curious about how we spend our days if we have found we can successfully avoid the public school trap. The "usual" questions are:

Parents who homeschoolers get asked a lot of questions about the process and procedure. Here are a list of the most frequently asked questions of homeschooling families.

* What will your children do for socialization?
* How can you teach your children if you are not certified?
* Will your children be able to get a diploma?
* Will your child be accepted into college?
* Do you not get tired of being around your children all day?
* What is so wrong about the public school system?
* How will your children ever learn about life?
* Do your children get lonely?
* Do your children have friends?
* How do your children play sports?
* Do you have a social life?
* Why do you homeschool?
* Don’t you think your child would like public school?
* Do your children take tests?
* Do you give a grade card?
* Do your children sleep late?
* Do you give an “A” in all subjects?
* How long does it take your child to do their homeschool?
* Will your child be able to go to college?
* Do you have homework?
Listen, I'll be happy to answer some of these question at some later date...just thinking tonight.