Do not home school your kid!

I was homeschooled for the greater prtion of my childhood. We were definately shelter, and did suffer some problems because of that...my cousins were kept home, never taught ANYTHING and severly sexually abused their whole childhoods (and that fucker finally got put away) under the guise of homeschooling.

WITH THAT SAID...

Homeschooling need not entail abuse. It doesn't need to social constrict your children. In almost all cases, the kids actually learn MORE, not less. I am homeschooling my boys and any other children I have. They will be involved with 4-H, and reading groups, and also just go play with kids like normal kids. They will also have the freedom to be who they are, learn what they want (besides reading and math, of course, that is just needed) and i am confident they will grow to be well rounded, healthy men.

There are screw-ups in EVERY circle of people. Every race rapes and maims, every race abuses their children. Every group also has horrible and awsome parents.

And sorry, but you do sound just like most unhappy kids. I was there (in public school) I hated my life because I had no friends. I had no friends because I was too shy to get out there, but I was in PS from eigth grade up.

I have been thinking about this all night, and I wanted to say, the OP sounds like they have ALWAYS had social anxiety. I believe their parents did what they thought was right, if my child had such severe social anxiety, I don't believe I would put them in too many social situations. Obviously, this person has always had a problem with this, and homeschooling did not make it worse, IMO. Perhaps this person would have WORSE anxiety today if it weren't for homeschooling.

You're lucky to have parents that actually care about you. Imagine having these problems with parents who don't give a shit, where they just force you to go to school. Or if you were alive 60 years ago you would be in a mental hospital. Be thankful for what you have not everyone is so lucky. Try looking at the other side of things. Also you will find that most of the people you consider your friends in high school are really not at all. Your friends are there for you when you need them not when it is convenient. True friends take action.

Originally Posted by PB_Smith

It all boils down to how well balanced and enriching the parents make the child's environment.

This is the most appropriate response out of them all (and those that say the same)...

Homeschooling can lead to a loss of socialization skills IF the parents allow it to.

It is NOT up to the child to find ways to socialize while growing up... It is up to the parent to teach them, if they have chosen to homeschool them. That is a part of what homeschooling is.

Those that were raised at home and not taught social skills are negatively effected by it.. and once they get away from their parents, they will have to be responsible for learning those skills...

Having said that, when done properly, homeschooling is a much better way to raise your children... for anyone with a brain...

Some parents DO NOT qualify...

Eh, I'd like to homeschool my kids until grade 5 or so, while keeping them in some extracurricular activities, so they get to socialize.

Afterward, I think the merits of school are as much of exposure to new elements outside of your own parents opinions, and socializing with peers as it is about pedagogy.

I am now home schooling my 6 year old. She went to kindergarten and the first month of 1st grade. Our town's schools are AWFUL. We put her in a Catholic school in hopes of getting her a good education. Well, she was not challenged at all. She taught herself to her name (full name, not just first) when she was 2 years old. Needless to say, she is very smart.

We had some trouble with the teacher this year so we just pulled her out. She is now in a program called K12.com. It is an on-line public school. All I have to do is follow the work they give me to do. They have field trips where everyone meets us. There are 2 kids in the next town over who do this as well and they are in the same grade. So, we meet up with them. We have friends who have kids the same age as her she plays with. She takes 3 dance classes a week and has friends in those classes. We plan to get her to the grade she belongs in with this program, because you can work as fast as your abilities allow, and then put her bac in school at that grade.

I think as long as you have your child's best interest in mind, have a plan, and make an effort to keep them involved it can be a good thing. Research shows that home-schooled children are more successful in life because they get individualized attention rather than being ignored if they are either advanced or too slow for the rest of the class.

A year and a half later, After my original post my thoughts have changed.

I read all the replies, and I agree with a lot of you.

My parents did what they thought was right, and I am very thankful(now) for that. I have talked to my mom and dad quite a bit in the past year and a half, and they kind of explained to me their side of how everything went down. It definitely was the right thing to do. They did the best they could with the knowledge that they had.

But I also had to realize, that I could of put in more of an effort, to change my social situation. And get out there, and form more of a social life. I didn't do that. Though back then I would say if I could go back, I would change that, Now I do not feel that way, I feel as if it was meant to happen that way and I learned from it. Took me awhile to stop dwelling on the past. About a year ago, I realized that I had to man up and take action and responsibility. And that led me to where I am now. A hell of a lot better place than I was.

Now it's full speed ahead, I'll rest when I'm dead.

Congrats to you and your parents for hashing this all out. Congrats to you for coming to peace with how things happened. Good luck to you in the future. With those kinds of skills I think you'll do fine!

Originally Posted by ToFunToDie

A year and a half later, After my original post my thoughts have changed.

I read all the replies, and I agree with a lot of you.

My parents did what they thought was right, and I am very thankful(now) for that. I have talked to my mom and dad quite a bit in the past year and a half, and they kind of explained to me their side of how everything went down. It definitely was the right thing to do. They did the best they could with the knowledge that they had.

But I also had to realize, that I could of put in more of an effort, to change my social situation. And get out there, and form more of a social life. I didn't do that. Though back then I would say if I could go back, I would change that, Now I do not feel that way, I feel as if it was meant to happen that way and I learned from it. Took me awhile to stop dwelling on the past. About a year ago, I realized that I had to man up and take action and responsibility. And that led me to where I am now. A hell of a lot better place than I was.

Now it's full speed ahead, I'll rest when I'm dead.

Soon2B4,
What state are you in? We are using K12 as well here in Oregon. The oldest is now in 9th grade a year early because of it.

Originally Posted by ToFunToDie

I have been homeschooled for 10 years, and it is now my senior year(If i were to be in high school that is) And I realize that i have missed so much in life and I am so depressed about it. Being homeschooled kept me from doing a lot, and putting your child through it, might sound good. But its really not, with being homeschooled, you have no friends, no social life, nothing. And If i could change everything i would of went to school for the past 10 years. I had reasons why I couldn't go to school, I would have panic attacks at school and I couldn't stay in the class room, without my parents. Happened for years and years, Panic attacks at school, Anxiety at school, freaking out at school, just so much stuff and after 2 months of each year i would end up being homeschooled and i may have needed it, but i wish i would of forced myself to go and atleast had some kind of life, and friends. Now turning 18 in like a month i have about 2 friends, who i can call friends. This all could happen to your kid and if you homeschool them through highschool and everything, when they get to graduate, there will be a lot of stress/depression going on with them and they are gonna hate the fact that they didn't get to have what others have. I am going through it and it sucks, and i just wanted you parents to know that homeschooling isn't good for your kids, in the end will cause them to hurt.

It definitely depends on the individual. I was homeschooled all of the way through and didn't have a lot of friends outside of my church for a vast majority of my education. And I was as happy as a clam with it. If your parents weren't a part of any sort of social or homeschooling group, then yeah, you're pretty much screwed. The difference between public or private school and a home school is that in a public or private school, your social networking is already created for you. When you're homeschooled, you either create your own or take what you can get. Go to shows. That's what I did.