Socializing is what you make of it. I view socializing my homeschooled children as another choice that I get to make as a parent regarding what sort of influences will be aloud in my children’s lives. With each year, there are different concerns about the “S” word in a homeschooled parents mind. Are we getting too much or too little? Should we have none at all outside our safe circle of friends? Are our children mature enough to handle the outside world’s influence?
Toddler Socialization
For instance, toddlers need watched a lot as they are experiencing the world because they don’t always know what is right and wrong. They are in a phase of training in the art of right vs. wrong. The picture above is of two brothers. This is one way of socializing a toddler with a proper role model. One that is training and one that has already been groomed. And, they live under the same roof. I know this, because it is my oldest and youngest son. I love being privy to these moments of nurturing and love between siblings.
One-on-One Time With Another Family
Some of our best memories of homeschooling are from when we spend time learning together with another family. The dynamics of older children and younger children helping each other and getting to have fun together is a unique way to socialize.
Same-aged children don’t always have to be the priority of social interaction. I’ve observed that children that spend time with only their ages, don’t want to be around younger children. Often times, their younger siblings at home get left out too. How sad this is.
This above picture is of a day when our family and another family, with a total of 10 kids, spent the day doing school together. The older children were assigned a younger sibling (of the other family) to partner with and help. Mine asked if we could do school like this every day, they enjoyed it so much.
The Pre-teen and Teenager Years
What is this I see? It’s 2 homeschooling families with pre-teens and teenagers. Guess who’s around? 2 moms.
The influences that persuade teens are everywhere. Shouldn’t we choose wisely whom we allow our teens to hang around? Also, we shouldn’t back away and hope that we did a good job raising them as kids and hope for the best during the teen years.
I want to be more involved then before. There are a lot of decisions, and a whole new world opening in the eyes of our teens. They are seeing new things for the first time. I’m not walking away during this time. Nor, do I believe my teen wants me to.
Let’s set the record straight on the “S” word. It’s a natural thing for homeschooling families to do. And, homeschoolers do it well. Don’t we?
Written by Brenda, a mother to five well-socialized children. She blogs at http://www.thetiethatbindsus.blogspot.com about her lifestyle as a homeschool mom. She is the founder of Our Lifestyle of Learning, an online support group.
