Public School Attendance Not Needed for the Development of Social Skills...

My three year old grandson is proof of that! He has never attended a public or private school, and has never been taught by a "certified" teacher, yet he can  (and will)  carry on a conversation with anyone he meets - young or old, stranger or not.  He is so friendly and out-going that he makes quite an impression on everyone he comes in contact with.  Strangers, especially!  In grocery stores, he will speak to any and everyone that he passes.  If they pause to respond to him, my grandson will talk about whatever interests him at the moment, and then tell them that he will go to their house to visit them.  If he sees other young children, he is quick to become friendly with them.  An introvert he certainly is not!  

Recently, some distant relatives (whom my grandson had never before met) came to visit his great-granny.  My grandson was there, as well, and he did not hesitate to make himself known to these relatives.  It is probably correct to say that he soon became the center of attention, and had them all enthralled.  At one point, one of the visitors spoke up and said something to the effect of, "Boy!  What a big personality in such a little body!"  lol!

My grandson does have a socialization problem, though.   He is TOO social!

On the flip side, I've seen kids who've attended public school and graduated from public school that are terribly shy and introverted.  Going to public school certainly hadn't helped their social skills any.

Then there are the gangs, cliques, and bullies that are so prevalent in the public schools. Studies by the U.S. Justice Dept. and the Dept. of Education show that between 34% and 54% of children in our public schools are bullied in the classroom.  (101 Reasons to Homeschool , reason #13, by: Mary Pride.)  Do public school officials want to take credit for the "social skills" (or lack thereof) of those bullies?  No?  Why not?  Aren't those bullies attending the public schools? 

When I first began homeschooling my own 7th grade daughter in 1996, the only negative comment that school officials said to me was:  "What about socialization?"  They thought that my daughter would not be exposed to proper social skills if she was educated at home.  What?!!!!!!  I found their concerns laughable.  After all, the very reason I was bringing my daughter home was because of the (negative) social "skills" she was learning from her friends at public school and then practicing at home!   Needless to say, I have never regretted my decision to homeschool.

Homeschooling enables your child to "avoid the drama" in the public schools...

Recently, while my youngest son was undergoing training for a new job, he was asked by his supervisor where he attended high-school.  When my son replied that he'd been homeschooled, his supervisor said, "That's good.  You were able to avoid the drama (of public school)."

Outlaw or Good Guy? You decide...

Playing dress-up / make-believe is loads of fun...Especially when you visit Gatlinburg and Pigeon Forge, TN!    My grandson had a blast!  He didn't want to remove his costume after the photo shoot. lol!

The importance of Freedom of Speech...

"If freedom of speech is taken away then dumb and silent we may be led, like sheep to the slaughter."
  - George Washington, First President of the United States.

Update on my homeschooled nephew...

My nephew, end of grade K, is already reading and doing multiplication!  Wow!   Now,  how many Kindergarteners do you know of who can do that?  Double wow!!  Is he smart or what?  (Okay, I know I'm sounding like a cackling mother hen, but hey!  What can I say?  I'm proud of my nephew's accomplishments, and I'm proud of my baby sister for being brave enough to attempt homeschooling.  It's working!) Typically, reading doesn't begin to take root until well into First Grade, and multiplication isn't even begun until the second semester of Second Grade.  Congratulations on a job well done!  You've already come too far to turn back now!  Yaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay!

Homeschooling: A great tool for fighting against the possibility of future tyranny!

He who controls the schools, controls the culture...

"Let me control the textbooks and I will control the state."  - Adolph Hitler

"When an opponent declares, 'I will not come over to your side,'  I calmly say, 'Your child belongs to us already...What are you?  You will pass on.  Your descendants, however, now stand in the camp.  In a short time they will know nothing else but this new community.' "  - Adolph Hitler in a speech given on November 06, 1939.

"Flowers in My Garden" craft project...

This is such a cute art project (made from construction paper or card stock) that also visually depicts the height of each child at the age in which his/her photo was taken.  At the base of each flower is a patch of grass made out of construction paper or card stock.  The grass is taped to the baseboard along the wall  and each flower is taped to the wall above the grass.  The child is a beautiful flower "growing" up out of the grass.  I did not show the grass because on the grass below each flower is the name of the child, his/her age, and height in inches.  (Too much information to make public. lol!)

The first and second flowers show my two grandchildren.   The third flower shows their mother (my daughter) when she attended pre-school.  When she was small I taught pre-school classes at a local day care center.  I have kept her flower all of these years, never knowing that I would end up using it, as well as the flowers of  her children, to decorate my own homeschool classroom. 

Public School (Institutionalized) Education Wastes Time...

"Of a 6 hour school day, an average of 3 hours or less are spent on actual instructional time."

A report by Kennesaw State University (Georgia, USA) says that "50% of classroom time is lost due to misbehavior and being off task."

Read more about it here:

http://whyhomeschool.blogspot.com

Click on the link:  "A few of our best posts" ;  then scroll down.

Note:  Perhaps this is the reason that many public middle and high school kids are having 2 to 3 hours of homework several nights per week!  They don't get it done at school, obviously.