In the past decade homeschooling, once a rare practice, has grown exponentially; currently well over a million kids are being homeschooled in the U.S. From kindergarten children to teenagers, kids are being educated in the home by parents who have access to an ever-growing collection of instructional materials, both printed and online.
But with the growth of this phenomenon come worries about the social skills of these young people. Some homeschooled teenagers are reporting difficulty in relating to their contemporaries, while others miss out on extracurricular activities like team sports, band and chorus activities, and other enrichment experiences.
Some parents have succeeded, either by persuasion or through the court system, in getting their children accepted into the extracurricular offerings of their local school, while retaining their right to homeschool.
Homeschooled kids, by nature of the at-home educational experience, spend much more time with one or both parents than kids who attend public school. While this can undoubtedly be a valuable experience, it may also present problems when it comes time for maturing teens to develop increasing independence from their parents. In this instance, carefully supervised summer camps or teen wilderness adventures, without parents, can serve as an important bridge to a outdoors.org/education/twa/index.cfm homeschooled teen�s sense of self separate from the family unit.
Homeschooling can be a wonderfully supportive experience for young people, and with some understanding of a child�s need for outside social connections and eventual self-actualization, opportunities can be provided that will minimize or eliminate the possible downside�a sense of isolation from the greater community.
Aldene Fredenburg is a freelance writer living in southwestern New Hampshire. She has written numerous articles for local and regional newspapers and for a number of Internet websites, including Tips and Topics.