I have been looking at other blogs lately, and find it strange that people that are against homeschooling hang around just to argue against it.  Why?  What is really the point in a public school teacher hanging around to start a fight?  Does she think she'll change our minds?  Who knows? 

I wonder if those that are against homeschool really believe that, in general, everything is *hunky-dory* with the public schools.  Do they honestly think that the best *socialization* for a homeschooler comes from a class of 25 same-age peers, rather than the wide variety of ages that can be found in most homeschool co-ops, library story times, karate classes, etc?  I find that when I let my kids play more with kids, for longer periods of time (it *is* summer vacation, and my boys have spent a LOT of time with the neighborhood kids) I see more undesireable behavior come out of them.  There *is* a such thing as too much socializing.

My 12 year old neice attends a public middle school in a nice area.  This school district scores well on the state tests and it doesn't *seem* as though they have a lot of trouble in the schools, based on what I see on the local news and in the paper.  Funny thing, though, is that you don't always hear about the trouble from the news.  I could pull up link after link of abusive teachers, bullies, teachers cheating on standardized tests, etc.... but I won't.  Those are out there for everyone to read anyway.  I will, however, tell you about my own personal experiences.  My neice has asked me on several occasions to homeschool her.  I wish I could;  she has the sweetest nature about her, and I fear that she will be bullied as she continues through school, or pick up bad behaviors while trying to *fit in* with the *cool kids*.

I spoke with my mom on the phone today and she mentioned that my neice told her about a girl in her class that has had 6 abortions.  In middle school!  Middle school kids having s*x?  When you put so many kids together for so many hours a week, they get stupid.  Kids feed off of each other's attitudes and actions, and they go along with what they see around them.  See, if this girl has had 6 abortions, this means that there are boys in that school (11-14 yr olds, mostly) having s*x also.  And I highly doubt that this is the only girl *doing that* in the school.  So many kids with hormones going crazy locked together for so many hours is just begging for trouble.  Heck, when I was in high school I interrupted several different couples *doing that* in various places throughout the school, during school hours.  This is nothing new, but it does seem to be happening more often, and with younger kids.

A mom that I know through scouts and baseball has told me about her son and how he has been bullied for so long at school.  This poor child (going into middle school next year) has horrible anxiety because he has been so abused by the other students.  He has a hard time trusting new kids to actually be his friend because of his personal experiences in school.  The school officials have known about this and have done nothing.  What could they do?  They are required, by law, to educate EVERYONE, including bullies.  They say that the children being bullied need to learn how to *deal* with bullies.  In real life, outside of school, if someone is being abused by another person, they can get a restraining order and/or have the police take care of the matter.  In school?  The meek just have to deal with it, because bullies have rights too.  Messed up?  I think so.

How about academics?  Can people really believe that public schools provide a better education than the homeschooling parent?  How can a teacher, with a class of 20-25 students, really give each child the indiviual attention they need during the day?  The teacher has to gear her lesson to the average student, and then the advanced students are bored and the slower students can't keep up.  I got in trouble so often in school for passing notes and talking with my friends while waiting for other kids to finish their work.  The teachers didn't have time to come up with extra, more advanced work, so I got bored.  My oldest would be in the same position in a classroom environment, but here at home he can move at his own pace. 

Have you ever seen how homeschooled children are scoring higher on standardized tests?  People will argue that the homeschooling community only reports on the best scores, but check out the ACT scores.  They report on EVERYONE that tests, and homeschoolers score higher than average on that test also.   Doesn't the NEA (National Education Association) keep pushing for smaller class sizes?  Well, with homeschooling, you have that.  :-)  You can follow the lead of your son/daughter, and help them learn at their own pace.  How great is that?

The best part, though,  (in my opinion) about homeschooling is the relationships that you develop with your children.  School isn't  *the center of their world*, they don't get all of their advice from same-age peers;  they actually talk with their parents, and consider their siblings to be among their best friends.  I get to be there for all of those *aha!* moments;  when one child has struggled for so long to grasp a new concept and the FINALLY get it.  You can actually see the *lightbulb* light up over their head and it is the coolest feeling.  My children don't give the best of their day to a teacher and a class of kids that then send them home at the end of the day, tired and grouchy, needing some down time (and not getting it, due to the homework).  I enjoy being with my children;  I love helping them to grow into the amazing and wonderful people that they are becoming.  I love that when my kids have grown up and moved away from the house, I won't be left thinking, "Gee, I wish I had spent more time with them while they were little."  I will know that I have done everything I can to give them the best start in life.  Who doesn't want to be able to say that?

Why homeschool?  Well, why not?