homeschooling parents

Getting Together With Other Homeschooling Parents

Homeschooling can have many benefits for your child. It allows for specific teaching styles to be implemented that suit your child’s particular needs, as well as creating a learning environment that your child works best in. Homeschooling also has economic benefits as well, if you consider the costs of a private school education.

One of the drawbacks of homeschooling, however, is the concern that your child is not surrounded by peers in the same way that he or she would be in a public school system.  This used to be considered a severe drawback.   However, with all the things going on…masks, the threat of jabs, CRT, and more, the traditional concerns no longer matter.  Plus, with masks on, the children aren’t communicating normally with peers anyway.

Some homeschool communities are set up where part of the education is done at home, and part is done in community.  By meeting on a regular basis with other homeschooling parents, you do a service to both you and your child. You will be able to exchange ideas and teaching techniques with other parents. Most importantly, though, you child will get a chance to interact with some of his or her peers. Children at a young age can be very impressionable and concerned with being different. All every child usually wants to do is fit in.

Groups that work together can do group activities such as a field trip.  Again, during this season, that can be challenging depending on your geographical location, but with creativity, a home school group can figure things out.  It might be time to take a field trip to a local farm rather than a public place.

Another good idea is to suggest a group project to be conducted with another family. If another parent is also teaching a biology unit, for example, you could suggest a that the children work on planting a garden together on your property. When studying zoology, a trip to the zoo would be enjoyable and educational for both you and your children when conducted with another family.

By keeping in regular touch with other homeschooling parents you will do a service for your child’s education and social development. By exchanging ideas with other homeschooling parents you can learn new teaching strategies, and at the same time your will be teaching your children that they are not alone, and not at all strange.

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