Every homeschooling family, regardless of special needs, has heard the critique that their children will be sheltered and not be able to socialize with others. There’s a big difference between a sheltered homeschooler vs. a socialized homeschooler and each has their place in parenting regardless of educational status.
We homeschool for a reason and those reasons are as unique as our special needs children. Just the nature of homeschooling means our kids will be somewhat sheltered in certain areas of life.
Sheltered from bullies, peer pressure, academics that are not on their developmental level, and so on. This is not necessarily a bad thing. It’s our job as parents to do what is best for our children. Even public school kids can be sheltered. The problem comes about when sheltering goes too far.
Some conservative Christian homeschool parents believe their children shouldn’t socialize with anyone outside of their church or other Christian families so they go to great lengths to prevent any interaction. Their kids only learn how to interact with other homeschoolers who think like them.
I know a homeschooling family that fits all the common stereotypes. They had 9 children, drove what Logan affectionately called “a church van”, all the girls wore dresses, the boys got a better education, etc. You know the type I’m talking about.
We had an amazing opportunity to attend School Of Music taught by a highly educated music director for FREE. Of course I sent my kids as I don’t know the first thing about music. This family attended the first class then not another one.
Come to find out, the parents didn’t know that local public school kids were invited as well. They didn’t want their godly children interacting with those heathen public schoolers. Their words not mine.
So what is our responsibility as homeschooling parents?
Are we to expose our children to the drugs and gangs and early dating scene at the local junior high “so our kids will FIT IN”, or are we to totally separate them from anyone outside our social circle, so that no one can ever taint our little darlings?
To both, I answer a firm NO!
We are to shelter them while they are young, and teach them about the world and life as they are able to absorb and understand it.
People who isolate their children DO create kids who are unable to socialize properly, and they are the people that others look at and say, “See, homeschoolers are nothing but a bunch of isolationist wackos!”
The key is to find the middle ground in sheltering them from things they aren’t developmentally ready for while exposing them to social skills activities with a variety of people and ages.
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