Do you believe that because one home schools their children that this makes them a better mother? I am a homeschooling mother of 8 years and I don’t think so. In fact I do not know any one that does. Yet there is this under current it seems in many groups with this feeling, this often unspoken feeling that maybe that Mom over there that schoolers her child a certain way is better. Why? Are the Mommy wars not hard enough?
I do not understand this feeling but I am on the homeschooling side. I can sometimes forget that others might feel this way and so while trying to encourage another homeschooling mother, reminding one of all the reasons she choose to home school, I could make another feel badly when that was not the intent at all.
This I worry happened today, a public schooling mother popped into a home school thread and voiced her wise opinion on a matter and twice down played herself because she is a public school mother. I felt bad she felt the need to do that. Her opinions on education are just as valid as any other. The point of a homeschooling thread though was because there are special situations the come up and it being not a common choice there is need for support in it as well.
How can I help make this better? How as a mother who strongly believes in the wonderful things about homeschooling and the many down falls of much of the public school system support other mothers in all their educational choices?
I can not say it simply enough it seems.
Just because I homeschool and you don’t does not mean I am a better mother than you are.
I do not believe it and I do not know anyone who does. Your parenting educational choices are just as important, have their own complications and need support too. They are though a bit different in some ways. While many public schooling mothers are planning the summer, many homeschooling mothers are finishing up our home school yearly paperwork and portfolios, planning summer, and planning school for next fall. The curriculum choices are enough to make any ones head spin I have to say. It is a lot of work but isn’t all mothering a lot of work? Is a mother of 8 a better mother than a mother of 1 because she has more work? Why must we compare? Why can’t we just support one another?
So to the mothers who read this, I don’t care how you school your children. They are yours and you know best. Please don’t think because I make a different choice that I think less of you.
So funny because it’s exact opposite here where we live. Most parents who send their kids to public schools really downgrade the parents who homeschool. We don’t homeschool but that’s because I have seen some of the kids who come out of homeschooled environments around here and I don’t want my kids to be like that. (Very sheltered, ignorant to the real world around them) But I have also seen some homeschooling parents go the extra mile to make sure their kids are socialized and have seen the “real world” beyond the walls of their home. If you are one of these homeschooling parents, I commend you! But if you are one of the parents that shelter their children in your home and don’t allow them to experience the joys of growing up, having friends, going places, seeing things…….then we would probably butt heads a little bit 🙂
I am not really sure I follow your logic. Your saying that you have seen homeschooled children who are very sheltered and ignorant of the world because of their parents so you would not homeschool your child. Your saying you parent by sheltering your children and not teaching them about the real world so you use school to do that for you? I dare say I know many more homeschoolers than you do and the unsocialized homeschooler is a stereo type quickly disappearing as more people hold off their own judgement to get to know such children. Maybe so many in the area seem a certain way because so many in the area push the stereo type and no one takes the time to really see the children. I know very few homeschoolers that “home” school in fact my homeschoolers are out in the world far more than most public schoolers who are trapped in the same building for 8 hours a day more days the year than not. So many public schooled children do not know how to be social with children not in their own grade never mind how to interact with other adults on a real level and most don’t give a second look at the elderly and those younger than themselves. Homeschoolers I have found have great skills in communicating with people of all ages not just their own. Of course not all public schooled children are so limited but it is not hard to see why so many are limited in social skills with others outside their age peer group.
There are so many reasons to home school. I went back and forth on if I wanted to or not (and Kimmy, you are the reason I wanted to, because of your example). I home schooled my oldest for a year, then agreed to let him try public school, then pulled him out over halfway through the year due to the school allowing, even encouraging the bullying of a 7 yr old autistic child (mine). Honestly I don’t give a darn about my kid being socialized with the social misfits of our world. He doesn’t need to learn to curse and hate. I’d rather him be sheltered than hateful. And as his parent, that is my right to make that choice. I love the post, Kimmy. 🙂