Homeschool People are WEIRD!!!

ok, so either you laughed out loud because you TOTALLY agree with the title, or you said unkind things about me in your head.  whatever the response, i encourage you to read on.

the ONLY reason i can SO boldly make a statement like that which is found in the title of this post, (and not be eaten up by A Beka or Bob Jones) is because i was home schooled (well for like 1 year, but my siblings were home schooled until junior high.  i came along and my mom couldn't find a school for me fast enough!)  AND... i am currently homeschooling.  why we home school is a WHOLE other post in itself.  but i can assure you has very little to do with peer pressure, guilt, fear, and hell.

i digress.

back to the topic....  we started attending home school PE at the YMCA b/c i thought it would be a good outlet for Katie and Julia.... AND selfishly, it meant i got to work out... ALONE! :)  i was SO highly amused at watching the home school families come and go, giggled at many of them, and squirmed at the interactions i saw.  there is a reason home school stereotypes exist.... they can be found at our YMCA between 1-2 pm on any monday or thursday. ;)

stereotypes:

1. home school people have a lot of kids.
2. home school people wear out-of-fashion hand me downs.
3. home school people are awkward.
4. home school people drive 15 passenger vans.
5. home school people have a hard time "fitting in" in society.
6. home school people don't raise their hand to talk.
7. they are radical "Jesus people" that shove their opinions and convictions on others.

these are just a few of the stereotypes that are out there.  yes, many people fall victim to the stereotypes.  HOWEVER, many of them do not. 90 percent of the kids in our church are home schooled.  that's a HIGH percentage.  it has given us the opportunity to see a plethora (that's a home school word) of home school kids interact in MANY different settings.

not surprisingly....
not everyone that home schools has a large family. 3 or 4 kids.  not 7-10 kids. eliminating stereotype #1

they are ALL very fashionable.  i am the least fashionable, and i went to the big, bad, traditional SCHOOL (that's a joke... laugh...)
eliminating stereotype #2

NON of them are awkward, and are MORE social then any group of kids i've ever meet.  they look me in eye when they speak to me, the initiate conversation, they are honestly interested in my answer, AND they call me Mrs. Littlejohn (that's a little weird, i prefer Sara).
eliminating #3 

only ONE family drives a 15 passenger van, but that's because they have to have room for all of their beach and ski gear. not because they have 14 kids :)
eliminating #4

i have seen these kids at the beach, at the store, at restaurants, bowling alleys, retreats, church, dance studios, ball fields, etc. the ONLY reason they stand out from the crowd is because they follow the rules, they don't swear or say unkind things, they encourage others, they are good sports, they say, "thank-you",  they include everyone, they are helpful and not hurtful!  i could go on and on (eliminating number 5).  i don't think these kids possess these characteristics b/c they are home schooled. i think they possess these characteristics b/c they have parents who are teaching them to live not for themselves, but for the glorification of their God.  those things can be taught regardless of where they Lord leads you to place your children in the educational realm.

as for #7.  i have talked to oodles and oodles ( a public school word) of moms dads about home schooling.  i have concluded for most of them (there are always those that tip the scales)  that they home school b/c they want a different (notice i didn't say higher) standard of education for their kids. they have seen what their options are and have chosen to home school. all of the people that i mimic my homeschooling after, that i respect, and that I LOVE; would NEVER question my intent or my heart if i decided to put my kids in BBPS (big, bad, public, school :) because it's about SO MUCH more than home school, public school, private school, Christian school.

i am proud to home school. i LOVE to home school. BUT it's NOT for everyone. we have been given the freedom to make decisions that our best for our family, and best for our individual kids.  no one has the right to place their convictions ABOUT THIS TOPIC on you.  i have cried, struggled, wrestled, pleaded, with the Lord about our decision to home school. it was not an easy decision, and it might not be for forever.  but for this season in our life, it has brought SUCH joy, peace, and moments that i KNOW i will treasure forever. so, for that reason i am grateful for what homeschooling has to offer. i don't think you are weird if you home school... i ALSO don't think you are weird if you DON'T home school!

happy schooling,
~s

~s