Here’s the thing.  The homeschooling community likes to roll their eyes at those who voice socialization as the main problem with homeschooling.

“I would except I worry about socialization.”

“So she has swimming?  Oh, good, so she gets socialization.”

“Don’t you worry about socialization?”

For the most part, I don’t worry about it at all.  Of course, I wish she had little girl best friends.  She loves when she can play with her girls from EA.  But she is busy with life and doing her own thing.  She plays nicely {for the most part} with her brother and sister.

It seems that I hear these socialization concerns when we are out playing.  At the playground.  At the gym free play time.  At swimming.  At the art studio.  We are out.  Doing things.  With people.  Last time I checked, that was socialization.  Right?

This is on my mind today because I was chatting with a mom of one today as the kids played at the gym.  She has a nearly 2 year old.  My girls went right up to her and her baby to see if they would like to play.  But in our conversation she thought she could get her daughter in a one day a week preschool program next fall.  For the socialization.  And it struck me that she would not have used that particular word if she didn’t know we homeschooled.  Because you can say that you want your kids to play with other little babies, or you want free time, or that it seems like they could use some time with other people than you, to get out of the house.  But she used “socialization” which is such a clinical word that seems to only be used in conjunction with homeschoolers.

On a grateful note:  Bryce is healthy again.  Praise the ever loving Zeus and his children!