What about socialization?

"In a formal socialization, no one individual can stand without the other to rely on, regardless of the situation."

― TOOTS888

Children socialize in every aspect of life, it is not isolated to school interactions with same-age children. They go shopping with parents and interact with the people in the community. When homeschoolers go to church or family events, they socialize with the people and children there. They have friends that they chat with via age-appropriate social apps.

Homeschoolers have health appointments, field trips, and community events that they regularly attend as do publicly educated students. The library is a great place to get learning in and learn to socialize appropriately in a quiet setting. The parks are generally open to families during school hours, and some families get together weekly for family fun and interaction. There are so many opportunities for home educated students to interact with one another that the question should be, how does one pick the interactions that work best for their children?

It is the opinion of this writer that sitting children in a classroom with same-age peers day in and day out might actually handicap their social development more than learning at home. Within the community, if that is the only social interaction, they get regularly. By learning to interact with members of various age groups, homeschooled children can develop intergenerational skills adjacent to interpersonal skills. I know home educated students that have better social skills than most of the adults I know.

Some feel that socializing is something we do with animals and not people. People interact with our environments very differently than animals do. We do not mark our territory by peeing on or around our friends, although I wouldn't put it past some of the individuals I have come across throughout my life.

Tell me what your kind and respectful opinions are in the comments. If you would like to elaborate on the subject, please do. Be careful though, I may quote you! 😉