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One must wonder whether or not people research before forming their opinions of home schoolers and socialization...which, in my not so humble opinion is a non-issue.

Are there no shy children, weirdos, children who do not interact well with strangers, children who do not interact well with their peers, and other children in public or private schools? We can safely assume, by way of the experience of having gone to school as children and teens ourselves (unless you were home schooled that is), that there are many children in public schools who fit those characteristics. Most children in school fall somewhere in between the characteristics in question and the popular crowd and this is close to how it is throughout the rest of society as well; you have extreme introverts and extreme extroverts but most of us fall in the middle.

When people comment on others being socially inept, what exactly does that mean? What if the child with social problems is kind, honest, loving, giving and caring....what is wrong with him/her and do you think they will never talk to anyone, ever? Keep in mind that many children like this were/are often emotionally terrorized their entire childhood by being called names like "Geek," "Nerd," "techy." What if the child with no social problems is arrogant, rude, dishonest, self-centered (and are often the types to name-call those who do not fit into their little clicks)...what exactly is so special about them? Does not character count for something when it comes to functioning socially in society?

The fact is...everyone is different; we are human beings, not robots. Whether one goes to school or is home schooled does not make a difference on their personalities or if they are introverted, extroverted, or somewhere in between. We have two children; our thirteen year-old son has been home educated since the end of his third grade year and our ten year-old daughter has never been to school. Both of our children have no problem interacting with their peers, younger children, teens, adults, or the elderly. When we go to stores, the bank, gas station...both (gasp) say, "Hello" to the employees and often they converse with them as well. When they meet children and/or people they do not know...they do not stand shaking and sweating in the corner with their hearts racing because they are *afraid* of not knowing how to engage in conversation or play with other children. It did not take being in a classroom all day with one teacher and 20+ peers to learn

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