Homeschooling - Lessons Learned

Good Morning, folks!  Well, it is technically morning here in sunny San Diego, California.

So.  My name is Cindy, and I am a homeschooling parent of one child. 

Before I get into my background and why we homeschool, I thought that I would first talk about things that I've learned about homeschooling that I did not find in a book. 

• Homeschooling is a job, and you have to treat it as such.  It will be something extra you have to do on top of housekeeping, child-minding, and cooking (or writing, if you write fiction like I do).  It can be taxing, even when it is rewarding.  Be sure to give yourself a break when you need to. 
• There are A LOT of opponents of homeschooling out there.  That might include your spouse, your parents, you friends, your aunt Melba who didn't care about your own education when you went to school, and even strangers.  Make sure you have a good "home team," meaning your spouse and your children. 
• You will constantly need to defend your homeschooling, even when your child is soaring academically speaking. 
• The big "S" - socialization.  You will have to get your kid outside of the house and around other kids, so that they don't forget that there are other kids out there.  But don't forget about the whole nature versus nurture thing, either.  If your child is outgoing, they will talk to anyone be it in school, or at the grocery store.  If they are shy by nature, they will be shy at school, or at a playgroup too. 
• Co-op groups are wonderful things to be a part of.  Not only will your child socialize with other kids, you will get the opportunity to talk to other parents about homeschooling.  Other local parents are great sources of information of what kind of activities can be done in your city.
• Homeschooling laws differ from state to state.  If you are part of a family that frequently moves, you might want to review the homeschooling laws for the states you're considering moving to. 
• It might be hard to manage school-aged children with babies and toddlers, so you'll want to get a good schedule down for that.  But do not be discouraged; hundreds of other parents do it, too. 
• If you've been teaching your toddlers about shapes, colors, numbers and other things, you've been homeschooling already. 

So, this is all I have (for now) as far as the unknowns I've discovered in my two plus years of homeschooling. 

Cindy