Page 21 - Tracy Anderson Magazine - Fall 2021

state’s high school requirements for graduation from its de- of socialization—somehow because they weren’t on the stu-
partment of education’s website. If college is part of your dent council or didn’t get to go to the senior prom, they
plan, contact your local high school or university admissions lack the ability to interact properly with others. Once again,
office for the college preparatory requirements and incor- nothing could be further from the truth.
porate these courses into your child’s course of study for the
next four years. You could argue that homeschool students have more
opportunities to socialize than their public school peers.
Homeschool educational publishers provide excellent in- Homeschool students learn much more in far less time be-
struction in advanced math and science courses, supple- cause their time isn’t consumed with things like home room
mented with DVDs and online components. You don’t have announcements, study halls, recess, assemblies, fire drills,
to be an expert: If your child has a question you can’t answer, and so on. This leaves them freer during the day to socialize
consider hiring a tutor as needed or taking these courses in out in the community with adults and everyone else. Home-
a co-op environment. Online correspondence courses with school co-ops provide a great opportunity for students to in-
an instructor or teacher’s aide can also work for these sub- teract with children their age. Joining sports teams through
jects as well as foreign languages. To save money, consider the community recreation board and being enrolled in local
using popular and successful audio language programs like classes like dance, gymnastics, or tae kwon do also provide
Rosetta Stone or Pimsleur. Many curriculums and online ad- endless opportunities for socialization.
vanced placement (AP) courses also allow students to earn
college credits while studying at home. Some people, like education author Joe Kelly, say that home-
schooled students are really better socialized and behaved
Along the way, keep very good records of the courses your because they’re not exposed to negative influences and
child has taken, grades received, course credits earned, and an environment that parents cannot control. “I know that
calculated GPA. This information makes up your child’s sounds counterintuitive because they’re not around dozens
high school transcript and will be submitted to colleges for or hundreds of other kids every day, but I would argue that’s CHILD
admission. All colleges and universities in the U.S. must ac- why they’re better socialized,” Kelly says. “The socialization
cept diplomas and transcripts from homeschooled students thing is really a nonissue for most homeschoolers. They’re
and treat them with the same credibility as those from the getting a lot of it.” 9
public system. (There are lots of great templates online and INTERRUP TED
within curriculum programs, so be sure your child’s looks Shaping the Future
professional.) Some colleges have personnel who deal exclu-
sively with homeschool applications, so this is nothing new Education is one of the primary responsibilities of raising Why the rush to early academic education can hurt children and learning.
for them. In some states, like Ohio, the superintendent of a child. How we choose to educate our children will shape
the local school district can provide a letter of certification the world we will all live in. It’s clear that homeschool is an
to go along with the homeschool diploma, but this is not excellent way for parents to educate their children in a more
necessary for college or employment of any kind. holistic and personal way that will benefit them well into
adulthood. When it comes to how your child is educated,
As for paying for college, a 1998 amendment to the Higher you have far more power than you think you do and you’re
Education Act made all federal financial aid available to smarter than you think you are.
students who “complete a secondary education in a home
school setting.” It also stated that “college admissions In the meantime, consider these excellent resources for
should be determined based on the academic ability of a homeschool startup information, research studies, under-
student and not the accreditation status of the school in standing your legal rights, curriculum choices and reviews,
which he or she received secondary education” and that locations of support groups, co-op connections, and more:
homeschools “self-certify” their own diplomas. Assuming
other criteria are met, homeschool students are also eligi- Home School Legal Defense Association (hslda.org)
ble for all scholarships. The Homeschool Mom (thehomeschoolmom.com)
Successful Homeschooling (successfulhomeschooling.com) ■
Successful Socialization
9. The Huffington Post
Because detractors of homeschooling can’t attack it on the
grounds that it provides a lesser education than the public
system, they always say the children suffer because of a lack Pexels, Cottonbro

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