4 ms·

I used to work at a YMCA, and I taught PE for local homeschool kids. They would come every-other Thursday or something, and we did swimming, rock climbing, badm

by mod 4y ago

I used to work at a YMCA, and I taught PE for local homeschool kids. They would come every-other Thursday or something, and we did swimming, rock climbing, badminton, and a bunch of other stuff. That's a start, but I'll say that homeschool kids are a bit off, socially. It's not always a bad thing, but it's noticeable. And, a few don't have that problem--I think it's the kids with a lot of interaction, like on sports teams etc. Honestly, a lot of the weirdness of those kids was often that they just seemed very grown up. They interacted a LOT more in 1-on-1 conversations with adults than most kids do. Nearly all of them seemed smart for their age. Scouts, karate, MTG clubs are some ideas. Honestly, gaming? In our lives I'm sure a lot of social activity will move to some virtual spaces, maybe VR etc. Anyway, just some thoughts. Good luck!

pronlover723 4y ago
> I'll say that homeschool kids are a bit off, socially. Nice anecdote. My experience is the exact opposite. The ~20 home schooled kids I know are the most socially adept kids I've ever met. They aren't shy. They hold nice conversations. They actually like talking to a mix of people.
- nomdep 4y ago
  > They aren't shy. They hold nice conversations So they do seem very grown up
  - internet_user 4y ago
    seem or are?
- 1123581321 4y ago
  Social adeptness stands out too, though. “Socially adjusted” means behaving like someone who spent twelve years in a public institution. No more or less. I think highly of the homeschooled kids I’ve known, for the record.
- mod 4y ago
  I think they're the most socially adept kids when speaking with adults, and the most socially inept when hanging with other kids, particularly medium-to-large groups. On average. I knew plenty of them who didn't fit the mold.
- noodlesUK 4y ago
  I'll echo some of the other posters here in saying that homeschooled kids are usually shockingly good at holding conversations with adults for their age. Not being in an institutional environment where you only really talk to schoolteachers means they get a lot more practice having normal conversations with adults. That was a benefit for me in my later teenage years for sure as I transitioned into the grown-up world.
tleilaxu 4y ago
Homeschooled here, and I fully agree with all the above. Described me to a tee.
deleted 4y ago
[deleted]
8mHMCkRHnyBi4DH 4y ago
> They interacted a LOT more in 1-on-1 conversations with adults than most kids do. That's not really a surprising result, is it? Most kids spend all day at school being told not to talk unless called on; plenty even spend most of their day at home like that (at least with the adults in their lives, parents "I'm too busy" and such)... > Scouts, karate, MTG clubs are some ideas Yeah, there were definitely a lot of kids in cub and boy scouts who were home schooled when I was growing up. For the religious folks, church and church events had an outsize proportion of homeschool kids as well (I suspect cause and effect goes both ways there). It's likely the homeschool community in your area also coordinates social events (even if it's just going to a park).
- mod 4y ago
  No, not surprising at all. In my time at the YMCA (in non-homeschool areas), I often found that new kids were not used to talking with adults, like me--their "group leader." At home, mostly they ate dinner and went to bed. At school, you just don't get one-on-one time, especially just to chat about yourself or off-curriculum topics.

by mod 4y ago

pronlover723 4y ago

> I'll say that homeschool kids are a bit off, socially. Nice anecdote. My experience is the exact opposite. The ~20 home schooled kids I know are the most socially adept kids I've ever met. They aren't shy. They hold nice conversations. They actually like talking to a mix of people.

nomdep 4y ago
> They aren't shy. They hold nice conversations So they do seem very grown up
- internet_user 4y ago
  seem or are?
1123581321 4y ago
Social adeptness stands out too, though. “Socially adjusted” means behaving like someone who spent twelve years in a public institution. No more or less. I think highly of the homeschooled kids I’ve known, for the record.
mod 4y ago
I think they're the most socially adept kids when speaking with adults, and the most socially inept when hanging with other kids, particularly medium-to-large groups. On average. I knew plenty of them who didn't fit the mold.
noodlesUK 4y ago
I'll echo some of the other posters here in saying that homeschooled kids are usually shockingly good at holding conversations with adults for their age. Not being in an institutional environment where you only really talk to schoolteachers means they get a lot more practice having normal conversations with adults. That was a benefit for me in my later teenage years for sure as I transitioned into the grown-up world.

tleilaxu 4y ago

Homeschooled here, and I fully agree with all the above. Described me to a tee.

deleted 4y ago

[deleted]

8mHMCkRHnyBi4DH 4y ago

> They interacted a LOT more in 1-on-1 conversations with adults than most kids do. That's not really a surprising result, is it? Most kids spend all day at school being told not to talk unless called on; plenty even spend most of their day at home like that (at least with the adults in their lives, parents "I'm too busy" and such)... > Scouts, karate, MTG clubs are some ideas Yeah, there were definitely a lot of kids in cub and boy scouts who were home schooled when I was growing up. For the religious folks, church and church events had an outsize proportion of homeschool kids as well (I suspect cause and effect goes both ways there). It's likely the homeschool community in your area also coordinates social events (even if it's just going to a park).

mod 4y ago
No, not surprising at all. In my time at the YMCA (in non-homeschool areas), I often found that new kids were not used to talking with adults, like me--their "group leader." At home, mostly they ate dinner and went to bed. At school, you just don't get one-on-one time, especially just to chat about yourself or off-curriculum topics.