Parenting

I’m in a semi-rural area so your experience may be different if you’re in a more urban or suburban area.

Yes, but this is the part that takes effort and some acceptance that sometimes it’s a different approach. Video chat and gaming can be social. My wife also is active in a couple different homeschool groups in the area that get together. Because they have more flexibility, they go to museums, festivals, park, and other learning or social building activities about every other week. We engage with some of the neighbors and their kids too.

The community groups are vastly different too. It’s trial and error to find the right group. You have to make an effort to be active at places and events where the kiddos can engage.

Depending on where you are and what programs are available, you might be able to participate in the extracurricular programs at your local school.

The other thing we encountered when engaging with the non-homeschooled kids is that our kid typically interacts better with adults, which in turn means they’ll be drawn to older kids. This can have its own challenges. Good and bad…. This is just our experience.

It has worked well for us and I wouldn’t change it for the world. I’ve had the opportunity to spend more time with my family than most. I consider myself very lucky.