Average rating:
One of the biggest concerns of home school families all over is that their children aren't getting the same social interaction as their peers who are in school. This also happens to be one of the largest arguments against homeschooling children as well. However, there are several things you can do to help your student develop normal and healthy social skills.
Step 1:

Join a home school co-op. Most large cities and even some smaller cities have home school co-ops. These are groups that meet together for certain activities. Some do shared classes so that certain skills can be taught by different teachers. Others do fun activities or field trips. Getting involved in a group such as this can help your home school student interact with other home school students. If you live in a very small city that doesn't have one, considering joining one that is farther away and driving to be a part of it once or twice a month.

Step 2:

Get involved in extracurricular activities. Depending on your home school student's skills and interests, there are a number of homeschool opportunities that can be great extracurricular options. You can join a special center with classes--some examples are a YMCA, gymnastics, martial arts, dance, or craft classes. These can get your student involved learning things that interest him, all while interacting with other people in his age bracket. There are also many activities available such as sports, debate, and forensics (speech competitions) that are available for home school students through home school groups and even the public school in many locations.

Step 3:

Spend time with others their age. Whether you join a parenting group that gets together or one that babysits for each other so mom and dad can have a date night, getting together with kids is a good thing. You can join a group, hang out at the park and let your kids meet other kids, or even let them play in the neighborhood. All of these things give your children the chance to learn social skills by practicing them.

Step 4:

Social etiquette classes and practice. Because many students don't know social etiquette in all of its forms, it might be wise to do a social etiquette class. This class can go through etiquette books and talk about how one should act in different social situations. It is wise to take what you have learned and do fun etiquette field trips.

The best way to find yourself with a well adapted and social student is to place your child into social situations where he can learn. You can let your children play with the neighbors, participate in groups, and even hang out at the park as great opportunities for social interaction. It is also a good idea to teach them what they need to know to be well behaved and give them a chance to practice it!

Comments

You are right, the social skills development concern is the major argument of opponents of home-schooling.

Sadaf Farooqi's picture
By Sadaf Farooqi 15 weeks 4 days

    Good suggestions! I wish more homeschooling families would follow them. I work with leading classes for a local homeschool group, and it's always a pleasure to work with the students. They have been getting together for classes and other enrichment activities nearly all of their lives, and it really shows-they have great social skills.

    By Sandy Fleming 9 weeks 6 days