Being involved in things, making friendships, belonging to groups – these all require effort so if you don’t make the effort you will be lacking in socialization. If you make the effort (and if you’re privileged enough to live in an area where there are an abundance of choices) it’s very easy to have as much socializing, socialization, and friendships that you want.

I will say this too – social awkwardness and lack of socializing and friendships is not just a homeschooling issue. Yes, there are those, like the ones you’ve shared about, that people seem to focus on and therefore they think all homeschoolers are in danger of becoming like that, but I have known plenty of socially awkward people that were not homeschooled. There are just some strange people out there that live in their own little worlds – and some of them just happen to be homeschoolers.

I’m loving your blog by the way!! Found you through a Twitter friend.

You might find that there a lot more homeschoolers in your area that feel the same way. You might be able to start a local group.

I live in an area with an abundance of co-op (socialization) opportunities. If you had enough money, I think we discussed that already, you could have your kids involved in a day-long program almost every day of the week. I belong to one that meets on Fridays, which is the highlight of the week. There are enrichment classes all day long for pre-k through high school. There’s also plenty of free time to hang out, which is a big part of the day. Our co-op was started by a couple of moms who said, we need a place for the kids to get together regularly. My girls get a lot of interaction through Girl Scouts, and most of the kids I know are always on the go with community theater, ball games, band practice, etc.

Those that Cindy mentions, the deliberate recluses are the ones that homeschool detractors like to pull out and stereotype. I’ve known someone who falls in this category, and I feel real sorry for her because I think she has true blue emotional problems. I also know of a family that does homeschool conferences and writes books saying how kids don’t need anyone but their families to hang out with. They promote a lot of things which I believe are not biblical, but anyway.

Consider how the majority of kids have been raised throughout all history. A kid could actually wander around their town and talk to everyone; they didn’t have to be sheltered like they are now. Community was more important and I would argue that the social planners have been working for decades to make modern man more alienated from his world.
As William Torry Harris put it: (he was our country’s first central educational planner)
The great purpose of school can be realized better in dark, airless, ugly places…. It is to master the physical self, to transcend the beauty of nature. School should develop the power to withdraw from the external world.
–The Philosophy of Education (1906)
We now see some Christians taking this philosophy of the world without realizing it.
Through homeschooling, my daughter has more friends than she ever though of having in public school. The jr. high girls at our co-op are really tight and many slumber parties begin with our Friday co-ops.