For those of you who don’t know this already I have something quite traumatic to admit to you. For my entire life I have been… *dramatic intake of breath*… homeschooled! Isn’t that just horrible?!?! (and for those of you who don’t know me, I’m being sarcastic… there will be a lot of that going on in this blog).
Attention fellow homeschoolers: didn’t you know that we are apparently the most socially awkward people on the planet? Yeah, it was news to me too! I mean we can’t possibly have friends or be involved in extracurricular activities, because we’re homeschooled. We can’t possibly have life, right? WRONG! Wrong, wrong, wrong on so many different levels!
Last night my driving instructor hit me with this question: “So, Kathryn, if you’re homeschooled how do you meet people?” If I have ever felt the need for physical violence it was at that moment. I seriously wanted to punch the guy! How rude do people get these days?!?! My response should’ve been something like: “Well sir, I don’t really have any friends. I’m not even socializing with the other kids in this class, and having a blast with them. No, I just try to keep my head down and not engage with other people. I act all moody and brooding so that people won’t try to approach me.” I could have even said something along the lines of this: “Being homeschooled doesn’t mean I live under a rock.”
However, I’m too sweet and well-mannered =) to talk back to my elders that way. And I didn’t actually come up with those responses until it was to late. Oh, well! Needless to say I was really irritated, so I decided to write this blog to vent a little bit. Or a lot =)
Let me set a few things straight for the benefit of people who are NOT homeschooled. Number One: NEVER, and yes, I mean NEVER assume that because a person is homeschooled they don’t have any friends or even a life. I have one hundred and ninety-three friends on face book. And that isn’t even all of my friends! Imagine that, a hundred and ninety-three people that at one point or another in my life I’ve actually had to meet and talk to. WOW! Isn’t that just unbelievable?!?!
And you think homeschoolers don’t have lives? Get a clue! How do you THINK we meet people? WE HAVE LIVES! I do school, I have a job, and I hang out with friends just like any other “normal” highschooler.
Number two: There are people out there who think that homeschoolers are not smart. Well, those people are also the dummies who think that homeschoolers are socially awkward. I ask you, do you think THOSE people are smart? Research shows that the average homeschooler is smarter than the average public schooler. Can we deny what years of research prove? Homeschoolers are just as smart, and some are even smarter, than everyone else.
Number three: We also have people who think that homeschoolers are nerds. They think we do school all day, every day, and all through the summer. And that when we have a spare moment in the day we do MORE school, so as to be overachievers. This is just not true in all cases. Yes, we homeschoolers possess a little thing called self-discipline, but this should not be confused with overachievement. We set a goal and we stick to it. If we decide we want to graduate early, those with self-discipline will graduate early. And I say good for them! But this still does not make them or even all homeschoolers nerdy. And if you’re a homeschooler like me, honestly you just count down the days until summer break. =)
Number four: A lot of homeschoolers, but not all, come from fairly large families. And the stereotype that gets thrown around here a lot of times is that all of the siblings are exactly alike. From experience I can say that this definitely is not true! I come from a family of eight kids. None of us are exactly the same. In fact a lot of times we don’t even share the same opinions about things. I know this seems crazy to believe, but we are not clones! We are all unique. And as much as I love all of my siblings, I thank the good Lord above that I am not exactly like any one of my siblings. =)
Number Five: This is probably my final one, but it is defiantly one of the most important ones. The title “homeschooler” has turned into a label or a stereotype. I say this because just as not all siblings are the same, not all homeschoolers are the same either. There are shy homeschoolers out there, but there are also shy public schoolers out there too. And again NOT all homeschoolers are shy… I know I’m certainly not! =) I think sometimes I should be a little more shy perhaps, but shy just really doesn’t fit my personality. =)
There are also homeschoolers out there who do school are year round, but not all of them do. There are nerdy, self disciplined, and overachieving homeschoolers out there, but again there are public schoolers like this too… I know I can think of at least three off the top of my head. And not all homeschoolers are like this either.
So, to sum this all up let me say this for your benefit. The next time you meet a homeschooler, think long and hard before you say anything stupid. Because from experience I know that hearing the question, “Do you have any friends?” or “How do you meet people?”, can be very irritating and hurtful. And who knows, you might meet a homeschooler who is not quite as sweet and well mannered as me, who might choose to go ahead and sock you in the nose. But hey, do what you like, it’s only your nose at stake. And honestly how would you like it if somebody asked you one of those questions? I betcha you’d think it was rude. Newsflash: IT IS!!!
Respect homeschoolers! Don’t go labeling or stereotyping them! Might I just say: Being homeschooled is where it’s at! =)
Also, you have no idea how badly I want to print this off and give it to my driving instructor tonight, but I just don’t have the heart to be mean and disrespectful like that. So, I guess I’ll just keep this between ya’ll and me. =)
Here's a lil video that captures my sentiments exactly!
Great, funny, post Kate! You should write more, you are good at it.
ReplyDelete:-)