Would it be a bad idea to homeschool your kids until Junior High?

I feel so torn. I went to public school until high school, then I did homeschooling. My husband was always homeschooled. There are some huge benefits to homeschooling...not bragging I swear but my husband and I are very intelligent and love to learn...by age 16 both of us knew how to balance a check book, how to file taxes, and all kinds of stuff like that that most teens aren't aware of because we had plenty of time for our parents to teach us. We focused more on academia than socializing so we scored fantastically on all of our tests and by the age of 18 we both were starting college and had married and I had a job as a CNA in MRDD and he was an Eagle Scout and working for a church (he wants to be a pastor) with plenty of job opportunities otherwise. However, neither of us had a lot of friends and we missed prom and special things like that, and both of us VERY badly feel we missed out. We wish we'd had the chance to make friends and such. On the other hand, we are both very respectful to our parents never tried drugs, drank, or got into any trouble. Whereas most kids in public school that I know are different. Heres the thing though I did go to elementary and junior high public schools and I loved having lots of friends and I looked forward to going to school, but on the other hand I never focused on school work it was all about friends and I almost got held back and I actually became a big bully when I fell in with the popular crowd and I was not a nice person.








So I was thinking anything wrong with homeschooling them throughout elementary school then sending them to public school? That way I can teach them when they're very young and impressionable then allow them to go experience school dances, first boyfriends/girlfriends, and all that stuff. I need to hear the pros and cons.





Also we are a very christian family, but also very alternative or lax in our beliefs (we believe in Christ and God and living a moral life, but we are supportive of gay marriage, we are anti-war, and we don't believe in the whole wives obey your husbands thing. We're very equal rights. And these things are VERY important to us and we fear public school might interfere with this (no, I don't mean allow our kids to think for themselves, we support that, we just dont want them succumbing to peer pressure).





ADvice?Would it be a bad idea to homeschool your kids until Junior High?
i would strongly disagree homeschooling them till junior high. now a days kids are maturing at a younger age than they did before. if your child isnt exposed to public school education they are missing out on the interactions with the other students and once you hit junior high you are pretty much on your own. In elementary peer pressure isnt a big issue and kids get along better. if u dont home school them up to junior high they will be able to make friends sooner that could last them throughout highschool.Would it be a bad idea to homeschool your kids until Junior High?
I have been in public elementary education for 17 years and this question is always able to stir up a passionate debate. I have always believed, as a parent, it is our responsibility to teach our children to make good decisions. As a junior high teacher, I have seen the benefits and disadvantages for all students. However, if we do our job as parents and teach our children to make good choices, the benefits far outweigh the disadvantages, I believe. Children need the socialization a school provides. Home schooled children who come to school for Art, PE and special events only DO NOT SOCIALIZE, they are most likely ostracized. As a mentor teacher, I have spent many days in kindergarten, and it is easy to find those students who went to preschool and those students who stayed home with mom. As a parent, we always think that is the best, but those ';stay at home'; students lack socialization skills, following procedures, schedules etc. It is the same for homeschoolers, no matter the age they are, but if you decide to homeschool, I think it is wise to introduce them to public education before high school.


I also have a friend in CA who homeschools all 4 of her children and she belongs to some homeschooling organization where about once a week they all take an educational fieldtrip together. (About 12 children in all) and I thought this may be a nice compromise. You might consider homeschooling for a few years, then let your children have input on the decision to continue.





By the way - when I taught 6th grade math, my students knew how to balance a checkbook - I taught them :)





Good Luck - and whatever you choose, your children are lucky that you care enough to worry about it.
I think you should let them go to school.





Let them go so they can learn to make decisions for themselves. If you raise them with good morals and teach them to make good choices then you won't have to worry about them 'succumbing to peer pressure.' Well there may be things that they will but that's all part of a learning process.
I feel that home schooling is not the best thing to do for a child, because it keeps them from meeting other children. However, if you felt you wanted to home school them, it's not a bad idea to let them meet people in Junior High. That way, they will get to meet kids before it gets too difficult and you'll be able to supervise their education.








Public Education is very good, and you can always help and teach them more than what is taught at school.