Homeschooler thinking about going to school????

Question

I've been homeschooled since I was in kindergarden (I'm a Junior now) and I've never set foot in a real school, except to take two math courses at a local community college. I live in a small town were there is not many people and there is not much to do for teens in the way of fun. For the last year I've become bored w/ homeschooling and the lack of social opportunites that my town has to offer and was thinking about going to a "Real" local High school for my senior year. I was wondering if there were any homeschoolers that tried high school and could give me -Honest-views on their time there? Also did you do anything to perpare yourself academically to enter school? Also what did think of the social aspect? Did you stay in school or did you go back to being homeschooled? Do you think going to a "Real" high school would be a good choice after so many years of at homeschooling? Please be as clear as you can and answer all questions, Thanks! Looking forward to what you have to say!

Answer 1

ive gone to school from K- 6 ive been home schooled from 7-10 i soo like home schooled better it hard to swich back and forth. my friend was home schooled and 1 year she went to real school..............she lasted 3 months. dont swich.....

Answer 2

Hey! I am a homeschooled kid in a way too! I have never been in the public school system, thank God (no offense anyone). The system where I live is terrible! I also faced a similar issue to yours a while back. I am currently in 9th grade, and I switched from regular homeschooling to another solution December of '06. Have you ever heard of K12? It is a public school in the home, online. Here is the website http://www.k12.com/. I attend the Arizona Virtual Academy which is AZ funded K12. K12 is a highschool is 14 states currently and growing in many ways. It is also availble in every US state, parts of Africa, Canada, and Mexico - however those are not publicaly funded.

The beauty of this school is that it is in the home, on your own scheadule for the most part, but it is a public school with soooo many ways of social interaction. I am always talking to one friend or another, and I am extreamly happy with my choice to do K12/AZVA. It really gave me the best of both worlds, the social interaction with instruction from teachers, but the ability to stay home away from the crazies at the PS here.

Hope this helps! IM me at [e-mail] if you have any questions!

Answer 3

I had been homeschooled since kindergarten too, until 9th grade, I decided to try public school.  Most of my friends had always gone to public school or at least set foot in one, unlike me.  When school first started, it wasn't bad, but after just a few days, I found I liked homeschooling much better.  I couldn't see it, but school was rapidly changing me into a different person.  When you are in public school, you have to completely build your life around it, but when you are homeschooled you are free to have your own schedule and go at your own pace.  So, after one semester, I decided to homecshool again.  I still get to see my friends, and now with the computer and the cell phone, talk to them often.  I'm very satisfied with my choice...but everyone has a different opinion.

Oh, and as far as the academics in public school go...it was normally easier but more time consuming than in homeschooling.  Hope my comments will help in your decision!

Answer 4

To be honest, I did not care for my high school. I dated guys from different schools or from colleges. My friends were all older than me and graduated before me. I liked the dresses for the dances, but hated the music at the dances. Why get dressed up to dance to bad music? It was disappointing. I'd rather have great music and jeans and sneakers. I had one study group that was always a blast and a boyfriend who deserves an honorable mention, but other than that, I'd have preferred to skip it.

  There were fights, back biting harpies, rich kids with attitudes and burnt out teachers who felt like they worked in a zoo, which was pretty close to the truth. I was sexually harassed on the bus regularly and badly beaten once in middle school. A g*y male friend of mine was jumped by the football team and beaten so badly his jaw was wired shut. He dropped out for his own safety. Until he dropped out, he had been a straight "A" student. IV drug use was catching on by my junior year. (Yes, it was the fashion of the hour, heroin. Pot was so last week.) Nearly everyone was sexually active, but not all were mature enough to be having responsible s*x. I know at least two girls who got abortions before they were 18. My best buddy from church ran off with a 42 year old drama instructor at the age of 17 and was miserable for the next ten years. She finally divorced and remarried. I do not keep in regular contact with anyone I went to school with. A few times a year I get a call or an email. People move on from high school and make new friends. Besides, none of my friends stayed in the town we grew up in. People who say they have life long friends from high school are in a small minority.

    I went to school in a fairly affluent county in rural KY. I did not grow up on the mean streets, but in the burbs. Take that into account.

  I loved college, but high school was so...high school. That was my experience. If you really feel the need, you are a strong student and your parents approve, you should check it out. Your experience might be much different. Even if it isn't, you may feel the time was well spent seeing the sites.

Answer 5

My daughter tried public school after homeschooling a number of years.  She did not like the lack of autonomy in regular school.  At home she had more control over her day, what she studied, how she approached her work, etc.  But she did like the additional social contacts.

Answer 6

My son is 7th grade and just started back to public school. He is considering going into the Air Force so we went and spoke to a recruiter. While homeschoolers join the military all the time, the military is harder on homeschool diplomas than public school. Kinda sad as some homeschoolers are more challenged but whatever. So, upon discussing this with him and his father we put him back in school. He hates it! He says he has 8 1/2 hour classes but has to sit in school for 7 hours. He can finish his work at home in a few hours but in school you are forced to work when and how you are told. He really enjoys homeschooling but on the other end.... socialization at school can be fun. He is involved with many community things; sports, church, plays drums, and much more but being in school with friends all day can be fun. The only problem is he's not challenged enough and is very bored. He was doing 8th grade work and is now doing what he's already done.

SOOOOOOO, it's something to think about.

Answer 7

Hello, I am a home school mom but believe I can answer for my daughter who takes classes at the public school and is still home schooled. We are allowed to do that in our state.

She does like going to school in some ways. It pretty much became a necessity for me because I was overwhelmed with trying to teach her Spanish and she wanted to take a JR ROTC class. So she takes those classes plus an extra "English" class at the school and she is at home with me the rest of the time.

She thinks there is WAY to much "drama" there and most of her true friends are still people she knew before she set foot in that door of the school. Some of them are home schooled and some of them are in various public schools. She doesn't see them everyday.  She is well liked and has several "acquaintances" but is careful who she calls a friend. She has risen in the ranks in her leadership class (JR ROTC) quickly. I get compliments from the teachers about how respectful she is to everyone. The work, like someone else said, is easier for the most part but tedious and boring sometimes.

Hope that helps!

edit: I don't agree about the whole " go to school to learn social skills" line of garbage. You learn social skills in the real world, not in the subculture of Public School. We use school as a tool, not to teach socialization of any kind.

Something to consider:

"The only other place you will be:

A) put in a totally supervised facility

B) Subjected to a preplanned routine and a largely

unchanging environment that you are more or less

powerless to change or escape.

C) you are surrounded by people your own age all day long

----Is a NURSING HOME!"

Answer 8

I was homeschooled from gr. 3-6, and then returned to school in grade 7, i found the transition fairly easy. I would never want to go back to homeschooling, i love the social interaction that comes with school. Seriously it is the best part of school, the amount of friends that i have since homeschooling has tripled in number. I'm in high school now, you can tell a bit of a difference between me and the students who have been in school all their life, but it doesn't stop me from having friends I'm just not as up to date with everything they are. Going to high school for you now may be difficult, but I'd say it's worth the try, it'll help you later in life in terms of social interaction. Hope this helps and good luck.