What do others think of your homeschooling efforts?

Assalm alykom:

While homeschooling is becoming more popular and common, it is still considered out of the mainstream. Therefore, people might find it odd that you have decided to take up this life style with your family. My husband travels to a variety of masjids throughout our state doing workshops on Islam. The children and I sometimes travel with him. I like to go with him because it avails me the opportunity to meet different people. Actually, when I meet someone new, they are the ones who usually ask about my children and where do they go to school. I think that this is because parents are really becoming concerned about what kind of education their child is receiving, what kind of role models they are looking up to and what kind of people they are socializing with. Here are some of the comments I get:

Some people look at me as some kind of super woman. They tell me: "I could NEVER do that" "How do you do it with four kids" Well my advice to them is it is not for everyone. It is difficult and it has become a "lifestyle". There is a great deal of sacrifices. You sacrifice your time immensely. You sacrifice a "truly" clean house. The list can go on. Therefore, I never tell someone oh you can do it it is easy. I do find it difficult. However, I have found that I am getting better at this lifestyle, and it is getting easier for me.

Another comment I get is that "I could never do that because I am not educated enough." I have a business degree in marketing, and I still feel I am relearning all the things I new before. My advice to them is that if they really want to homeschool, you should try the state funded virtual schools. These are very easy to follow, and there is always guidance from a teacher, and accountability with mandatory state testing. Another route for those who are not confident, would be to buy a boxed curriculum. These companies who offer this, also sometimes offer teacher support for an additional charge.

This is a frequent question" I am afraid that my child would not be getting the social interaction that he or she needs." I have not found this to be a problem with my children. My children are very friendly when they meet new people or are with their friends that they know. Involving your children in activities such as sports, girl or boy scouts, or after school/weekend programs in masjids can help develop their social skills. I am trying to improve this myself, but have not found the appropriate activity. This next year, I plan to be more aggressive in finding something my children will enjoy, Inshallah.

One last frequent comment I have heard is that the quality of education is not good for homeschooling. Parents many times tell me that their children are very smart, and are in gifted programs and that homeschooling will not facilitate their child's education. I think personally that is changing. Colleges and scholarship programs are seeing that the placement test for homeschoolers are high, and they are recieving a quality education. Many colleges, such as Harvard, are allowing homeschooled students into their programs.

I think a lot of these questions I get are based on myths about homeschooling. I would love to hear what people think about your homeschooling efforts.