(no subject)

[lisamoe]

I totally remember now why I don't post on homeschooling boards or lists, though I read a number of them. They contain what appear to be the most weird, defensive, excitable group of women in the world. I posted a short post this morning giving some info about child welfare (where I worked for years) and pointing out some erroneous information that I thought a lady there had been given and this woman totally went off on me and said I was calling her a liar and she WAS TOO RIGHT and I was generally an awful person for doubting her. I didn't even say SHE was wrong, just that a State official had given her wrong information. Weirdness.

I love that the kids are homeschooled, but I have just not found that I get along with the other homeschooling families much at all. The homeschool Campfire group has been a concern to me for years due to the cliquishness and the fact that they treat Jesse like he's mentally challenged (I think it's still because he couldn't read when he was 5 like some of the other kids and they just decided he was slow and never changed their minds.) He's a fucking genius and he reads fine now, but they still have him a grade behind everyone else and would like to hold him back another grade in the groups except they know I'll throw a fit. Jesse acts a lot better and more mature than at least 3 or 4 kids I can name in the older group, but they're in the clique families, and we're not, so they can do no wrong. I guess that's a whole 'nother rant though.

But even at the non-Campfire groups, I still don't fit in. I work, we're not religious or isolationist or Republican, and our family values are not really in line with most anyone else there. And truly, I think that there are a number of families who homeschool because the parents just couldn't get along with the schools due to their own personality issues and their need to create drama about everything, not out of a great desire to homeschool. Not all, by any means, but enough to make message boards a dicey place to try to talk sense. I guess I re-learned my lesson for this year, to wit: Do not post on the local homeschooling boards no matter how attractive the bait. :-)

Comments

[mstami.livejournal.com]

Hey, we get along! At least I think we do? ;)

I have to agree that many in the homeschool community seem to be a bit on the nutty/fanatical side of the street. I tend to think that in most cases it takes that type of personality to HS their children. However, those of us who have had negative experiences while dealing with the public school system are Hsing for a different reason then the other HSers, I think?

We have avoided many of the HS groups, and we’ve been HSing for more then 11 years now. I just didn't want to deal with the drama. I think it's great that you all can be involved, but we're just to peculiar to fit in.


Hey, I've got a joke for you. I got this off one of my lists. It's for the holiday. :)

Why is a Christmas tree better than a man?


It's always erect, stays up for 12 days and nights, has cute balls, and looks good with the lights on!

[lisamoe.livejournal.com]

Hahaha, I'm not counting people who are already my friends, just the people I meet on the boards. Clearly, I'm too peculiar to fit in too, but thankfully Mom gets along with EVERYONE so she takes the boys to the groups and they all have a good time.

I think there are people in the comunity that have very legitimate negative experiences with the school system, but I think there are also overly dramatic people who pull their kids out of school anytime the school tells them something they don't want to hear about their kid, even if it's true. Obviously, I'm supportive of amyone homeschooling who wants to for any reason at all, but having a lot of those dramatic personalities in a group just doesn't make for a relaxing experience for me.

[subtle-nuance.livejournal.com]

I think that if I were to homeschool my boys, you and I could make our own damned homeschooling group and to hell with the others... LOL!

[msbyn.livejournal.com]

Nope. I think Christians are probably the most excitable, easily offended, must be right at any costs groups... and I say this AS a Christian, but I don't seem to fit anywhere either. Be it a homeschool group or a Christian group and not even the Christian homeschoolers groups. I'm IN one, but I am the 'odd' one:) I'm the one asked to do high school events because I'm such a kid at heart... which is so true. I think if I fit anywhere, its among the other oddballs out there.

Anyway, you're not alone in your thoughts and opinions, for sure. I stopped going to homeschooling and Christian forums/groups long ago for that very reason.

[angel-ent.livejournal.com]

Your mom and my friend Denise are in the same HS group. Denise has only said kind things about your sons to me - somthing along the lines Jesse is so smart, grown-up, etc, etc and Dingo is a cutey. So don't take it personally that there are some freaks in your group who get all bent out of shape. After all, some of these ladies have NO life outside of what they live through their kids and HAVE to be right about everything.

[lisamoe.livejournal.com]

Denise is really sweet, I like her when I've been able to see her. I hope she's having a good experience with Campfire. To me it's been hard to come into the already established gruop and try to fit in and I notice that's been a problem for other families who weren't the original families who started it. But that's always a problem with me, I guess, trying to fit in.

[bucky-musing.livejournal.com]

Oddly, of home schoolers I know, you seem to be the most normal one of the bunch. It's one of the reasons why it surprises me that you do home school, because of the nature of most other home schoolers I know.