How Homeschoolers Socialize or Is This Social Enough For You?

Homeschool families tend to get a lot of questions about the why's and how's of the homeschool way.
Why did you choose to homeschool?
How do you know your kids are learning?
Do your kids really go to school in their pajamas?  (For the record, not usually.)
How does homeschooling actually work?

And the big one: How are your kids getting "socialized"?  

I hate this question. I really do. I tend to roll my eyes when people ask. 

There was once a time when homeschooled children lived in sod houses in the middle of nowhere. And the only socialization they did was with their families. This is not that time.  It is 2015.

We live in an urban environment. Our kids go with us to church, to the store, to the hair salon, to the bookstore, and every other place that my husband and I go. In every single one of those situations, they are being "socialized". Just like every single other child in our country.  My husband is a tech guru, and my children know exactly what Facebook is.

Our family is part of a co-op as well. One hour on every Monday our kids and I go to the co-op for an enrichment class. This semester Baby Girl is taking a science class, and Buds is taking an art class. Bubba is in nursery, which he doesn't HAVE to go to, but I volunteer every other week and it just makes things simple. So my kids get to spend an hour per week with an adult (not Me!), and a classroom full of other kids with shared interests.

And lastly, there is the All American Play Date. It doesn't happen as often as I might like, but when it does, it is gloriously chaotic and messy. But it is so much fun for our kids and for us moms! 

A few weeks ago there were a total of 18 children at my house.  The youngest was 4 months, the oldest was 6.  All of the kids played both inside and outside, with only a few minor disagreements. There aren't very many toys upstairs at the moment, and no one asked for any. Play mates and some basic babies and sand toys were all that were required for a fun time. 

Buds is in the bike helmet (his favorite accessory at the moment) and then four friends are with him.

Baby Girl (R) and one of her friends playing in her room.

Two of our friends playing with our somewhat over stimulated puppy, Rosie

All of those kids. You can't tell me that isn't social. 

Interesting side note: Every single mom that was here, including myself was homeschooled as a child. Most of us were not friends as children, we just happened upon each other as adults.  I would say that we are all pretty social. 

My point is this: Socialization doesn't only happen in a static social setting like a classroom. Socialization actually happens more in the real world. The children that invaded came to my house  were learning how to be social. They solved their own problems, created their own games, and made their own fun. Together. They had to work with the limitations of the smallest kiddos, but still had to appeal to the oldest. And they had to ask adults (some of whom they had never met before) to meet their needs or help solve problems. This is how the world works. And this is how homeschoolers socialize their kids. 

Please know that homeschoolers DO care about the socialization of their children. But please don't be offended when we roll our eyes when you ask. Because, we are probably a lot more social than you think.