Homeschool Socialization: Top 6 Ways to Keep Your Child Socially Connected

Homeschool socialization can be challenging and is a common concern for homeschooling families. Homeschooled kids do not have the same daily social interactions as traditionally schooled peers.

Parents must sustain them with the same socialization setup as that of a traditional school to develop interpersonal skills. This blog talks about six strategies parents can use to effectively tackle the problem.

Why is socialization important in homeschooling?

Socializing is essential for homeschoolers for their social, emotional, and psychological development. Regular interactions help develop interpersonal skills, such as communication, and empathy in the child. 

According to the National Home Education Research Institute, 87% of peer-reviewed studies [on social, emotional, and psychological development] show homeschooled students perform statistically significantly better than those in conventional schools. 

Interacting with peers would help homeschooling kids develop essential social skills, discover their strengths, and rise to meet new challenges.

Looking for private tutors for homeschooling? Find a tutor of your choice, and book a Free Trial Lesson with them today to achieve your academic goals!

Homeschool socialization: how to socialize homeschoolers?

Spending time with friends can provide a break from academic pressures and help reduce stress. Positive peer influence can motivate the child to engage in both academic and extracurricular activities. 

Here we have curated a comprehensive list of the ways through which you can socialize your homeschooler:

#1 Join a homeschool group

Joining a network of homeschooling groups will help kids meet their peers, plan activities they can do together, and share mutual interests. 

A homeschooled child is likely to form a stronger emotional connection with another homeschooled child. Connecting with like-minded homeschooling families who face similar challenges will help you exchange ideas, resources, and strategies.

Interacting with fellow homeschooled kids will help children express their thoughts clearly. You can collaborate with other parents to organize study sessions and group projects which will deepen the understanding and retention of the study topic. 

Socializing with diverse families will open up your homeschooler to different viewpoints and cultures. Your child will learn to adapt to different social settings preparing them for real-world scenarios.

#2 Encourage your child to participate in sports, clubs, or other extracurricular activities.

“Art is the meeting ground of the world.” — Leo Tolstoy

Art brings people together. Enrolling kids in a painting, music, or sports club would help them bond through their favorite sports, players, musicians, and instruments. Discovering shared interests with friends can lead to new hobbies and passions. 

Physical Activities keep a child’s brain active. If you are enrolled in a sports club, take your child along with you, this would help the kid develop an interest in extracurriculars. 

Involve kids in your interests and hobbies. Seeing your commitment to it would help ignite the same passion in them. 

Homeschoolers will learn teamwork, conflict resolution, and discipline through group activities. 

#3 Involve your child in Community Service

Start with involving your child in local library programs, and park clean-ups. Through community service, children have the opportunity to interact with individuals from all walks of life. 

Working with mentors and seniors inspires children to strive for their level of commitment and dedication. As parents, show enthusiasm for community involvement by participating in events, the excitement will inspire the kids to join in. 

Organizations all over the US provide children with the opportunity to contribute to their communities. Some of the US-based organizations that welcome child volunteers for community service are:

• Habitat for Humanity: Children can help by getting involved in fundraising for building and renovating homes for families in need.

• Girl Scouts and Boy Scouts of America: Children help create social awareness, set up environmental clean-ups, and initiate campaigns on sensitive issues to educate the masses.

• The Humane Society: The Humane Society provides children with opportunities to help animals. Children help in adoption events, fundraising, and assisting with educational programs.

• Feeding America: At Feeding America, children help with packing food, organizing food drives, and raising awareness about hunger issues.

Children from all backgrounds and abilities are a part of these organizations, providing your child the platform to meet people from their neighborhood, community, and nearby schools. They may even meet local leaders during service projects. 

#4 Field trips to parks, the pool, or the library

Make a habit of visiting the nearby playground, public pool, and library for an hour each day with your kid. Time spent in nature has been linked to improved focus and attention in children. This can be especially beneficial for children with attention difficulties. 

Some of the activities through which you can make your homeschooler’s outdoor experience enriching and memorable are:

• Nature Art and Crafts: Encourage the kids to collect materials present in the park like twigs, flowers, and rocks, and leave and build nature collages or small sculptures.

• Wildlife Observation: Equip your children and their peers with binoculars to observe birds, insects, and other animals. Turn it into a fun challenge by seeing who can spot the most animals. This activity will foster creativity and enhance observation skills.

• Weather Station: Encourage your child and their peers to set up a mini weather station to measure the temperature, humidity, wind speed, and precipitation of the park. 

Teach children how to record data and understand weather patterns. Turn it into a fun activity by having them create weather journals, make predictions, and compare their forecasts with each other’s report and later with the actual weather reports. 

You can also organize weather-themed games and challenges to see who can make the most accurate prediction.

• Science Experiments: Encourage the kids to set up a science experiment with their friends. 

Dedicate each day to a specific branch of science, such as physics one day and biology the next.

This collaborative effort will make learning fun and engaging, while also developing their problem-solving abilities.

• Storytelling: Encourage the kids to develop stories of their own and share them with the group. 

Assign particular days to each kid to ensure everyone gets a chance to present their story. This will boost their creativity, confidence, and public speaking skills.

You don’t have to be the only one responsible for taking the children out. 

You can coordinate with other parents and their schedules to share field trip duties. By shuffling duties, parents can create a dynamic and responsive homeschooling environment.

#5 Make time for your child’s new friends

Organise play dates at your home for your homeschooler and the friends he makes along the way.

Take them for outings, to malls, museums, zoos, or cultural events to foster friendship. The child might not necessarily have a pool of friends but can still benefit immensely from deep, meaningful relationships with a few close friends. 

Forming and maintaining friendships in the early stages of growing up is crucial for emotional support and a sense of belonging. Friends provide children with a network of emotional support, helping them cope with challenges.

Use technology to keep children connected with their friends.  Encourage them to collaborate for study sessions online and group projects.

Create groups over social networking sites so that the child keeps in touch with their peers when physical meetings are not possible. As your child gets older encourage them to initiate a get-together with their friends.

#6 Tutoring for Socialization

While tutoring is often associated with academic support, it can also play a significant role in promoting socialization among homeschooling children.

Homeschooled children lack the typical teacher-student dynamic. Tutoring helps provide children with mentors and positive role models offering guidance.

At Wiingy through 1-on-1 interactions we help children build conversational skills and confidence. Wiingy Tutors encourage shy or introverted children to participate more actively in discussions pertaining to crucial concepts and homework.

We help homeschoolers interact with highly qualified tutors through sessions starting at $28/hr. 

Wiingy understands your child’s individual needs and interests and makes them feel valued and supported.

Wiingy offers a perfect match guarantee, so you can make sure that your child receives quality education. It is one of the most affordable options for you to provide mentorship to your homeschooler. 

Investing in a Wiingy tutor will be a valuable addition to the child’s personal and professional development, boosting their communication and elevating their interpersonal skills.

Other Resources

What is Homeschooling? [Types, Advantages of Homeschooling]
Why Homeschooling? [Pros and Cons]
How to start Homeschooling [Top 12 Tips to Get Started]
Best Online Homeschool Programs [Top 15]
Online Tutoring for Homeschooling: Benefits and Strategies

Looking for private tutors for homeschooling? Find a tutor of your choice, and book a Free Trial Lesson with them today to achieve your academic goals!

FAQs on homeschool socialization