My daughter's homeschool to public school experience

I never planned on homeschooling, it just happened. The turning point in our children's education came during a Kindergarten parent-teacher conference. I was told by the teacher that my daughter spent too much time drawing and did not leave enough time for her writing,  which would be a problem when she went into 1st grade. I remember wondering why it was a "problem" for a 6-year-old to draw and why wasn't the teacher directing her to complete the work that she needed to do first? If I taught her at home, she would have all of the time in the world to draw and write.

That Kindergartener (now back in public school) is working toward graduating high school this school year. Which means that she is talking about college. Which means that she has to fill out applications and write essays. When I asked her what her college essay was about, she told me that it was about the move from homeschool to public school.

I asked her if I could share her essay and she agreed. This is still a rough draft, and she needs to whittle it down to 500 words or less, but it's a good start.

Not Like the Movies

After being homeschooled for 11 years, my first day of public school was a huge shock. On the first day of my sophomore year I got onto a crowded and uncomfortable school bus, and when I got to school I was completely lost. There were no “popular tables” at lunch and nobody was dumped in a trash can. There were no lunches stolen or teachers that were crazy strict. Movies made high school seem like a dreamland full of fun classes, dates to dances, decorated lockers, and instant friends.

Public school took a lot more adjustments and dedication than I expected it to. The classes were now an average of thirty loud, distracting kids compared to the size of one quiet kid that I grew up used to. Making friends took effort because most kids gave you a glance before they decided if they liked you or not. The culture of public school was full of crude language and showy clothing, and having grown up a semi-conservative Christian I had no clue how to fit in. My school work was difficult, especially since I had never had to share a teacher before and all of my homework was regular school work, but when I was homeschooled homework was combined with class work.

Coming into public school my sophomore year of high school made it very hard to interact with other kids, because the majority of them had known each other since elementary school. Growing up I had been a part of a few different groups here and there. I was a part of a Christian homeschool group when I was younger and had a couple friends through that. When I was older I played basketball with a Christian organization, had a science group with other homeschooled kids using the same curriculum, and took art classes for a few years at a private Christian school. Apart from a couple good friends that I had through doing those things, I did not have many friends. Although I didn’t have many friends I didn’t think of it as a bad thing, because the friends I did have were very good friends. Going into a public school setting though, I began to question this because I didn’t know anyone. None of my friends went to school with me so I had a very rough first year. Once I joined the theatre at school I had found my place. I made good friends that I felt comfortable around, and I made a place for myself.

The school work was very different from what I was used to. I came from waking up in the morning and sitting down at my kitchen table to do my school work. I worked in a classroom of 1, and I got the teacher (my mom) all to myself. Switching to sitting in a desk in a classroom full of kids that were loud and distracting, and having to share my teacher was a huge shock. I had to quickly learn how to take notes from a lecture, how to work in groups with other kids, and how to speak in front of the class.

The switch from homeschooling to public school was a switch that I will forever be glad I made. I value having experienced both sides of schooling, and I can’t wait to see where it takes me.