This link re: homeschooling for vegan families (or anyone else considering upcoming school options, for that matter) , showed up in my inbox recently, from the VegFamily site.
September is just around the corner, sigh….the ‘back to school’ ads are already showing up. For parents, this can I’m sure be a time of some important and life-changing decisions to make.
Personally, even though I don’t have any children of my own, I think this option for homeschooling with a vegan and compassionate emphasis, sounds encouraging….and certainly a sign that the times they are a changing in educational choices and for the better. It would be interesting to see what kind of response this homeschooling option ultimately achieves and how much interest there really is out there. Would also be great if some of these compassionate and green-friendly courses also start showing up in regular schools for their students. Perhaps they already are?
I’ve always been interested in the idea of homeschooling. Have never actually known anyone who was. Personally, I had a such a great time attending elementary school, so much fun and so many friends, would that all have been lost, if I had been taught at home?
On the plus side as in the case of a curriculum like this, parents would be able to offer some really positive and meaningful subjects to their children, if they should decide to go that homeschooling route.
Have any of you been homeschooled? What were your experiences or those of someone you know? Would love to hear from you.
The link for more information : Vegan HomeSchooling
VEGGIES, YARNS & TAILS 
I was not homeschooled and i have no children, but i have interviewed a lot of kids and their families who are doing that. My biggest concern is always the socialization aspect… as you wrote, about how having griends was one of the best parts of elementary school! The majority of the children and parents i talked to explain that there are other activities that get the kids involved with others (i.e. sports clubs and also nowadays through the internet, which i don’t exactly endorse for children finding friends!). I still haven’t been convinced…
As a public school teacher, I also agree about the socialization aspect that is missing from (my perception) of H.S.-ers. While they do have legal access to all the things in a school that you can’t do at home (have your own soccer team, band, etc.) I really feel that a big part of life is about learning to deal with people who share or don’t share similar values with you. If you limit the amount of contact your children have with others who are different, you may be limiting them in terms of the coping skills that they need to develop to live in the world. Again, this is just an opinion. What a great topic to bring up! 🙂
I think the answer to your question (about what might be missed by homeschooling) depends on the parents. If parents keep their homeschooled children isolated, then the children may miss out. If parents involve their children in church, neighborhood friendships, sports, and homeschooling co-op type classes, then the children will be very involved in fun and social activities.
We homeschool our daughter, though not as a vegan. 🙂 Homeschooling has been a great option for us. The past year we did something different and enrolled her in an independent studies school for homeschoolers. She attended school twice a week and had independent work assigned to complete on the other days. She had a very successful year and she’s returning this fall.
I could write about this for a long time, but that would get dull. 🙂
Nothing to do with home schooling but in my quest to go vege my biggest stumbling block is with lunches monday to friday at work.
I would love to know 10 ideas for vege packed lunches that would be both filling and interesting…
I love a sandwich…10 easy vege sandwich options?
Can anyone help?
Namaste
Al
interesting topic, G. Not homeschooled but don’t see anything wrong with it as long as the parents are creative thinkers, disciplined, dedicated, and in tune to the social part of it.
Considering how screwed up US public schools are and how expensive private schools are, it seems like a good option for the right family. Too bad it’s only possible for 1-income families though.
Hi Karen, These are good points and Im sure you heard some interesting pros and cons in your interviews.
Hi Heather, Great to hear from a teacher! I agree, the social aspect could be missing and those kids would miss a lot.
Hi Beth, Great to hear from a homeschooler too! It sounds like you’ve found a great balance for your daughter and she is thriving. Well done! Being a parent is such an awesome responsibility.
Hi Al, Ok, I did some checking and emailed you some sandwiches LOL….ok, maybe not the real thing but the instructions for DIY. LOL…..
Hi Caroline, Your list of requirements for parents is a very good one. I don’t think I would have enjoyed this route at all, my father in particular was VERY strict. Going to a RC school was just terrific, on all counts. School days are happy memories for me.
Thanks for all your thoughtful comments and for stopping by. BFN, G 🙂
I was never homeschooled, but do my kids. My son is being homeschooled thorugh highschool and is a senior this year. My daughter just enrolled into a public highsschool in January, but was homeschooled through the beginning years.
For me I found that I have a realtionship with both of my kids that I don’t see happening frequently with other parents. With the No child left behind legislation and focus on test scores many parents are discovering that their children are away at school all day and the child homework dictates the evening… you just can’t have family life with a schedule like this.
Re: worthy school food, I don’t know if the show ended up in the states, but Jaimie Oliver’s ‘Jaimie’s Dinners’, was fairly good stuff on that subject. Oliver’s premise was to improve the food served in the british comprehensive school system, and see how kids, parents, admin, ect. responded. Do try and discover what a ‘turkey twizzler’ is. It ended up being compelling t.v. I don’t have a link, but if your interested I’m sure some web-routing would turn it up…
The link for more information on vegan homeschooling does not work. Is there any information available, anywhere? Thanks!
Hi Kimberly, sorry but I don’t have an update for that link, this was written a while ago. Anyone else?
Good luck with the search, G
We are a homeschooling family and I’m vegan, not my kids. (I have a 17 and 14 year old.) The worry for socialization is real but unwarranted, except for those parents that give all homeschooling families a bad name (and we’ve all known or heard of this type of family.) My kids are close friends with neighbors, and kids from church. These kids are either homeschooled, attend private school, or attend public school. My husband and I don’t isolate them from other viewpoints but encourage them to learn.
They attend an on-line Catholic high school and get a fabulous education and also have access to teachers that can answer all their questions. On the side, they are responsible for many chores around the house to include yard/garden work.
Most kids their age can’t easily converse about Monsanto, peak oil, the federal budget, the economic impact of Wal-mart, and the ecological disaster of factory farms, but my boys can…better than most adults. At the same time, when they’re with their friends, they know all the topics that’s meaningful for our youth. I think the big difference between my boys and the kids I’ve seen might be the lack of melodrama that’s typical of most American teenagers. That’s not terrible in my opinion.
If you ever wonder about homeschooling as a choice for yourself, look into it and give it a try over the summer break. We’ve never regretted the choice to homeschool.
I went to public schools as a child, and I’ve also taught public school. What is being called the “socialization” of public schools is not socialization but indoctrination and abuse. Schools are not about helpful cooperative playtime like is shown with children playing with muppets on Sesame Street. The school social environment is about bullying, mental, physical and sexual abuse, and learning to conform to dysfunctional models of human relation based on power.
Any parent, teacher, or observer recommending that children be subjected to the “socialization process” of public schools for any reason other than a study into the sociology of prison environments is either delusional, seriously misinformed, or is actively seeking to harm children. In all three cases, said persons should not only not be listened to, but any children they are responsible for should be taken away and placed in non-abusive environments.