In the summer I work with large numbers of teen girls (Camp environment) - you can spot the home-schooled girls within minutes.
Yes, there is that big a difference.
“What happens when mean girls grow up?”
Pelosi
H. Thomas
Hillary
M. 000bamy
Behar
etc
etc..
I have also noticed the difference between public school and home school kids. Public school breeds a sense of discrimination between grades. Where kids in public school will not play with kids in a younger grade (because he’s a 4th grader) homeschool kids seem to have no barrier to age, or sex really.
I’m a school crossing guard, but I also homeschool my girls.
One day, a girl who is a friend of my younger daughter came to me.
She said, “Can I ask you something Ms. B?”
She proceeded to break down in tears and tell me that a girl had been picking on her. Her mother told her to “man up” and deal with it. She is sweet, cute and fun to be around. She was begging for help.
I told her that she is wonderful and that she is welcome at my house anytime. If the girl bothered her when I was around, just come to me.
Then I thanked God that I homeschool and vowed NEVER to put my kids in that “Lord of the Flies” atmosphere.
I see the point. In public schools, private less so; children are subjected to emotional torment that does little to prepare them for the future.
I was bullied in junior high school as were millions of my peers. I can’t say that the experience prepared me for anything I faced since. I suppose if I were to hang out in seedy bars, I would be better prepared; but I never did. The bullying experience caused me and my parents torment for nothing.
Interesting take, but I think it goes beyond that. My experience (and for some reason this applies more to women than men) is that people raised in a one-child household tend to be seriously lacking in social development even as adults.
I saw my that my sweet daughter had the makings to become a “mean” girl in pre-school. She went from being kind and eager to please to in command of their small class (only 3 girls and 9 boys). It was one of many factors that led us to homeschool.
I am happy to say that after 3 years we rarely see her “attitude” and she is once again kind to others.
If children are housed in prison-like building and in most ways treated like prisoners, why are we, as a society, surprised when we see prison pathology in children?
Huh?
The typical Prussian-style school is a cesspool of social dysfunction. Thankfully, humans are resilient and most of us to move on to having healthy relationships among family, friends, and neighbors. Sadly, some are permanently damaged.
I recently went to my 30th high school reunion. Most of the people who showed up were the mean girls. And they were perfectly nice now. Growing up counts for something.
Some don’t grow up though - I went through a nasty experience with some fellow Girl Scout leaders a while back - the whole best-friends-and-you’re-not-it - so much for leadership by example.
Don't be too sure: I have observed that home-schoolers are just as prone to forming cliques and excluding others, and even bullying, as anybody else. And, indeed, a few homeschoolers I know can be downright snooty and rude when it comes to being around those "whose parents don't love them enough to home-school them."
As with any kid, a lot depends on the parents. For example, I'm aquainted with a home-school family whose kids turned out to be ring-tailed bastards in the "mean girl" mode (even the boys). And that's because their dad, and to some extent their mom, is like that.
I'm glad your kids have turned out so nicely; but you shouldn't paint with such a broad brush.
No offense, but if you think that homeschooled girls are never catty and mean to each other when in a group, that’s pretty naive...
Racist.
They become feminists.
Most of it had to do with that I didn't have the physical ability/stature to play any organized sports... including soccer.
I grew about 5" after high school and now weigh about 168 lbs.
Is kind of funny when I go back to my hs reunions... lots of the popular people are shorter than me, have receeding hair/no hair, and kind of dumpy.
For the most part I was satisfied with my HS experience, but I was glad to graduate and move on to college... I wouldn't want to go back in time though :-)
IBTFHT (In before the first Helen Thomas)
The gist of this article seems to be that bullies can, and do, grow up to be nice adults. I’ll agree with can, but it’s certainly not a given that they actually do so. IMO, it’s more likely they grow up to raise the next generation of bullies.