School of One Fish: socialization

I don't understand why this is still a question in the mind of anyone who knows my child. However, I'd like to say that it's a little insulting if you do know her and you're still asking me if I'm worried about her socialization. And if you don't know her, well,

But let's sit with this a moment. Let's talk about socialization. First, a look at the dictionary definition of the word:

so·cial·i·za·tion

noun

a continuing process whereby an individual acquires a personal identity and learns the norms, values,behavior, and social skills appropriate to his or her social position.

By asking if I'm worried about Tuna's socialization, you're asking me if she knows how to act in public. And you've seen her act in public. So what you're really saying, even if you don't come out and say it, is that my kid is a freak.

And I can try to convince you that Tuna is socialized. I can. I can try to tell you how social she is. I can tell you that on Monday, she goes to gym class and critical thinking class with her peers (from several grades)

Look! She can even raise her hand! They ALL can!

I could tell you that she does community service.

I could tell you that she donated her hair to Locks of Love and that it was her own idea. I could tell you how she thinks of others constantly.

If I wanted to convince you that Tuna is, in fact, socialized, I could show you that she is a well-versed world traveler who knows how to use public transportation and how to ask for help anywhere she goes.

Or,

I could remind you that you're not socializing your child by sending them to school.

But, funny, that. You don't hear of homeschoolers asking public school parents if they aren't worried about socialization. Here, let's turn the tables for a minute.

Questions Commonly Asked of Homeschoolers Which Ought to be Asked of Parents Who Send Children to Public Schools, Turned Around on Said Parents:

1. I could never send my child away all day. I don't know how you do it. I can't imagine not spending my day with the person I helped create because I wanted a child. I would lose my mind. Don't you get sick of having them gone all the time? (I fear the answer to this one, though)

2. What curriculum does the school use? What? You don't know? You mean to tell me you don't know the brand of textbook being taught to your child all day? Don't you think it's your job to know what's being taught to your child? Oh, wait.

3. What are your children's teachers' qualifications? If you think they all have teaching degrees, you are mistaken. Do you know? Do you ask? Don't you think it's your right to ask?

4. What about socialization? Aren't you worried that your child is being socialized by the wrong people, the wrong influences? I would be. Hell, I am. I have a high schooler in the public school system. I know what "socialization" looks like.

Tuna is not a weird little hermit freak because she doesn't go to school. She actually gets to lead a full life while the kids who do go to school leave when the sun comes up and comes home minutes before it sets. You should see them running off the bus. They scream, almost uncontrollably, letting out all the pent-up energy they can't expel at school. It's sad. They can't control their little bodies any longer and they lose control. It's insanity.