“Where did you go to school?”

“I’m homeschooled.”

Cue the second look that says: “What? You don’t look like a homeschooler!”

That is the reaction I get whenever this conversation takes place with someone I have just met. It happened in my College Success class that I took just last school year several times, during a conversation between me and my classmates. When I say that I have been homeschooled for the greater part of my academic life, it requires a second impression. It could lead to a slew of uncomfortable questions: “Do you have any friends? Do you have any homework? You must be so sheltered!” Et cetera, et cetera.

All of these questions are heavily drenched in stereotype like waffles are heavily drenched in syrup. As a new semester of school has begun, bringing new classes and new faces in college, I have decided to address these stereotypes as they apply to me (and perhaps others as well). Without further ado, here is the truth about homeschooling, for all to see.

Stereotype 1: What I look like.
The reason so many people have to get a second impression of me is because I dress like a normal person. My style is laid back, consisting of mostly Bermuda shorts and colorful T-shirts. I blend into the crowd. Go ahead, stare. Get an eyeful of what most homeschoolers dress like.

Stereotype 2: Homeschoolers are extremely shy, so they have no relationships.
This is completely false. Just because a person homeschools does not mean that he or she is shy and introverted. I have a circle of friends, just like you. They are kind, love me despite my faults, don’t make it their business to make me do something just because everyone else does it, and are people i can trust absolutely to be there if I need help. Can you say the same with that popular girl you are “friends” with?

Stereotype 3: Homeschoolers are exteremely sheltered.
I will quote the Youtuber Messy Mondays: “If by ‘sheltered’ you mean protected from sex, drugs, and alcohol, then yes, I’m pretty sheltered.” I have no need for an intimate relationship, I am too busy becoming my own woman. I have only tasted wine once when I picked up the wrong cup by accident. As for drugs, I know better than to do that stuff.

Stereotype 4: Homeschoolers are extremely religious conservatives.
The running idea here is that homeschoolers will pray for EVERYTHING. While I do volunteer at my church bookstore, I will not try to convert you if you are a part of another religion (a little something called “respect of others’ opinions” that is so hard to find nowadays). Not every religious person is a homeschooler, and not every homeschooler is conservative.

Stereotype 5: Homeschoolers are know-it-all brainiacs.
This is certainly not true of me. Though I know many obscure facts about the ancient and medieval world that may or may not be useful in history class, I do not know everything. I have a normal IQ, I am not a child protegy. I have met someone who firmly believes that her best friend knows more because of homeschooling, and while it may be true that the best friend learned a little more, it does not make either smarter than the other.

Stereotype 6: Homeschoolers are very organized.
Now, I know how to organize things. On my computer, only the right side of my desktop has any folders on it, so in this case I match the stereotype. However, with papers this is not entirely true. I can organize a three-ring binder just fine, but problems with executive functioning (related to my Asperger’s Syndrome) prevent me from achieving the stereotype with anything other than my computer. And I know a family of homeschoolers who aren’t organized at all. I am not a neat freak, and neither are any of my friends. We lose as many pencils as you do.

Stereotype 7: Homeschoolers have no homework or tests.
Oh, how I wish this was true!! You can feel a little better, public schoolers. I get just as much homework as you do, between dual-enrollment classes at the nearby college and other, online classes. I have taken the state-mandated tests that everyone talks about, such as the SAT.

Stereotype 8: Homeschoolers school in their pajamas.
This is actually partly true. When I was in elementary and middle school, we would have pajama mornings on weekdays more often than not! After I started high school, I stopped these pajama morning school days, and now I normally take a shower first thing in the morning (after breakfast, of course).