I was homeschooled for five years as a child and I found it to have mixed blessings. On one hand, there was little doubt that the education I received was far stronger then what my peers had access to. Being able to have someone spend a great deal of individualized attention is very beneficial. My Mom wasn't a genius or anything, but the extra contact certianly put me way ahead of the class when I re-entered school.

The downside to the education was the loss of social skills. High school was rough, especially early on. The environment was so radically different then what I was used to. It wasn't about book smarts anymore it was about street smarts. Some of the most successful people in life are not the A students at Harvard, but C students who are visionaries and who have great social awareness.

Eventually, I did adjust but not without a cost. As a child I used to think that I would have prefered school, but as an adult I've come to appreciation my unique upbringing. In retrospect, I don't think I would have changed things, but I do wish that I would have had more opportunities for social interaction growing up. Basketball practice and music lessons are a good start, but it doesn't compare to the friendships formed when you see people everyday.
 

Davis:
Thanks for sharing you experiences with homeschooling.

As with most things, there are pros and cons that you have to weigh.

In our case, we feel like we've made the right decision for what he needs at this age. Of course, those needs may change as he gets older.

And just to clarify the socialization aspect, our son has a group of friends in our neighborhood (3 of his friends live in the house right behind us) that he interacts with on a daily basis (in addition to the friends he has in his 2 day per week enrichment program).
 

I just want to comment that it is a blessing to have our kids at home, and we work very hard to ensure that they have the academic and social skills that they need for a productive and happy future. Homeschooling is a huge commitment, but one that I see paying off everyday. I could go on and on...
 

It's hard to make any decision in life without there being an upside and a downside, but overall you are making the right decision. Either way your children will turn out well if you care and love for them. Being able to spend a lot of time with your kids at this age really is a big benefit from the parent's perspective too. You are lucky to be able to spend so much time with them while they are so young. After all at some point they will be teenagers.