Homeschool vs Private/catholic high school

[rseg]

hello. I've been browsing this site but haven't seen any discussions regarding homeschool vs. private school. My children are currently in a wonderful catholic elementary school, but I'm already thinking about what to do for high school. Public school is out of the question. The catholic high schools are good, but expensive. I'd like to be able to save for college for them,but it looks like every cent will be going toward grade school and high school! I am thinking of homeschooling for high school - the hs community is really big here..... I'm just concerned about these things: 1) how well do kids transition from private school to home ; especially at age 13.....?
2) anybody have any information on how well homeschooled kids do once they go to college? 3) socialization. I know this is talked about constantly but I do wonder if hsers social life is too controlled by the parents' choices and they are then not as skilled when dealing with troublesome people. I just worry about them becoming weird/nerdy/socially awkward around their peers..... Any thoughts would be really appreciated! thanks

[Theodore]

1) Depends entirely on individual circumstances. Some children hate school, others love it, and a few don't care one way or the other. Bottom line, though, the transition probably won't be too painful if your children still get to see their friends from school, and if they can make a clean break after the elementary level (they'd have to switch to high school anyway, which is also a big change).

2) Even people on the anti-homeschooling side admit that homeschoolers do better academically. And since homeschoolers aren't rigidly conformed their entire lives, they tend to speak up more and hold leadership positions in college. See this page for further info.

3) College students value imagination and academic achievement a lot more highly than elementary or high school students do, and are in general more tolerant and less hurtful. Homeschoolers have no trouble socializing in college- my siblings certainly haven't.

In any case, the older your children are before they have to be subjected to some horribly painful experience, the better they'll be able to handle it.