Last year at about this time of year, my daughter and a couple of her friends started talking about prom. They wanted to experience a prom and had decided to put together their own. We talked about all that would be involved (picking a venue and setting a day and time well in advance so people could plan, setting a budget for all that would be involved–a DJ, decorations, insurance, rent for the venue, food and beverages, security, etc., advertising and selling tickets, setting rules/guidelines about appropriate wear, behavior, etc., and so on) and starting to plan right then in order to make it happen. They got another friend to help and the four teens (along with a couple of parents) started work.
Last weekend, they hosted their prom. Over 50 teens came (and a few parent chaperones, a hired security guard, parents to check tickets and make sure they left afterwards with their parents, and a DJ). I loved that the majority felt free to come on their own or with a group of friends rather than feeling that they must come with dates. Of course, there were more girls present than boys, but after an hour the majority of the kids (boys included) had warmed up enough that they were all dancing and having fun.
I had my teens take 6 weeks of ballroom dancing classes beforehand. Not that they did any ballroom-style dancing at the prom, but I think it’s a skill they should have just in case. (Especially for the one who’s interested in joining the military since balls are a big thing in the military.)
The security guard, an off-duty policeman that we were required to hire, had a lot of questions about homeschooling. He was quite surprised when we told him that most homeschool parents are very careful about their kids–even their teens–and that while we hadn’t allowed most parents in (in order to make it feel like a prom rather than a parent-child dance), most peeked in to see the venue and then went a couple of doors down to a cafe where they hung out until the prom was over. The more we talked, the more questions he had. Eventually, he revealed that his wife had asked him about homeschooling and he’d known nothing about it, but he said that now he planned to go back and talk to her some more about the idea. He definitely knows that socializing (and proms) are something homeschoolers don’t have to miss out on!
homeschooling again 