May I ask you why you chose to home school?
I think this could be a good topic on our debate forum.
Oh goodness, there are SO many reasons. I can tailor what my children learn to their interests and their learning styles. My oldest was in public school for 3 years. She would do well at the beginning of each year, but then if/when she didn't grasp a concept as quickly as the rest of the class, she'd be left behind. The class would move on and build upon the concepts learned earlier and she would have a terrible time catching up. I can go slow with some things with her and let her go quickly and move ahead in the areas that are her strengths.
No one is going to love my kid as much as I do. No one is going to be as invested in what's best for her as I will be.
I also love being the one who gets to see the *light* come on when they learn something...or when something clicks for the first time. I get them all day and would miss that.
The schools in the US have lost their common sense. There's so much "zero tolerance" that it's made those who run the schools unable to use their heads when making decisions and dealing with kids. Almost every day I see a headline that makes me glad I homeschool.
While I don't "pick" their friends, I do have some control over what kids they are around. So many of my friends who have teens right now are having problems with their kids getting involved with other kids that are not great influences and their seeing their teens making terrible decisions. I don't have that. I give my teen freedom to choose her friends, but really, the only other teens she's exposed to are good kids with similar values.
I hope that all makes sense...there's probably another 10 pages of reasons I could list.