naturalgoats

This is so true. I was perpetually befuddled until I started taking foreign languages.

This can be one of the benefits of a larger homeschool community where parents can form a co-op, each teaching their own expertise and allowing their children to learn from others. Also once you can read there's really no limit to what can be learned. Between a multitude of online resources and good ol' fashioned book learnin' I taught myself AP biology without my mother's help. It's a challenge but not an insurmountable one. Community college programs can also be wonderful and allow you to get in some lab experience in "high school."

Hi! I'm also a secular homeschooler from Western North Carolina. Do you mind if I ask what part of the state you're from? Wondering if we ever crossed paths...

(Not OP) That's the tough thing about homeschooling. Experiments almost never work the way they're supposed to. However I'd say that my "extracurricular" experiences, playing outside all the time, bird watching, gardening, going on hikes, spending lots of time at the local Nature Center as a kid meant that I got a general love and familiarity with science despite the lack of formalized teaching. Also labs aren't really entirely necessary for learning science. They're fun but I did fine having basically none until I took a chemistry course at the local community college. I'm now studying biology at university.

Not OP but also secular homeschooler from NC... My mother was the primary teacher along with my grandmother. We didn't follow a single curriculum that covered all topics but instead she would pick and choose text books that she liked. Definitely not unschoolers. I have siblings and my mother stayed home to homeschool us. I suppose I probably saw more of the reality of my parents' lives than I might if I wasn't at home. This had good and bad sides but has certainly resulted in me being incredibly close to my mother. We aren't well off at all but have a good family support system that's helped us through some tough times. I did some extracurriculars, particularly music for most of my childhood. I never really got to do sports though because of the restrictions in place in NC.