The Unschool Space

Join Fiona Sim, a Scottish mom of two, as she shares her family's transformative journey into unschooling. She discusses the freedom of embracing time over rigid schedules, revealing how this approach has profoundly changed her perspective on learning. Fiona delves into the delicate balance of guiding her children while fostering their independence. With practical insights on resisting societal pressures, she highlights the rewards of prioritizing family over traditional expectations, inspiring listeners to reconsider their own educational choices.

Today I’m with Leila from Melbourne, Australia. Leila has three children who are now 9, 7 and 4, and their journey to unschooling began when they decided not to continue with school for her eldest child after the Covid lockdown. Leila describes how her interest in conscious parenting and centering the relationship with her children helped her move away from trying to force the learning and to see instead how the natural learning unfolded. We talk about how hard it is to get beyond our own conditioning and all the triggers that come up, and we talk about Leila’s own experience of education and how her PhD in Anthrolopology has allowed her to see learning in a wider context.Connect with Leila on InstagramYou can find my blog, workshops and courses at:www.esther-jones.comOr, connect with me onInstagram: @_esther.jonesFacebook:@theunschoolspace

This episode, I’m chatting with Cyrielle who is originally from France but now lives in Ontario, Canada with her husband and their eight year old daughter (this conversation takes place while they are on a long road trip through the US). Cyrielle used to be a teacher and realised early on that she wanted something different for her child. Amongst other things we talk today about neurodivergence, friendships and community and in particular how important it is that as the parent we explore what makes us thrive too. Follow Cyrielle on InstagramYou can find my blog, workshops and courses at:www.esther-jones.comOr, connect with me onInstagram: @_esther.jonesFacebook:@theunschoolspace

And today I am with Nora McDonald. Nora is originally from the UK but now lives in Costa Rica with her husband and two children who are 10 and 7. They felt that school just wasn’t going to be a good fit for their eldest child, and so originally began home educating in Cambridge in the UK. Nora talks about her move toward unschooling and how her family’s relationship with technology was the catalyst for that. We talk about what it looks like when your child doesn’t particularly like groups and organised activities and how freeing it is to drop expectations and to keep coming back to connecting with and getting curious about our child. And, Nora shares how enormously impactful this has been on her own life. I hope you enjoy the conversation.You can find my blog, workshops and courses at:www.esther-jones.comOr, connect with me onInstagram: @_esther.jonesFacebook:@theunschoolspace

In this episode I'm chatting with Essie Richards from Cornwall in the UK. Essie’s family came to unschooling nine years ago after realising that school was not a place where their childre, who were three and six could thrive. Later, Essie began an Agile Learning Centre for 10 to 15-year olds. Today we talk about the deconditioning we need to go through as parents in order to give our children real agency and how that can work can be deeply healing, what it means to be neurodivergent and unschooling, and all the practices that can help us along the way. Essie also tells us about what life looks like in an Agile Learning Centre. I hope you enjoy the conversation.Connect with Essiehttps://www.instagram.com/unschoolingcircle/https://www.instagram.com/essiejrichards/https://www.essierichardscoach.comhttps://www.lunaragilelearningcentre.orghttps://discocircle.mn.co You can find my blog, workshops and courses at:www.esther-jones.comOr, connect with me onInstagram: @_esther.jonesFacebook:@theunschoolspace

I am very happy to be chatting in this episode with Shannon Stolz from Texas. Shannon has four children who are now all in their 20s. Shannon describes how in their early years, as their dad wasn’t yet onboard with unschooling, they would have some days that were more traditional school at home, and others that were self-directed. Shannon could see how different these experiences were for all of them, and finally, when her oldest daughter was 13, they just embraced unschooling. Among lots of things, we talk about navigating this with a skeptical partner, the importance of relationship, and about all the golden threads that weave through our children’s lives. And how sometimes we only notice them when we look back. Connect with Shannon on InstagramYou can find my blog, workshops and courses at:www.esther-jones.comOr, connect with me onInstagram: @_esther.jonesFacebook:@theunschoolspace

INTROI'm chatting in this episode with Pat Farenga from Massachusetts. Pat is the father of three now adult unschooled daughters, and he worked with the late John Holt—the New York Educator who coined the term unschooling and wrote several books about learning. Pat worked with him on his magazine Growing Without Schooling and continued the magazine for many years after John Holt passed. We chat about his experiences with John Holt, how unschooling looked back in the '70s and '80s and how things have and haven’t changed in the last 50 years.Connect with Pat at https://www.johnholtgws.com/who-was-john-holtPat mentions the following educators and authors in this episode:John Holt, author of How Children Fail, How Children Learn, Learning All The Time, Teach Your Own, Instead of EducationIvan Illich, author of Deschooling SocietyJohn Taylor Gatto, author of Dumbing Us Down, Weapons of Mass InstructionSugata Mitra, TedX talk School in the CloudYou can find my blog, workshops and courses at:www.esther-jones.comOr, connect with me onInstagram: @_esther.jonesFacebook:@theunschoolspace

In this episode, I'm chatting with Rose from Oxfordshire in the UK. Rose lives with her husband and her six-year-old son who is Autistic PDA. They chose not to send him to school, realising that it was just not an environment that could work for him. Rose talks about how life unfolds for them at home and what socialising and learning look like, the value of being able to go at their own rhythms, and the huge importance of placing connection at the centre of everything. And, Rose describes how she supports Leo when things feel particularly challenging for him. Follow Rose on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/unschoolingwithpda/You can find my blog, workshops and courses at:www.esther-jones.comOr, connect with me onInstagram: @_esther.jonesFacebook:@theunschoolspace

My guest today is Coralie who lives in Cambridgeshire with her partner and two children who are 9 and 5. Coralie’s own experiences of school made her realise that life and learning need to feel meaningful and driven by our own unique passions and interests not by external requirements. That, coupled with her son’s diagnosis of Autism and PDA, led her family first to a Steiner school and then to unschooling. Coralie describes what unschooling looks like for her family, how they work together as a family to try to meet everyone’s needs, and what community looks like for them. And just to let you know that Coralie’s family dog is with us for the first ten minutes and giving his two cents in case you are wondering what the sound is. I hope you enjoy the conversation. Connect with Coralie on InstagramYou can find my blog, workshops and courses at:www.esther-jones.comOr, connect with me onInstagram: @_esther.jonesFacebook:@theunschoolspace

My guest today is April Scully. April is a former teacher, who is originally from Toronto but now lives in South Carolina with her husband and two children who are 6 and 9. We talk about how doing well at school doesn’t necessarily help us know who we are or what we want to do, and what it is to have the time and space to explore our passions. And we chat about what that means for us and the impact that unschooling has on our own lives, from taking better care of ourselves to following our own interests. Connect with April (@modern.homeschoolers)InstagramFacebookhttps://modernhomeschoolers.comIn this episode, April mentions: Life Without School podcast Blog post in Zen Habits You can find my blog, workshops and courses at:www.esther-jones.comOr, connect with me onInstagram: @_esther.jonesFacebook:@theunschoolspace