Radical Learning Talks

How do you deschool friendships? We don’t really have an answer to that, but in this episode we explore our respective journeys through friendships. We share how our perceptions around what a friendship is have evolved; what we’ve learned from having been ditched by some and what has lead us to walk away from others; how our capacities for holding another have developed; and how our own friendship is taking on new dimensions as we expand as humans and lean into our deschooling & unschooling journeys. Ready for a deep conversation? Join us!

Marni Kammersell is a neurodivergent parent to three neurodivergent children and passionate about a lot of things, including the neurodiversity paradigm, self-directed education and non-coercive relationships. As a neurodiversity educator, Marni specializes in supporting parents and families in understanding experience through the lens of the nervous system. This unusual and thought provoking conversation takes many turns, through disabilities & ableism, nervous systems and diagnosis, leading us into asking some really important questions: Who would we be if we hadn’t learned to fit into a mold? What could that look like? Would neurodivergence not be such a stigma if we all had more wiggle room to show up as our authentic selves? And what does “neurotypical” really mean? Join us as we explore these questions and more! // You can find Marni’s work and contact her here: https://wanderingbrightly.com/about/ Additional Resources
Neuroqueer Heresies by Nick Walker We're All Neurodiverse by Sonny Jane Wise Raising Kids with Big, Baffling Behaviors by Robyn Gobbel A Different Way to Learn by Naomi Fisher Demystifying Disability by Emily Ladau Disability Visibility by Alice Wong (Editor)

In this episode we address a question proposed by one of our listeners… Is it possible to unschool an only child? What does unschooling look like to children with no siblings? What are the challenges? And are there any benefits to that? In this episode we share our thoughts around unschooling only kids through our lives experience and perspective as mamas to two only children! Also… If you have suggestions for topics that we still haven’t covered: please feel free to send them to us! We’d love to explore them! You can reach out to us at info@radical-learning.org

In this episode we chat with Amanda Diekman, also known as Low Demand Amanda - an autistic adult, parent coach, author in the neurodiversity space and leading voice in the movement for low demand parenting practices. Amanda shares about the low demand approach to supporting neurodivergent kids by dropping demands, centering their humanity and moving away from ableism. We talk about so much including stepping away from societal “norms”, authenticity, embracing neurodivergence, PDA (Pervasive Drive for Autonomy), privilege and more! You can find Amanda here: www.amandadiekman.com http://www.instagram.com/lowdemandamanda http://www.facebook.com/lowdemandamanda You can sign up for Radical Learning Offerings, including Freedom to Learn here: https://radical-learning.thinkific.com/collections/products

In this weeks episode we have Meenadchi in the house! Meenadchi is a somatic healing practitioner and the author of Decolonizing Non-Violent Communication. We invited her to Radical Learning Talks to talk about money and how we can deschool our relationship to money. If you think money is the root of all evil… or feel bad for having more than others… or are having a hard time generating enough for yourself and your family… this episode is for you! Meenadchi has been an instrumental companion supporting us to deschool, entangle and embrace our relationship to money and we are super excited to share this very tender and real conversation with you. Meenadchi’s Healing Money Trauma Program: https://www.meenadchi.com/healingmoneytrauma * give the code/reference “Radical Learning for a 5% discount! Website: https://www.meenadchi.com Instagram: @with.meenadchi https://www.instagram.com/with.meenadchi/ Free ancestral healing activity: https://auspicious-block-866.myflodesk.com/h2hvtsx9kf Resources mentioned in podcast: It Didn't Start With You by Mark Wolynn Another Selfon Netflix Sarah Peyton

This episode is an unsual conversation that took place on the last day of our The Shift training we did in Ojai, February 2024. It was requested by one of the participants, and so those of us who wanted gathered and talked about the relationship bewteen peace and self-directed education. The conversation was recorded but not initially intended as an episode for Radical Learning Talks. It was after having recorded that we got the idea to include it on our podcast. Why? Because these kinds of conversations tend to happen during The Shift, but it’s the first time we recorded one, and why not share the beauty? All participants have given their consent to share the recording with y’all. We hope you like it! Participating are Jennie, Spence, Tomas, Rosemary, Janice, Becka and Sari.

Burnout is real. And it’s no stranger to unschooling and/or running alternative education projects! But what does burnout even mean?! Well, it’s not just about being exhausted or simple tasks seeming impossible. It’s when your system actually starts breaking down and you begin loose cognitive functioning because you are operating well above your capacity or means. Too many of us have been there and/or feel stuck in it Why? Well, it’s because of society’s result driven systems that are based on perfectionism, urgency, and the need to constantly be on top of your game. In this episode we chat about our burnout, what caused it, how we are recovering from it and how we are working to shift a lifetime of programmings in order to not just survive, but heal and thrive. Wanna join us for the ride? Listen in! ~ Resources mentioned in episode: Burnout support: Sanna Koritz @ https://www.sannakoritz.com Freedom to Learn Course: https://radical-learning.thinkific.com/courses/freedom-to-learn

Once again, we have the great honor of having Dr. Sundiata Soon-Jahta on our podcast! This time, we talk about how social justice movements can often perpetuate the very systems of oppression and power-over dynamics that we’re trying to walk away from, resulting in what Dr. Sundiata shares is a system archetype called a “feedback loop”. The solution? Well, as a systems thinker and anti-oppression organizer, Dr. Sundiata suggests that we all engage in some serious inner work. He believes that change is fractal and when we change within, it affects our outside reality and those around us. So, instead of feeling disempowered by all the injustice we see in our world, we can empower ourselves to be the very change we dream of and show up for our young people, families and communities in the ways we truly strive to. ~ You can find all of Dr. Sundiata's work including his Theory of Indivisibility and other think pieces and resources mentioned in the episode here: https://drsundiata.com https://drsundiata.com/blog/ And if you enjoy what you hear, please consider supporting Dr. Sundiata's work here: https://www.patreon.com/LiveIndivisible/posts

It’s not often we decide to get together and offer The Shift, our 7-day in person Deschooling Intensive. For those who’ve taken it, they know the magic that is involved. For those who haven’t yet, it might be hard to understand what the fuss is all about. So, we decided to record an episode on what’s up with The Shift, so that you can get a clearer and better understadning of why this offering is a must if you’re a parent or if you work with kids! And… if after listening you still have questions, please reach out! We’d love to talk to you.

For us, unschooling is about so much more than learning or who gets to decide what it is and how and when it unfolds. It's about dismantling the power structures that keep all of us less than who we are or have the potential to be. And this starts with looking at our own limiting thoughts and beliefs. In this episode of Radical Learning Talks we chat Orion, a healing companion and trans man who helps us dive into the topic of being transgender. How can you support a trans kid? How do you work through your own discomfort and fears to be present and fully show up for them in their growth, learning and discovery? This is for all of us who have or know kids that identify as non binary and/or trans and want to better understand how to support them in their journey.