Best Unschooling podcasts we could find (Updated October 2018)
Related podcasts: Education School Education Unschooling public [search 0]
Related podcasts: Education School Education Unschooling public [search 0]
Pam Laricchia shares interviews, information, and inspiration about unschooling and living joyfully with your family.
Want to know more about unschooling? How about radical unschooling? (It's not as scary or as wild as some people make out!) Join me as I share ideas, stories, homeschool record-keeping tips and resources for living an unschooling life of unconditional love.
Exploring the ideas and practices of unschooling and Self-Directed Education
This week, I'm chatting about unlimited screen time. Is this a simple issue? If we let our unschooled kids have unlimited access to screens and trust them, will they learn to self-regulate their usage without any problems? Or is there more to discuss than that? I'm sharing my story, Is It Really Okay to Let Unschooling Kids Have Unlimited Acces ...…
Caren Knox is a long-time unschooling mom who found that, while she has been in and out of therapy over the years, nothing has been more impactful and life-changing for her than becoming a good unschooling mom. We dive into her family’s move to unschooling, when her healing journey began, her healing process and what she found helpful, how she ...…
This week, I'm talking about how unschooling can be approached in a gradual way. I'm sharing a story: A Gradual Approach to Unschooling. And discussing the following questions: Is a gradual approach the best way for many families to begin unschooling?Is mutual trust between parent and child essential?Is it really okay if our kids spend all day ...…
Unschooling and... the numbers. Homeschooling numbers have risen dramatically in the last two decades— and unschooling numbers have spiked in just 4 years. Self-directed education is catching on, and unschooling learning centers (like those spotlighted in this week’s glowing Boston Globe article: https://www.bostonglobe.com/magazine/2018/10/02/ ...…
As Jen Lumanlan puts it, “I don’t have much in the way of parenting instinct but I make up for it with outstanding research skills.” Her deep dive into parenting research led first to a Master’s in Psychology with a focus on Child Development, then to another Master’s in Education, and then ultimately to choosing unschooling as the path forward ...…
This week, I'm sharing my story Funny How Things Change. It's about school term time and holidays. It's also a typical day story. I'm also discussing the questions: How did our attitude towards holidays change when we became unschoolers?Do unschoolers need holidays?If we want our kids to respond to our strewing invitations, do we need to respon ...…
Natasha Allan-Zaky joins me this week for a wonderful unschooling conversation! We talk about her family’s move to unschooling, the challenge of embracing fun, learning piano, her biggest a-ha moment so far on the journey, and lots more. Questions for Natasha Can you share with us a bit about you and your family? What did your family’s move to ...…
In this episode, I share details from my recent keynote presentation at the New Hampshire School Administrators Association conference. The title of my keynote was “The Future of Education is Unschooling,” and I presented it to the more than 200 district superintendents, assistant superintendents, school principals, and other school leaders in ...…
This week, I'm chatting with my teenage daughter Sophie. We start with these conversation prompts: Something we've been thinking aboutSomething we've found difficultSomething we've enjoyedSomething we've read or listened toSomething we've watched And we end up talking about: Why making rules can be dangerousBalancing work, passions, and taking ...…
Amanda Sharma joins me this week to share her fascinating perspective as a grown unschooler who is now unschooling her own children. We dive into her experience growing up unschooling, the process of choosing unschooling for her children and family, what she’s found challenging on the journey, her favourite thing about unschooling right now, an ...…
This week, I'm sharing and discussing the post When an Unschooler Isn't Interested in Maths. It's the promised update to my daughter Gemma-Rose's unschooling maths story. Also, I have a maths resource to share. And I tell a couple of stories. One involves a huge kangaroo and the other ponders the questions: What is success? How do we measure it ...…
I first met Alec Traaseth and his family when he was maybe twelve or thirteen, at an unschooling conference. I’ve enjoyed little glimpses of his life over the years through social media and I was so happy when he agreed to come on the podcast to chat about his experience growing up unschooling. We talk about his interests and passions, his expe ...…
This week, I'm sharing a story called Making Unschooled Kids Learn Maths Just in Case. And I'm discussing the main points in it. Is it sensible to make all kids learn maths just in case they might need it? What if kids need maths to go to university? What if they decide they want to go to school? Show Notes Blog post Making Unschooled Kids Lear ...…
Wendy Hart and her husband are unschooling their eight-year-old daughter. They live in Ontario, Canada where Wendy runs a local un/homeschool group that hosts fun activities, like yesterday’s Not Back to School Beach Meet-Up! We dive into how she discovered unschooling, how she’s helping her daughter pursue her interests, her biggest stumbling ...…
This week, I'm sharing a story called Are You a Curious Unschooler? I'm also discussing the following questions: Is everyone curious?Or can we lose our curiosity?Can we strew verbally?Do we have to be good examples of learning for our kids?Does our curiosity make homeschool recordkeeping easier?How can we unschool and also be registered homesch ...…
This week on the podcast, I’ve put together a new kind of Q&A. It dawned on me recently that I’ve written many thousands of words in email replies to unschooling-related questions over the last few years. And I suspect that, for every person who actually emailed me, there are many others with a similar question in mind. So, I gathered a handful ...…
This week on the podcast, I’ve put together a compilation of sixteen experienced unschooling parents answering the question, “Looking back, what has been the most valuable outcome from choosing unschooling?” I titled this episode The Sparkle of Unschooling because the guests are talking about THE ONE THING. It’s the thing we eventually discover ...…
Courtney Barker and her husband Dave are unschooling their three children. Originally from Australia, they moved to Northern Zambia when their first child was 12 weeks old. Four years later they moved to Chile, and four years after that they moved to Canada. We have a wonderful conversation about their journey from school to unschooling, her mo ...…
Jessica Hughes and her husband, Micah, have three children, ages 11 to 18. When their kids were younger, they were homeschooling with a curriculum but they eventually found their way to unschooling. We talk about that journey, what you can do when you feel caught up in everyday “struggles,” supporting your husband’s journey, shifting away from ...…
Is unschooling anti-intellectual? Some of its roots might be, but modern unschoolers know that Self-Directed Education can lead to much more intellectual rigor and academic mastery than conventional schooling and school-at-home educational approaches. References: Bailey, Richard. A.S. Neill. London: Bloomsbury Publishing, 2013: pp. 138-9. Wheat ...…
Anna Brown is back! We have so much fun diving into her family’s move to unschooling, how she developed trust in the process, what she found to be the most challenging aspect, tips for moving from conventional parenting to consensual living, stretching our comfort zones, and lots more. Ten Questions for Anna 1. Can you share with us a bit about ...…
In this week's episode, I'm talking about: How my daughters are earning money while they continue to pursue their passionsWhy it's okay not to finish everything we startWhat I've been doing recentlyWhy I left InstagramWhy Gemma-Rose is painting the interior of our houseImogen's first novel and where you can buy a copy! As usual, I have some sto ...…
Virginia Warren’s two daughters have never been to school. We have great fun diving into their journey to unschooling, her biggest stumbling block along the way, her perspective as a gamer mom, what’s surprised her most so far, what her favourite thing about unschooling is right now, and lots more! Questions for Virginia Can you share with us a ...…
Every 40 to 50 years, it seems, there is a surge of interest in alternative education ideas. Beginning with John Dewey in the 1880s, followed by another spike in interest in the 1920s, and then the radical education reformers of the 1960s, we might wonder: Is this just the next iteration of alternative education ideas? Will today's unschooling ...…
Béa Mantovani is an unschooling mom with two children. I’ve known Béa online in unschooling circles for quite a few years—she’s even translated some of my blog posts into French. We have a really interesting conversation as we dive into the twists and turns of their unschooling lives, including how she found unschooling, her biggest deschooling ...…
Iris Chen is a Chinese American unschooling mom who was born in the US, grew up in the US and Canada, and now lives with her husband and two boys in China. She’s been unschooling for about a year and began sharing her experiences on her blog at untigering.com. I’ve really enjoyed reading her posts, and I was excited when she agreed to come on t ...…
This episode describes how unschooling is the preferred education approach, not only to nurture our children's current interests, passions, and autonomy, but also to prepare them for the future of work. In a world where the majority of children now entering elementary school will work in jobs that have yet to be invented--and when some of today ...…
In this episode, we explore the opposing ideas of freedom and coercion, from their philosophical roots to their modern societal manifestations to their influence on unschooling theory and practice. Episode Notes: Thomas Jefferson (1816): “If a nation expects to be ignorant and free in a state of civilization, it expects what never was and never ...…
Maria Randolph’s unschooled daughter is now twenty, which gives her a great perspective to look back on her own deschooling, It was a fascinating journey! We talk about what she found to be one of the most challenging areas to deschool, regret and how it can get in the way, her journey through the question, “But how will they learn math?” and l ...…
Ronnie Maier has two daughters now in their twenties, who unschooled after leaving school in the early grades—plus a niece who has stayed with them part-time over the years. In a fun twist, Ronnie was the working parent while her husband Frank was the at-home unschooling parent. Ronnie has shared her family’s unschooling experience for many yea ...…
Noah Tetzner is seventeen, left school last fall, and it was not long before he was passionately unschooling. We talk about his transition from school to unschooling, what excites him about unschooling, the podcast he’s now had time to start, his advice for new unschooling parents and lots more. Questions for Noah Can you share with us a bit ab ...…
Unschooling And…Its Origins Kerry McDonald Many people believe that unschooling began with John Holt. While it is most certainly true that John Holt coined the term “unschooling” in the late-1970s as part of his work in the emerging modern homeschooling movement, the philosophical roots of unschooling and Self-Directed Education go back centuri ...…
Zach and Heather Lake join me this week to talk about Zach’s journey from reluctant spouse to unschooling advocate. Heather has been on the podcast before taking about her deschooling journey, and after the episode she mentioned that her husband has had quite the journey as well. It occurred to me that it would be interesting to have them on to ...…
Unschooling and…Freedom June 13, 2018 By Kerry McDonald This inaugural episode focuses on unschooling and…freedom. I am excited to launch this new podcast series that amplifies the ideas and practices of unschooling and Self-Directed Education using a broad array of topic launching pads. Unschooling can be connected to so many things in the pas ...…
Ann Rousseau and her partner Tim have been unschooling their three boys for about six years. Ann and I have a fascinating conversation, digging into how her family came to unschooling, moving through fear and discomfort, the many ways curiosity drives their days, her documentary about her experience of alopecia, and lots more. Questions for Ann ...…
This month, Anna Brown and I treat you to an extra long Q&A episode as we finish up the remaining questions! We dive into questions around the challenge of deschooling while holding tight to your fears, engaging with the unschooling community before having kids of your own, the decision to unschool, the transformational impact of shifting our m ...…
This week on the podcast, we have the first compilation episode! I gathered clips from fourteen different episodes where I asked some version of this question: “What has been one of the more challenging aspects for you on your unschooling journey?” I think it’s fascinating to hear them side by side, but I’d love to know what you think. Please l ...…
Jen Kobrick connected with me recently and suggested an episode about the idea of unschooling in the early years—before kids reach school age. Her son is almost three and she so beautifully explained why she thought it was a valuable topic that I asked if she’d be interested in talking about it with me. I was thrilled she said yes! We have a gr ...…
This week on the podcast I’m trying something new: a round table discussion on a single topic. Questions around food are very common as people are deschooling and contemplating releasing control over their children’s food choices and Sylvia Woodman, Jo Isaac, and Meredith Novak join me to talk all things food. I hope you find our conversation h ...…
This week, Cricket is my unschooling guest podcaster. The Colin Show Cricket tells us about her familyShe shares their journey from school-at-home homeschooling to unschooling Cricket recorded her guest podcast with her son Colin’s help. Please visit Colin’s Youtube Channel, The Colin Show, and subscribe! Hitting the Pause Button I share some o ...…
Robin Bentley is an unschooling mom who loves dancing hula, playing the yukelele, and supporting her daughter’s exploration of her interests and passions. We have a wonderful conversation about unschooling passions, including how supporting our child’s interests often ends up being a positive experience for us as well, healing our own childhood ...…
This week, Venisa McAllister is my guest podcaster. Thankful Venisa is talking about: Her own educational and childhood experiencesHow her family moved from homeschooling to unschoolingHer children and how they have their individual learning stylesThe reasons she is thankful her family is unschooling Facing Facts I'm talking about: How perfecti ...…
Anna Brown joins Pam to answer listener questions. This month we dive into questions around managing the environment when a parent works at home, when we’re not a “perfect mom,” helping our kids learn about diversity, when you’re not into your child’s passion, and helping your children process their emotions without taking them on yourself. Cli ...…
This week, I'm chatting with my teenage daughter Sophie. We're discussing lots of questions including: What extra content am I producing for my Patreon patrons? What has Imogen been doing instead of making music videos? Why have I asked my daughters Imogen and Sophie to be regular contributors to my blog? Why should we take an interest in our k ...…
Erin Human is an unschooling mom of two and she joins me this week to talk about her experiences with unschooling and autism. Erin has an autistic son, and was diagnosed with autism herself as an adult. She’s also a wonderful artist and is the art director for Autism Women’s Network, as well as co-founding director of Autistic Families Internat ...…
This week, I'm talking about ageing and unschooling. I share the reasons why I'm finding my ageing appearance difficult to accept. Maybe you are a lot younger than me. You could think this conversation isn't relevant to you. However, this episode, despite first impressions, is about unschooling. If everyone lived an unschooling way of life, wou ...…
Xander MacSwan left school in the 5th grade when his parents—both professors in the University of Maryland’s College of Education—decided the best thing they could do was pull their kids out of school and start unschooling. We dive deep into Xander’s passion for video games, including the difference between gaming as part of deschooling and cho ...…
This week, I'm discussing the question Does Unschooling Work? The answer, of course, depends on what we mean by the word 'work'. I'm also talking about: My fabulous Patreon patrons and the work I hope to do with their helpCamp NaNoWriMoHow kids learn new things when they have a needHow younger siblings think they are just as capable as their ol ...…
Nikole Verde and I have a great conversation about how, with unschooling, everything’s connected. Nikole is the home ed columnist at JUNO Magazine and she’s been doing a fun series where she looks at how different topics—or subjects, from a more school-ish mindset—can weave into our unschooling lives. Eventually, we notice that all of those top ...…
This week, I'm sharing my new BIG idea. I'm joining Patreon! I hope you will join me as I set out on this next chapter of my unschooling adventure. I'm also talking about: The need for us to take risksHow the world needs unschoolingInstagramHow we shouldn't lose our playful spirit as we grow olderHow Sophie filmed a Passion Play on Good FridayA ...…
