Radical Learning Talks

Should you push your child—or trust that they'll get there in their own time? It's one of the hardest questions parents face, especially when our children develop differently from those around them. Whether it's social confidence, independence, learning or everyday life skills, it can be difficult to know when to step in, when to offer support and when to simply wait. In this episode,...

What's the difference between homeschooling and unschooling? Many people use the terms interchangeably, but they aren't the same thing. While both involve learning outside conventional school, they often reflect very different beliefs about children, learning and the role of parents. In this episode, we explore what separates homeschooling from unschooling—and why the difference goes far b...

What if the most important part of your child's education isn't the curriculum—but the culture of your family? Many parents spend countless hours thinking about learning, routines and educational approaches. But there's something even more fundamental shaping children's lives every day: the culture we create together. In this episode, we explore what family culture really means and...

Have you ever heard of Not Back to School Camp? In this sparkling interview, we chat with NBSC-camper Zoe and ex-camper now advisor Christian, about what this intentional space for unschoolers to connect and explore together is all about! They share stories from previous camp years, the purpose and philosophy of camp, how camp supports youth autonomy and agency and what plays out the weeks that th...

How do children build healthy, meaningful friendships? When we think about friendship, it's easy to focus on whether our children have enough friends. But perhaps the more important question is: What kind of friendships are they building? In this episode, we explore what makes a friendship truly life-enhancing. We reflect on belonging versus fitting in, trust, boundaries, authenticity and why...

What changes when we stop trying to fix neurodivergent children and start trying to understand them? In this episode, we sit down with educator, researcher and unschooling parent Marnie Kammersell to explore neurodivergence through a radically different lens. Together we unpack what labels can—and can't—offer families, why understanding often matters more than diagnosis, and how creating envir...

Can an only child really thrive without school? What about friendships, community and loneliness? These are some of the questions we hear most often from parents considering homeschooling or unschooling. In this episode, we share our personal experiences of raising only children outside the school system. We talk honestly about the challenges, the unexpected gifts, and what community has looked li...

What is low demand parenting, and why is it helping so many families of neurodivergent children? In this episode, we sit down with Amanda Diekman , author of Low Demand Parenting, to explore a radically different way of supporting children whose nervous systems are overwhelmed by expectations, pressure and control. Together we talk about PDA (Pathological Demand Avoidance / Pervasive Drive for Aut...

Why does money feel so stressful for so many of us? Could the way we relate to money have less to do with numbers—and more to do with the stories we've inherited? In this episode, we're joined by somatic healing practitioner Meenadchi , who invites us to look beyond budgeting, mindset and financial advice into something much deeper: our relationship with money itself. Together we explore m...

Burnout isn't just about being tired. It's what happens when we've spent too long living beyond our capacity. In this episode, we share our personal experiences of burnout, what recovery has looked like, and why healing isn't simply about getting more rest. It's about questioning the beliefs that taught us our worth depends on how much we produce. Together we reflect on perfect...

Can we disagree without becoming enemies? Is it still possible to have meaningful conversations across differences? It often feels as though every disagreement has become a battle to win. But what if there was another way? In this episode, we're joined once again by educator, facilitator and creator of the Theory of Indivisibility , Dr. Sundiata , to explore authentic dialogue, power, agency a...

Why do some experiences change us while others simply give us more information? In this episode, we pull back the curtain on The Shift , our week-long deschooling intensive, and explore the thinking behind it. Rather than talking about the logistics, we share why we created The Shift in the first place. We reflect on the difference between learning about something and truly living it, why play can...

What do you do when your child tells you they're transgender or questioning their gender identity? How can you support them while also making space for your own fears and questions? In this episode, we're joined by healing companion and trans man Orion Queer for a thoughtful conversation about what it means to truly support transgender and gender-diverse children. Rather than offering simp...

What does it really mean to let kids be kids? And how often do our own fears, expectations and ideas about the future get in the way? In this episode, we explore what childhood looks like when children have the freedom to play, explore, take risks, follow their curiosity and grow at their own pace. Together we reflect on the pressures many parents feel to prepare children for adulthood, the expect...

We like to think about deschooling as meeting and expanding beyond our edges into new versions of ourselves that better align with our desired way to live and show up in the world. But what happens when our change rubs people we care about the wrong way? What happens when we or they don’t quite feel like we belong anymore? In this episode which is coming out juuuust in time for the holidays, we ta...

Raising kids with respect, consent, autonomy and freedom in our society is definitely going against the norm. It can then be very confusing to see our free-ranged kids question their independence and freedom, push back against limits and behave in ways that society would easily label as “spoiled or bratty”. On one hand, it’s easy to blame our parenting and on the other, let’s face it… it’s trigger...

Kids are usually brought up to tell the truth, but the truth is adults lie all the time. So, why do we lie? What does it do to us and to our relationships? How does it make us feel? And when kids lie to us - what is that really about? And what can we do about it? In this episode of Radical Learning Talks we explore the phenomenon of lying!

"What's the magic word?"; "Say thank you/hello, "; "Sit up straight".... We have either heard these things, been told these things, or said them to others (most often our kids) and the question is who made up these invisible manner rules and why are they so important?! In this episode we look at manners and begin to deschool and unpack the layers of belief, fear,...

For us, the main role of unschooling parents is to support our kids to be who they are and explore their independence, autonomy and critical thinking. The question then is how do we as parents support our kids to navigate their own evolution while being faced with the pressures of societal norms? And, in our case, what can that look like for a neurodivergent teenager and their parents? In this epi...

This is a deep episode where we share personal stories around how we’re deschooling shame and guilt as it relates to pregnancy, birth, miscarriage & abortion. For us, it means looking at how we have responded to and internalized societal expectations on experiences that are both profound and personal. We also talk about what that’s done to our confidence and self-worth, and how we are working...

What happens when our partner or co-parent doesn't seem on board with unschooling? Or, they say they're on board, but they don't seem to undertand and/or engage in the deschooling process. And what does being “on board” even mean?  In this episode we share our experience and perspective about the traps we can find ourselves in when we feel we aren’t in flow with our partners in our uns...

"Is my kid really gonna just sit there and do nothing?" This is a question we hear a lot and have even thought about ourselves during our own deschooling process. It comes from moments of fear and lack of understanding of what is really going on for our kids. In this episode, we dive into what can actually happen for kids that are deschooling, what happens for adults and how we can suppo...

You’ve discovered unschooling and LOVE it! You take your kids out of school, they start deschooling/unschooling and... suddenly they tell you they want to go back to school?! Or, maybe your kid has never been to school and keeps asking you to start. Regardless of whatever situation you identify with, it might totally freak you out! And we get it. It's scary and annoying when our kids reject th...

In this episode, we hang out with Tomis Parker, one of the co-founders of the ALC model and of the ASDE, and dive deep into the diversity, struggles and evolution of the agile learning world.  Tomis is an unschooling dad and is passionate about sharing the ALC model and contributing to systemic & social change through building bridges to and through the work of SDE.  We also talk about our sha...

Meet Ophelia, an 18 year old Unschooler that shares their perspectives around unschooling and the ways parents can get so invested in unschooling that they forget the most important part: consent and needs of their kids. Who does unschooling really support, the parent or the kid and how can we move towards more connection and collaboration with our kids?