Australian Homeschool Stories

Episode 7

"Stepping back and letting kids learn is really what's at the heart of home education." Meet my friend, Nicola. We originally connected via substack and then in person whilst her family spent time down on the Peninsula. Our daughters, who are similar ages, hit it off instantaneously and in truth so did Nicola and I. This was prior to their move to the mid-north coast of New South Wales where they now call home, but Nicola’s story takes us on journey from Melbourne to Byron Bay, Vanuatu to Far North Tropical Queensland. Hers is a story of profound loss and grief, of spirituality and discipline, of wanting to be the person to teach her daughter to read and of being deeply connected to the natural world.  This is episode 40 of Australian Homeschool Stories, Nicola’s story. FULL SHOW NOTES HERE Follow the link above to find the detailed show notes for this episode along with quotes, links and references to all that Nicola and I discuss. CONNECT https://surrendernow.substack.com/ Sign up to our mailing list HERE to receive new episodes and their accompanying show notes delivered straight to your inbox as they are released. This podcast was recorded on the land of the Bunurong people of the Kulin Nation. I pay my respect to elders past, present and emerging and acknowledge that sovereignty was never ceded. This always was, always will be aboriginal land.

"I had this really strong feeling that she was just a number in this place and that's not good enough." Anna is a worm farmer, author and homesteading mother of three children aged 15, 7 and 2. In this episode she shares her journey from suburbia to living off the land and her eldest daughter's winding educational road to homeschooling. We also talk about permaculture, living life by design, managing chronic illness and her brilliant book Homegrown Healthy Living. This is episode 39 of Australian Home School Stories - Anna’s Story. FULL SHOW NOTES HERE Follow the link above to find the detailed show notes for this episode along with quotes, links and references to all that Anna and I discuss. CONNECT Website - homegrownhealth.au Instagram - @homegrown_healthy_living Sign up to our mailing list HERE to receive new episodes and their accompanying show notes delivered straight to your inbox as they are released. Alternatively you can stay in touch with us on instagram @australianhomeschoolstories This podcast was recorded on the land of the Bunurong people of the Kulin Nation. I pay my respect to elders past, present and emerging and acknowledge that sovereignty was never ceded. This always was, always will be aboriginal land. 

“I’m going to look back one day on this and think those were the glory years." Teacher by trade, Canadian by birth, Melanie is here to share how she wound up calling Newcastle home and why she and her partner chose home education for their two boys, aged 7 and 4. In this episode we talk about longing for community in the early years of motherhood, not being ‘ride or die’ homeschoolers, how play evolves as children mature, intentional living, why screens have become the new social playground and the magical power of asking the question ‘What If…?’ FULL SHOW NOTES HERE Follow the link above to find the detailed show notes for this episode along with quotes, links and references to all Melanie shares. CONNECT Instagram - @freespirithomeschool Instagram - @digital_wellbeing_teacher Sign up to our mailing list HERE to receive new episodes and their accompanying show notes delivered straight to your inbox as they are released. Alternatively you can stay in touch with us on instagram @australianhomeschoolstories This podcast was recorded on the land of the Bunurong people of the Kulin Nation. I pay my respect to elders past, present and emerging and acknowledge that sovereignty was never ceded. This always was, always will be aboriginal land. 

“If you can’t find your village or community - build one.” This is the story of Kacey’s blended family from Perth who have called themselves eclectic homeschoolers for the last three years. Her four children aged 19, 17, 6 and 4 have all had contrasting educational experiences, from thriving in the system, to never being able to catch up, to sidestepping school all together. In this honest and candid conversation, Kacey and I chat about school trauma, holistic, child-centred learning, finding yourself in homeschooling, the ins and outs of building a community co-op and yearning for something outside of motherhood. FULL SHOW NOTES HERE Follow the link above to find the detailed show notes for this episode along with quotes, links and references to all Kacey shares. CONNECT Instagram - @homeschooling.our.wildflowers Instagram - @wildlingshomeschool.collective Sign up to our mailing list HERE to receive new episodes and their accompanying show notes delivered straight to your inbox as they are released. Alternatively you can stay in touch with us on instagram @australianhomeschoolstories This podcast was recorded on the land of the Bunurong people of the Kulin Nation. I pay my respect to elders past, present and emerging and acknowledge that sovereignty was never ceded. This always was, always will be aboriginal land. 

“We said, I don't know if it's forever. I don't know if it's temporary. But we're making a change. Now we say we'll never go back.” This episode is a delightful doubleheader with Holly & Gemma, sisters who live 6 minutes apart in Queensland’s capital city where they homeschool three girls between them. You may already know their cheery voices from their podcast Sisters Who Homeschool, of which I had the pleasure of being a guest on earlier this year. I loved reconnecting with these ladies and diving deeper into their stories of how and why they came to choose home education for their families. As well you will hear us discuss Canaries in the Coalmine - Teachers who Choose to Homeschool, Gemma’s new book she has written which is due out next year, creating a micro village, prioritising mental wellbeing and connection, why none of us like the word ‘resilient’, granny hobbies, interest based learning and busting homeschool myths. FULL SHOW NOTES HERE Follow the link about to find the detailed show notes for this episode along with quotes, links and references to all Holly & Gemma share. CONNECT Podcast - Sisters Who Homeschool Instagram - @sisterswhohomeschool Email - hello.sisterswhohomeschool@gmail.com Sign up to our mailing list HERE to receive new episodes and their accompanying show notes delivered straight to your inbox as they are released. Alternatively you can stay in touch with us on instagram @australianhomeschoolstories This podcast was recorded on the land of the Bunurong people of the Kulin Nation. I pay my respect to elders past, present and emerging and acknowledge that sovereignty was never ceded. This always was, always will be aboriginal land. 

“Have trust in the kids, know that they can follow their passions intuitively. We don’t have to set all these standards of where they should be or would be or could be if they were in the system. Just trust.” Assunta, her husband and two daughters (aged 11 and 8), live on 2.5 acres in the upper Hunter region of New South Wales, where she is never happier than with her feet on the earth and her hands in the dirt. In this conversation we cover how their family navigated the transition from Steiner education to homeschooling, mourning the loss of the life they had envisaged whilst being accepting of change, permaculture, craft clubs, screen boundaries, travelling as a form of deschooling and Assunta’s Seeds of Gratitude curriculum. FULL SHOW NOTES HERE Follow the link above to find the detailed show notes for this episode along with quote, links and references to all Assunta shares. CONNECT Instagram: @seedsofgratitude_ @lola_sage_homeschool @assunta.layla Sign up to our mailing list HERE to receive new episodes and their accompanying show notes delivered straight to your inbox as they are released. Alternatively, you can stay in touch with us on instagram @australianhomeschoolstories This podcast was recorded on the land of the Bunurong people of the Kulin Nation. I pay my respects to elders past, present and emerging and acknowledge that sovereignty was never ceded. This always was, always will be aboriginal land.

Send us a Text Message. "Before we had kids, we were both adamant that we wouldn't put our kids in daycare. We wanted to raise our kids at home. We always knew we were aligned on that. So that's where it started. We were at home. We were together.” The tables have turned and it’s me, your host Stephanie, in the hot seat. Helping me tell my story is the tech-side of this operation, my husband Daniel. For those who have listened to this podcast for some time you may have pieced parts of my story together over previous episodes, but I’m sitting down to share it all in what will be the final episode of Season Three. SUMMARY: Our family live on the Mornington Peninsula, Bunurong Country, in a sleepy little country town beside the sea. We left our Melbourne roots when I turned 30 to pursue a slower, simpler life and to raise our kids immersed in the natural world. I had a fairly typical, carefree 90s childhood, spent running around the streets with the neighbourhood kids. At primary school my fondest and most vivid memories are of spending recess and lunch up trees with my friends, deep in imaginary play.  Even though I hadn't come across the idea of homeschooling until after we had our daughter, the roots of homeschooling had naturally been embedded into our lives unknowingly as we were adamant we wanted to keep them close and at home whilst they were little. The irony of feeling pulled towards homeschooling whilst having our baby daughter on the waitlist for private high schools. Once the idea had taken hold in my heart, I began devouring anything and everything I could get my hands on to do with homeschooling. I spent years deschooling myself through book and podcasts because the vision of what our lives could look like if we followed this path was so clear. I had faith that if it meant enough to me, Dan would find his way to where I was too. But I knew it would take time, for him to even consider it, so I was patient but remained persistent. When setting up our lives to adopt a homeschooling lifestyle we moved houses to a more affordable area, we went from being a two car to a one car family, and these descision all aligned with the vision we had for our future. We have four tenets in our family that guide our days. They are art, music, books and nature. Community and food and are also hugely important. That's what I always come back to. The hardest thing about homeschooling is toddlers. CONNECT Substack - Splendid To Be Instagram - @splendidtobe NOTE: This is an abridged version of the show notes. Follow the link below to find quotes, links and references to all Steph shares in this episode: FULL SHOW NOTES HERE Connect with us: Instagram - @australianhomeschoolstories Substack - Australian Homeschool Stories This podcast is recorded on the lands of the Bunurong people of the Kulin nation. I pay my respects to elders past, present and emerging and acknowledge that sovereignty was never ceded. This always was, always will be aboriginal land.

"Even all the times when it was really, really hard, if I could go back right to the beginning now, I would make exactly the same choices to do it all over again. It's just been the most beautiful experience of my life.” Today I have the pleasure of sharing Joss Goulden’s reflections on her adult children’s natural learning life. As an aware parenting instructor and parenting coach, Joss is passionate about supporting children and parents to thrive and heal with compassion and connection. In this episode she beautifully espouses how much her family’s homeschooling journey has meant to her. Settle in, pour yourself a cup of tea and let the sage words of encouragement from Joss wash over you. SUMMARY Joss was born in the Phillipines but grew up mostly in the UK. Her father was a diplomat which meant her family travelled a lot and at the age of 8 she was sent to boarding school in the UK, where she stayed for the remainder of her schooling. Joss left school with a lot of trauma that she wasn’t aware of at the time but she was interested in people and psychology and how we work as humans and went on to study psychology, human communication science & counselling. She and her husband settled in Australia after spending years travelling themselves, and when they decided to have children of their own, Joss dove deep into the attachment and aware parenting philosophies. Attachment is the first and most fundamental aspect of aware parenting and what children need in order to thrive is this sense that they are safely connected with another adult who loves them, who cares about their wellbeing, who is tuned into them and is responsive to their needs. Where they feel safe and supported and loved.  Attachment, relationship, connection and safety are vitally important for children's well-being. How & why homeschooling naturally evolved into natural learning for their family. The importance of surrounding yourself with like minded community and how her own community varied and evolved over the years. Seeing the value of all kinds of learning equally. How Joss navigated the teen years and the natural separation process with the strong foundation of love and support that has guided them throughout. The pathways her eldest took getting into TAFE and university. It’s okay to take your children out of school. It’s okay to do things differently.  CONNECT Instagram - @awareparentingwithjoss Facebook - Aware Parenting with Joss Website - awareparenting.com.au NOTE: This is an abridged version of the show notes. Follow the link below to find quotes, links and references to all Joss shares in this episode: FULL SHOW NOTES HERE Connect with us: Instagram - @australianhomeschoolstories Substack - Australian Homeschool Stories This podcast is recorded on the lands of the Bunurong people of the Kulin nation. I pay my respects to elders past, present and emerging and acknowledge that sovereignty was never ceded. This always was, always will be aboriginal land.

“How many of us are in our 40s now only just learning how to be artists again because we were told we weren't any good at it?” Bel is raising her two boys (aged 8 and 5) alongside her sister and daughter (aged 6) with the loving support of their parents. They all live & learn together on four acres overlooking the beautiful Derwent River in the Central Highlands of Tasmania. This multigenerational family are an inspiring example of folk who have dared to do things a little differently. They are all reaping the benefits of living life without school, with plenty of love and support. SUMMARY Born and bred Tassie girl Bel attended a tiny primary school (42 kids in total) and aside from two difficult years, she mostly loved school. She had a great memory, was an early effortless reader and eager to please - a teacher’s dream! Bel always knew she wanted to be a mum, but was unlucky in love. After a few nudges from others, she woke up one morning and thought, I’m just going to do it myself. It felt like the right thing to do and it was a straight forward IVF experience. Bel recalls how one property sparked all their imaginations and brought three generations of the one family together, six years ago. Her eldest son enjoyed his kindergarten experience so it came as a shock to Bel when his teacher suggested he would be labelled a naughty kid at school for being a bit of dreamer and that maybe she should consider homeschooling. When Tassie borders re-opened post covid lockdown, Bel’s hand was forced into giving homeschooling a chance so to keep her family healthy in order to keep her business running. They began with a play based pre-school curriculum at home and were learning & deschooling on the fly with their choice to homeschool being a last minute decision. "And then by the time I’d really read into homeschooling, I was like, well, this is it. I can't go back now.” How Bel is able to run her business, unschool her kids and take care of herself and her family Bel outlines how each member of the family has a different role to play in the larger dynamic of this multigenerational household and how these have naturally fallen into place over the years. Despite easily deschooling, Bel still gets the reading wobbles! Don’t we all? Freedom and time together are her favourite aspects of homeschooling. Homeschooling kids deserve to have interests that aren't an educational topic. CONNECT Instagram - @bel.birds NOTE: This is an abridged version of the show notes. Follow the link below to find quotes, links and references to all resources, books and inspiration Bel shares in this episode: FULL SHOW NOTES HERE Connect with us: Instagram - @australianhomeschoolstories Substack - Australian Homeschool Stories This podcast is recorded on the lands of the Bunurong people of the Kulin nation. I pay my respects to elders past, present and emerging and acknowledge that sovereignty was never ceded. This always was, always will be aboriginal land.

"I want to unschool to give her more freedom. I can't start the journey by forcing her out of school... you can send your kids to school and still be an unschooler in my view. The point is they have the choice” Italy may be Ilaria’s country of origin but she well and truly calls our nations capital home. She and her husband (who fatefully met on the day she arrived in Australia over 23 years ago) are raising their two daughters (ages 14 and 8) on a small farm, that she lovingly describes as a geriatric retirement home for animals. Their unschooling experiment began during the covid pandemic lockdowns and they haven’t looked back. SUMMARY Growing up Ilaria's parents described school as her job. They went to work, she went to school. Her duty was to make the most of it and do a good job and she did.  The idea of homeschooling began as a joke when Ilaria was deciding on which school to send her daughter to and none of the local options were overly impressive, but it was lockdowns that opened her eyes to the real possibility of adopting an unschooling lifestyle. Because her kids were home, she started observing them and thinking - if she let them do whatever they want, what would they actually learn? Once she saw first hand that they were naturally ticking off the curriculum, they began their unschooling adventure in earnest. Social connections, just like learning, are different in this lifestyle. Navigating teen friendships has been their greatest, but only challenge. Everything else has been a joy. Ilaria loves that her kids ask a tonne of really amazing, left field questions as she herself remembers never asking questions in class because she was so terrified of saying the wrong thing. "For the first time in my life, I'm learning because I want to. You know, I think maybe that's secretly the best part of it." Ilaria and her family are a tech family, if they are not out and about in the world they tend to be on screens at home. Other resources that contribute to unschooling for their family are Chat GPT, the wildlife sanctuary where her daughter volunteers, musical theatre, boardgames, science kits, podcasts, audiobooks and social media. The Canberra Homeschool Open Day organised by Ilaria will be held on May 20th 2024 and you can find out more information about it via their website. “I do have hobbies. Like I love to sew and I make soap and all of that. But really, at the moment, my main hobby is homeschooling my kids. It sounds pretty, I don't know, weird. But I'm having a ball doing it.” INSPIRATION Unschooling Mom2Mom podcast CONNECT Instagram - @unschooling_adventure Canberra Homeschool Open Day website - homeschoolopendaycanberra.weebly.com NOTE: This is an abridged version of the show notes. Follow the link below to find a more detailed summary of what Ilaria shares in this episode. FULL SHOW NOTES HERE Connect with us: Instagram - @australianhomeschoolstories Substack - Australian Homeschool Stories This podcast is recorded on the lands of the Bunurong people of the Kulin nation. I pay my respects to elders past, present and emerging and acknowledge that sovereignty was never ceded. This always was, always will be aboriginal land.

“They spent their preschool years when they were three and four years old playing all the time. But then they went to school and they forgot how to play.” Elisa is a newly minted homeschooler. This is the episode you are going to want to listen to if you are on the precipice of taking the leap into homeschooling or you have found yourself deep in the trenches of deschooling your own children and yourself. The daughter of a teacher who became a teacher herself, Elisa is now a homeschooling mum to twin boys and a daughter (ages 6 and 3) bravely sharing how she’s navigating these new, unchartered waters.  SUMMARY Elisa was the child who loved school and thrived academically, enjoying the accolades and recognition she received. She grew up in suburban Sydney only minutes from where she & her husband are now raising their own family, with grandparents close by for extra support. Her mother was a teacher and despite discouragement, both she and her sister followed in mums footsteps and became teachers themselves. It wasn’t until her own boys started school at the same school she was working at, that her life did a complete 180. We shouldn't be preparing kids for school, we should be preparing them for life. Her own boys really enjoyed school. It wasn't that they disliked the concept of school and they were quite happy to go. They just really didn't enjoy the period in the classroom. They were happy to be with friends outside. They loved going to the canteen. They loved playing soccer. But it became quite clear that they weren't quite coping or enjoying what they were expected to do, sitting at a desk or table. Elisa believes the seeds were sown early on because she had started to question school, but almost didn't know that homeschooling was an option.  Social media, podcasts and lockdowns gave Elisa the confidence to give homeschooling a shot.  Overall her boys are enjoying being at home, they mostly enjoy learning. The challenge for Elisa has been to figure out how to teach without teaching or being a teacher. It’s a learning process for all of them. Questioning school has prompted Elisa to look differently at other aspects of life, such as food choices, low-tox living and commercialisation. She wants her kids to know that the important, wonderful things in life are not a pair of Nike Air Jordans. Elisa wants her kids to be kind and school as it is today isn’t the best environment to foster this. INSPIRATION Hunt Gather Parent - Michaeleen Doucleff There’s No Such Things as Bad Weather - Linda Åkeson McGurk A Matter of Principal - Mandy Davis 1000 Hours Outside podcast  CONNECT Instagram - @learning.beyond.four.walls NOTE: This is an abridged version of the show notes. Follow the link below to find a more detailed summary of what Elisa shares in this episode: FULL SHOW NOTES HERE Connect with us: Instagram - @australianhomeschoolstories Substack - Australian Homeschool Stories This podcast is recorded on the lands of the Bunurong people of the Kulin nation. I pay my respects to elders past, present and emerging and acknowledge that sovereignty was never ceded. This always was, always will be aboriginal land.

“Children learn best intrinsically motivated, following their own interests and when adults step back.” One year ago, we hit publish on the first episode of the Australian Homeschool Stories podcast with Vicci Oliver’s story. I was a very nervous first-time interviewer and Vicci was the most gracious, kind and supportive first guest I could have hoped for! Today, to celebrate one whole year of sharing homeschooling stories from across our beautiful country, you are going to hear Nicki Farrell’s story. Nicki is an ex-teacher turned wildschooling, unschooling mum of two boys (aged 11 & 9), the co-founder of Wildlings Forest School and co-host of the Raising Wildlings Podcast.  SUMMARY: Nicki grew up as a free range kid in country South Australia, spending all her free time roaming outdoors and climbing trees. Her tiny country school consisted of just 60 children. The teachers there knew their students on such individual levels and could cater for their differing needs. Nicki found her schooling experience as a teacher vastly different from what she had encountered as a child, and that was a big reason to not send her own children to school in the end. As soon as she had her own children she immediately thought: "For years I’ve been doing things to children I wouldn’t want done to my own." Nikki & Vicki met at a playgroup and instantly connected. Before creating Wildlings, they started out as a structured learning co-op. However after observing the kids in free play at the nearby creek afterwards they realised what they had been trying to ‘teach’ them, they were naturally just learning through play. Nicki shares what a typical week looks like for their family, with her husband working 4-5 days, Nicki working in her business 2-3 days, co-ops, forest school and slow days at home. 20-30 years ago, homeschooling was really unusual. But here and now, it's it is absolutely booming on the Sunshine Coast which she is certain has one of the highest rates of homeschoolers in the country. "AI has imploded education already. Absolutely, it is going to turn it on its head to the point that I'm wondering, why are we sending children to school?” If Nikki were principal for a day she would scrap traditional schooling, full stop. But she still loves the idea of families and children meeting, forming social friendships and exploring the world and learning together. Can we keep it that simple? Each child is different, so what works for one child might not work for the other and that's okay. That's the beauty of home education, you really can cater in a way that schools absolutely cannot. Comparison is the thief of joy - do what's best for your family, not what everybody else is doing. CONNECT: Website - wildlingsforestschool.com  Instagram - @wildlings_forestschool and @raising_wildlings_podcast NOTE: This is an abridged version of the show notes. Follow the link below to find quotes, links and references to all resources, books and inspiration Nicky shares in this episode: FULL SHOW NOTES HERE Connect with us: Instagram - @australianhomeschoolstories Substack - Australian Homeschool Stories This podcast is recorded on the lands of the Bunurong people of the Kulin nation. I pay my respects to elders past, present and emerging and acknowledge that sovereignty was never ceded. This always was, always will be aboriginal land.

“That's the beauty of an unschooling lifestyle, it’s just continuing what you’ve always done with your children.” Having always homeschooled and having been homeschooled herself, Debbie’s story spans across both analog and digital generations. Whilst she never set out to become a radical unschooler, she now confidently embraces the path her family have chosen. Along the way she has created a viable small business that has the potential to revolutionise the way we balance working and homeschooling, a dilemma many modern home educating families face. Summary: Homeschooling was a very unusual choice 30 years ago. She never thought of herself as weird or strange but looking back she could see how tiny the homeschooling community must have been compared to what it is now. Whilst it might have been true back then, the perception that people have of homeschooling today, that children aren’t going to be able to socialise and they will be stuck at home, is so inaccurate. School as it is currently laid out, is not very effective. Having a transformative VBAC home birth with her second child proved to be a catalyst for considering homeschooling for her own children. When your child is two and you are going to the local show that’s got diggers, you are unschooling. You’re following your child’s interests. You just keep doing that as they get older, ignoring that there's an arbitrary age where some people have decided that we should start doing learning only through doing book work and we should start learning only by doing a particular subject in a particular way. Debbie shares her interpretation of the differences between unschooling and radical unschooling. She doesn't believe anyone identifies with radical unschooling unless they actually are unschooling all of the time. Debbie created The Village Hub as there was no place that existed where you could take your kids and they could have some fun and you could also get some work done. The Village Hub is an unschooling friendly space. It is not structured. It is free play. It is messy play. With the homeschool community continuing to grow, this could be the way of the future - having hubs in every area of Australia is her next dream because it really does tick so many boxes. She would love to mentor others to open something similar to The Village Hub in other areas of Queensland and Australia. On the 6th of March 2024, legislation changes were proposed that impact homeschooling in Queensland and Debbie is working with the Free 2 Homeschool advocacy team. She outlines the major changes that are being proposed and how we can all get involved and do our bit to help. NOTE: This is an abridged version of the show notes. Follow the link below to dive deeper and find quotes, links and references that Debbie shares in this episode: FULL SHOW NOTES HERE Connect: Instagram - @thevillagehub.qld Facebook - The Village Hub Instagram - @australianhomeschoolstories Substack - Australian Homeschool Stories This podcast is recorded on the lands of the Bunurong people of the Kulin nation. I pay my respects to elders past, present and emerging and acknowledge that sovereignty was never ceded. This always was, always will be aboriginal land.

“I hope at the end of all this I’ll have raised two kids who love learning.” If they are not home, chances are Anna and her kids (ages 9 & 4) can be found in their local library. So great is their love for this community haven of literature, living within walking distance of it strongly influenced where they chose to reside in Rockingham, Western Australia. Homeschoolers from day dot, this musical, book loving, nature appreciating family value time together and connection over curriculum.  SUMMARY: Anna was born in Kalgoorlie but has lived in Perth since she was 6 years old. She met her husband on a trip to South Africa and convinced him to move to WA where they are now raising their family together. Being the recipient of a high school music scholarship didn’t equate to Anna loving school. She would have loved to have been homeschooled herself. Seeing the best and worst of kids lives, working in school chaplaincy prior to having kids herself, was a contributing factor to choosing to homeschool. Homeschooling was always on her radar. It wasn’t a really ‘out there’ decision for them, which made the choice easy, and they also didn’t experience any negative reactions from friends, family or their larger community. Anna loves the efficiency of homeschooling - particularly the one-on-one learning aspect of homeschooling, which schools aren’t able to replicate. Theirs is a literature based homeschool - books are at the centre of everything they do. Literature is the spine. Letting the kids loose in the library can lead to tangents of learning they may follow for a week. Being a one income family, the library is an incredible resource that she utilises to the utmost.  Nature Discovery is an Australian nature study curriculum she wrote because she couldn’t find a resource that addressed the things that her kids saw around them. Connection drives all that they undertake and she loves being able to learn through experiences together. All life is learning. Books are wonderful, but there is a big world to experience out there beyond the books too. Her favourite thing about this lifestyle is getting to hang out with her kids and learn alongside them.  Learning does’t stop at the completion of grade 12. Homeschooling extends childhood and play, and you can keep playing as an adult too. Wanting her kids to have a tree climbing childhood, pottering about in the garden and being part of the natural world. CONNECT Instagram - @naturediscoveryau Facebook - Nature Discovery Website - Nature Discovery NOTE: This is an abridged version of the show notes. Follow the link below to find quotes, resources and inspiration Anna shares in this episode: FULL SHOW NOTES HERE Connect with us: Instagram - @australianhomeschoolstories Substack - Australian Homeschool Stories This podcast is recorded on the lands of the Bunurong people of the Kulin nation. I pay my respects to elders past, present and emerging and acknowledge that sovereignty was never ceded. This always was, always will be aboriginal land. Original Music by Daniel Garrood @garroodcomposer Listen on Spotify here

“Don’t let fear guide you. You’ve chosen this path, lead it with love.” Richa and her husband, who were both born and educated in India, now live in Melbourne and home educate their two children, aged 7 and 2. We cover a variety of topics in this episode including Montessori, minimalism, community building, sibling dynamics and fostering a love of reading, nature and kindness. SUMMARY: When Richa and her husband were house hunting in Melbourne they were ironically drawn to Bayside for the schools, but it was the solace and peace of being next to water that solidified their choice to call this area home. Early on people would point out that her child had a lot of anxiety and that she was so attached, but isn’t that how humans are designed to be? We are supposed to be close to our caregivers.  They migrated to Melbourne without any support system, all their family live in India. Finding other friends who homeschool has been an incredible help and given their family both mental and physical support. There is chaos in bringing a younger sibling into the mix of homeschooling but it is also enriching for the sibling connections and bonding - if her daughter were in school right now, her son would hardly see her. Open your house up to welcome friends in, share a meal together, do a craft together. It can be hard finding the people with whom you can connect with on a deeper level. Intentionally not over-scheduling their week. Letting them be, giving them free time to tinker around - she values that more. Homeschooling minimally means not having more things and more materials. Not overwhelming yourself with the multitude of curriculum choices out there. It’s very easy to bring overwhelm into your space. It’s about prioritising less.  She is looking forward to seeing the beautiful people her children turn out to be and the joy they bring to others Read more, talk to people who have been doing this for a long time. It’s easier and less daunting than it seems. INSPIRATION Simplicity Parenting - Kim John Payne (book) Unconditional Parenting - Alfie Kohn (book) The Secret of Childhood - Maria Montessori (book) Good Inside Podcast - Dr Becky Kennedy @bigmothering (instagram)  @mainly.montesorri.homeschool (instagram)  @wonderled.life (instagram) RESOURCES Blossom & Root - Nature based, secular homeschooling curriculum  CONNECT Instagram - @waliaricha NOTE: This is an abridged version of the show notes. Follow the link below to find quotes and read aloud recommendations Richa shares in this episode: FULL SHOW NOTES HERE Connect with us: Instagram - @australianhomeschoolstories Substack - Australian Homeschool Stories This podcast is recorded on the lands of the Bunurong people of the Kulin nation. I pay my respects to elders past, present and emerging and acknowledge that sovereignty was never ceded. This always was, always will be aboriginal land. Original Music by Daniel Garrood @garroodcomposer Listen on Spotify here

I can think of no better spokesperson for unschooling in Australia than Sara, whose four daughters (aged 15, 13, 10 and 8) have never been to school. This inspiring family of six who call sunny Queensland home, have collaboratively and creatively designed their lives. As well as unschooling, she is a passionate advocate for respectful parenting and children's rights.  SUMMARY Growing up on the Sunshine Coast, Sara went from being private schooled herself to zero percent school for her own children. Once she became a mother, admiring her curious, happy, carefree children, all she could think was that school would wreck this. If you had asked her as a child whether she enjoyed school herself she would have said she loved it, but looking back she can only remember the bad things, such as being overwhelmed and stressed by assessments and carrying everyday anxiety that she might get in trouble. The stereotype of teens being lazy is not her experience at all, they are on the go all the time, the have a million ideas and projects. They are not what people say.  As a result of starting young and never sending her kids to school, they have grown up being in control of their own interests and learning for so long they are experts now. Sara defines adultism/childism and how this is perpetrated throughout modern day society. There is a way to do things better, where we can all be equal. We all have different responsibilities based on our age and our relationship to children but that doesn’t mean we have different rights. Unschooling is an extension of respectful parenting Deschooling never ends. There is always more that comes ups and every age your kid gets to there is something else.  She and her husband got to a point where they had read too much and could not knowingly send their girls to school knowing what they knew. Once you’ve gone down the rabbit hole, there is no turning back. More people need to talk about homeschooling and unschooling, so more people know this in an option, because so many still don’t. The importance of having a community and feeling like you belong How her community has evolved over the years from early years to teens - book club, project fairs, talent show, markets, monthly excursions and lots of hanging out and playing. Why we need to stop using the word sacrifice when it comes to choosing home education. There is no end date to learning. Her own teenage daughter’s perspective is that nothing’s really going to change when she turns 18, they’ll just keep living like they are now and life will carry on as it always has. You have a lot of time. You don’t need to know what you’re doing, you can just start and work it out as you go along. All of us are making it up as we go along. No one is an expert. You can literally do whatever works for your family. NOTE: This is an abridged version of the show notes. Follow the link below to find quotes and references to all resources, books and inspiration Sara shares in this episode: FULL SHOW NOTES HERE Connect with us: Instagram - @australianhomeschoolstories Substack - Australian Homeschool Stories This podcast is recorded on the lands of the Bunurong people of the Kulin nation. I pay my respects to elders past, present and emerging and acknowledge that sovereignty was never ceded. This always was, always will be aboriginal land. Original Music by Daniel Garrood @garroodcomposer Listen on Spotify here

Danika's homeschooling story takes place on opposing sides of the country, beginning on the Gold Coast in Queensland, where she and her children (aged 6 and 3) were born and raised, up to where her family are currently based in Bunbury, Western Australia. Danika is speaking up and sharing her short but intense journey in the hopes that someone listening will hear her story and feel seen.  SUMMARY As a loud, outgoing, social girl, Danika loved school, particularly the social side, and like most parents thought her own kids would follow in her footsteps When her eldest began school, she was looking forward to getting more time to herself, to be able to focus on her career, but a twisting, turning waterslide of a year lay ahead, one she could not have foreseen Her son's anxiety prompted her to undertake placement as a teachers aide and it was this experience which opened her eyes to what actually goes on in the classroom It quickly became clear to her that teachers are under resourced and time poor. They are all not being seen and heard and it’s the same thing, day in, day out. It took a trauma for Danika to come to homeschooling and that trauma had a massive effect on everyone in their family, but she is proof you can come out the other side  “I had to strip back what was expected of me from society, what was expected of me from our families, drown out all the noise and just listen to my child.” Deschooling meant recalibrating what she thought her life was going to look like and she believes they are all better versions of themselves having the time and space to be What lifeschooling looks like for their family of four now Neurodiverse kids in school are often brushed to the side and sent elsewhere, but they are going through traumatic feelings, and we as adults rush them along, not giving them the space they need. They get told to be quiet and sit still, but they are  trying to regulate their bodies so they can listen. If you are on the fence about homeschooling, ask yourself “What’s important to you?” You’ve really got to sit with that. Are you doing something just because you are expected to? Losing one whole income doesn't mean you can't still travel and adventure, it’s just not on such a grand scale. Microadventures are just as important and homeschoolers have the freedom to go wherever they want, whenever they want. “School works for some, it doesn’t work for others, the beauty of life is that we have a choice. I feel like we made the best choice for our family.” INSPIRATION Stark Raving Dad podcast Her Homeschooling Era podcast A Different Way to Learn - Dr Naomi Fisher Changing Our Minds - Dr Naomi Fisher Mothering Our Boys - Maggie Dent Raising Boys - Steve Biddulph AdaptEd - Neurodiversity Handbook CONNECT @danikajain Connect with us: Instagram - @australianhomeschoolstories Substack - Australian Homeschool Stories australianhomeschoolstories@gmail.com This podcast is recorded on the lands of the Bunurong people of the Kulin nation. I pay my respects to elders past, present and emerging and acknowledge that sovereignty was never ceded. This always was, always will be aboriginal land. Original Music by Daniel Garrood @garroodcomposer Listen on Spotify here

"These are amazing schools and amazing teachers, but the overarching curriculum that is forced upon them gives them no space to breathe or be creative" Kickstarting season three of the Australian Homeschool Stories podcast, is the owner of Fearless Homeschool, Micarlé. She homeschools her two children (aged 10 & 7) on the Surfcoast of Victoria where they are surrounded by national park, the beach and immersed in nature. SUMMARY How Micarlé and her husband came to be living in Anglesea, her long standing connection to this small seaside town and wanting for her kids what both she and her husband had growing up in small country town communities Micarlé's education saw her throwing herself into everything and anything and milking school for the all extracurriculars on offer, in contrast to her husband's experience feeling disengaged from learning and not being reached by his teachers As a service orientated person she was drawn to the teaching profession and taught in a range of secondary schools before taking the leap into home educating her own children We discuss applied learning pathways for teens in high school, a space she worked in for many years under the VCAL/VCEVM program and how different schools have differing stigmas around these streams After 15 years teaching in the secondary space, she began questioning whether the mainstream school system would even work for her own children Micarlé recalls how the pandemic gave their family a glimpse into what homeschooling could be like and how they transitioned over the lock down years from remote learning and remote teaching to fully fledged homeschoolers Busting the myth “You're a teacher, it makes sense for you to homeschool" - deschooling for any parent is hard but deschooling for teachers is even harder Homeschooling has given their daughter time and space to rebuild her confidence and self-worth and for that reason alone it has been the best decision they ever made How Micarlé came to be the owner of Fearless Homeschool and what to expect from the 8th Australian Homeschooling Summit, that runs from the 4th-15th March 2024 The summit includes 30+ online workshops such as how to afford homeschooling, curriculum comparisons, sustainable living, feeling empowered in unschooling, as well as teen, graduate, neurodiversity and tech panels. You can find out all the details and get your ticket here INSPIRATION Carol Dweck  Dr Dan Siegel Brené Brown CONNECT @fearlesshomeschool Australian Homeschooling Summit website Fearless Homeschool website ~ Connect with us: Instagram - @australianhomeschoolstories Substack - Australian Homeschool Stories australianhomeschoolstories@gmail.com This podcast is recorded on the lands of the Bunurong people of the Kulin nation. I pay my respects to elders past, present and emerging and acknowledge that sovereignty was never ceded. This always was, always will be aboriginal land. Original Music by Daniel Garrood @garroodcomposer Listen on Spotify here

This short and sweet episode is a preview to Season Three of the Australian Homeschool Stories podcast. Dropping in to say a quick hello is me, your host Stephanie, with happy not back to school wishes as well providing an update on the most recent statistics available about homeschooling in Australia today. To read more about the rising percentage trends and state by state breakdowns, take a look at this article here. All this means to highlight is that homeschooling numbers continues to rise, year on year, and that there has never been a better time to home educate than now. Homeschoolers now make up over 1% of the student population in Australia and we are a pretty rad bunch of people to hang with, if I do say so myself. Wherever you are in your own family's journey of homeschooling / unschooling / natural learning / wild schooling / road schooling / life schooling, it it my hope you will find inspiration, encouragement and camaraderie within the stories you will hear this season on the show. New episodes will be with you at the tail end of February. Happy Homeschooling in 2024! ~ Connect with us: Instagram -  @australianhomeschoolstories Substack - https://aushomeschoolstories.substack.com/ Email - australianhomeschoolstories@gmail.com This podcast is recorded on the lands of the Bunurong people of the Kulin nation. I pay my respects to elders past, present and emerging and acknowledge that sovereignty was never ceded. This always was, always will be aboriginal land. Original Music by Daniel Garrood @garroodcomposer Listen on Spotify here