Wild Life Unschooling

Wild Life Unschooling

by Alexa Ko

Education Parenting

#30: The open-door-policy - w/Pat Farenga

If you're into unschooling, sooner or later you'll stumble upon Pat Farenga. In case you haven't - Pat is an American writer and educational activist, you should check out his talk "Why forced education kills learning". Pat leads us through the wonderful world of unschooling, shares a lot of stories about his friend and unschooling advocate John Holt - and introduces me to the "open-door-policy". Hope you enjoy this episode as I enjoyed the conversation with Pat! And, by the way, this is my 30th episode, thank you so much for being part of this :)

#29: Stories from an unschooled childhood (II/II) - w/Summer Jean

In this episode, I'm talking to Summer Jean! She was unschooled and is sharing her perspective on unschooling with us. What's really interesting—and this is also my conclusion from the last ten years—is that unschooling is not something you simply do or don't do in terms of education. It's more about the way you see life. For everyone listening, reach out to me! Tell me if you'd like to be on the show or if you have a specific guest or topic in mind. Share it with me! 😉

#28: Stories from an unschooled childhood (I/II) - w/Summer Jean

In this episode, I'm talking to Summer Jean! She was unschooled, and she is sharing her perspective on unschooling with us. Really interesting is - and this is also my conclusion of the last 10 years - unschooling is not something you do or don't do in terms of education, it is more about the way you see life. I hope you like this episode, there will be two more episodes with Summer soon - so stay tuned! And for everyone who is listening - reach out to me! Tell me, if you like to be on the show, if you have a specific guest or topic in mind, … share it with me ;)

#27: FIND YOUR TRIBE - w/Joy and Mayur Sontakke

You probably noticed, that I didn't launch any new episode last week (Shame on me! The plan was to publish weekly!) - and that's because I'm working quite hard on the next level of this podcast. So stay tuned, I'll make some changes to this little pod ;) But for now, enjoy this episode with this ABSOLUTELY stunning, beautiful couple, Joy and Mayur Sontakke from Vietnam/India. They're all about building communities, co-living, co-working, homeschooling/unschooling, and I somehow fell in love with them. After this episode, you'll be in love, too.

#26: Restoring masculinity - w/Chris Hargreaves

This time it's all about men and boys - because we need strong men! And through unschooling we can change the narrative, support our little boys to grow into strong, healthy men. With me is Chris Hargreaves, a wonderful soul that dedicated his time to heal others, especially men. We have a deep talk about what problems of indoctrination and propaganda boys and men face in school and society, and how we can get back to an holistic approach of masculinity! Enjoy!

#25: Freedom education - w/Manisha Snoyer

Manisha Snoyer is hosting her own educational podcast, "Teach your Kids" - and this episode is all about "unschooling podcast host to unschooling podcast host". Of course we deep dive a bit into the whys, hows and whats, but what I really want to highlight is, how aligned Manisha is with what she does - and it shows! She is an awesome educator, she is helping so many families switching to the unschooling lifestyle and is creating wonderful safe places for the wild kids out there.

#24: Why we love decentralization - w/"V" from The Bitcoin Way

Initially, I started this podcast to take a closer look at the connection between decentralized education and decentralized finance - unschooling and Bitcoin. The last few episodes, Bitcoin wasn't even mentioned once. And this is why this episode, is all about sound money, the beauty of decentralization, and what this has to do with escaping forced education. Join "V" from The Bitcoin Way and me, to fall a little bit deeper into the decentralization rabbit hole.

#23: Let kids find their soul path - w/Amrit Sandhu

Thanks for listening ❤️ In this episode, Amrit lets us fall into a very spiritual rabbit hole - we talk about soul-sucking jobs, and the beautiful alternative: listen to your calling. As Amrit puts it: Following your calling is never easy, because it's never about "opening a can"! How can we support our kids in following their soul-path, how can we conquer our fears, and why our biggest challenges are almost always our biggest gifts?!

#22: Why we should never stop playing - w/Peter Gray

In this episode, I'm talking to Peter Gray, yes, you read this right - I couldn't believe it myself. You don't want to miss this episode, because Peter shares many tips on how to be a more relaxed unschooling parent/educational coach. Because, I guess, most of us has been there: challenging the status quo is not always easy. But if you feel like it's the right thing to do, you're not alone - and you might enjoy this discussion. Peter shares many insights from his research and studies, and for all the parents of gaming-loving-kids out there: gaming is just fine ;) don't worry too much. And (last "and"), as many of you asked me, "how do I even start unschooling", we deep dive into that as well - here a little sneak peek: "But consider what children learned during that time. They acquired mastery over their native language, becoming proficient speakers. They gained insights into psychology, understanding how to both please and annoy their parents and others. They developed the skill of making friends and forged meaningful connections. They absorbed a wealth of knowledge about the physical world that surrounded them. Their insatiable curiosity and unbridled play led to extensive learning experiences. I once asserted that a significant portion of a person's lifelong knowledge is acquired before they even step into a school. If there is evidence for self-directed education beyond this, I am unaware of it. Anyone with open eyes who has observed a child's development in this manner should be able to recognize it. Now, some individuals believe, and I've even encountered claims in developmental psychology textbooks, that this phenomenon is suitable only for young children. They argue that around the age of five or six, curiosity tends to wane, and play shifts in nature. To this, I respond, isn't it intriguing that this transformation coincides with the commencement of formal schooling? What if children didn't embark on their educational journey in a traditional school setting?" Enjoy, learn + don't forget to give me feedback on this episode!

#21: Germany, the educational dictatorship - w/Ricardo Leppe

Welcome to the "Wild Life Unschooling Podcast." In this episode, we have a special guest, Ricardo Leppe, from the project "Willkommen bei WISSEN SCHAFFT FREIHEIT" (Welcome to Knowledge Creates Freedom). We discuss how the project challenges traditional educational structures, provides free access to education globally, empowers individuals to choose their learning paths, and aims to create a better future through education. At the same time, we talk about different compulsory schooling systems from around the world - and it seems that Germany is educational hell?! "In my opinion, it's one of the strictest forms of governance, particularly when it comes to education, in the world. Maybe North Korea has a more oppressive system, but I can't speak to that as I've never been there. From my perspective, Germany has one of the harshest approaches. I haven't witnessed anything similar in any other country. In other nations, attending school is mandatory, and you're required to do so. However, it's not quite the same as in Germany. In Germany, if you don't send your children to school, sometimes the police will show up at your doorstep as early as the next day. If you disagree with them, they can even take your children away." Luckily, Ricardo is convinced, that the new form of education comes from Germany, and will inspire the world! ;) Join us for this thought-provoking episode, where we explore alternative learning techniques and brain-friendly learning methods for children.

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