Roundtable: What's it Like to Grow Up Unschooled?
We hear a lot from parents, but what about the adults and young people who were unschooled as children? Our panellists share their experiences of growing up without school.
Teo Koritz is a Swedish-Mexican neurodivergent unschooler who left conventional school at ten to pursue self-directed learning. He explores humanist studies, sciences, arts, and homesteading skills. Passionate about social and political issues, he enjoys reading, hiking, conlanging, and gaming. Teo is multilingual, speaking Spanish, Swedish, and English.
Halie Barrick (M.A.) is a life-long radical unschooler living in Northern Vermont. Currently she blends her passion for partnership-based horsemanship with her experiences as a self-directed learner through her new business Growing Edge Equine*imity, providing opportunities for equine-assisted personal and professional development. Together with her mother Michelle (M.Ed.), she offers workshops and coaching to support parents and educators in shifting from "power over" to "power with” relationships with young people, particularly around peaceful parenting and self-directed education.
Elly Nattinger homeschooled/unschooled her entire life until her undergraduate studies at Amherst College. She has a Ph.D. from the MIT Media Lab in technology for live music and theater performance. She’s now an AR/VR engineer at Apple and is currently unschooling her six and three-year-old sons.
Ruben Jai is a life long unschooler, free schooler, and advocate for self-directed education from Chicago, IL. They have volunteered and interned at Alcove Learning, Lighthouse Holyoke, and Tallgrass Sudbury School. They hold a B.A from Bennington College in music and ethnomusicology. Their songs and compositions focus on everyday life, ecology, nostalgia, and storytelling. You can find their music on most platforms under Ruben Jai.
The oldest of four, Alexia Clarkson-Rowntree filled her childhood days playing, up to the age of 17 when she chose to study Audio Engineering (although that still felt like play). She assumed that’s what all homeschoolers did. Now raising her own four children, she protects their childhood by prioritizing self-directed play, following their curiosities, and connection with family.
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