After years of repeating other people’s “truths,” I discovered that real understanding only comes through lived experience. In this post, I explore how first principles and nature reveal what true learning looks like—and why unschooling aligns perfectly with it.

Most people say “Kids need structure and discipline!” But what if it’s actually adults who crave that structure — and children simply need trust, freedom, and the natural rhythm between chaos and order?

Fear often disguises itself as love or responsibility, but when it guides our parenting, it interferes with trust and natural learning. In this gentle reflection, Sylvia Brinded explores how unschooling invites us to choose curiosity over control — and to let our children, and ourselves, grow free from fear.

Thinking about unschooling but not sure where to start? This guide walks you through the first steps — from de-schooling and letting go of control to using technology mindfully, spending time in nature, and reconnecting as a family. Learn how to trust the process of self-directed learning and discover A Place To Be, our growing unschooling community in Madeira where families come together to live and learn in freedom and connection.

Madeira is a paradise for self-directed learning — a safe, vibrant island where nature, community, and curiosity come together. With its year-round mild climate, breathtaking landscapes, and welcoming culture, it’s the perfect place for families who value freedom and experiential learning. Our growing unschooling community gathers regularly on the land of A Place To Be, an upcoming unschooling neighborhood where children and adults explore, create, and learn naturally through farming, art, science, and shared life in nature.

While exploring our land in Madeira, what began as a short walk turned into a wild two-hour trek through thorns, mud, and hidden streams — and a deeper reflection on why we’re creating A Place To Be. Along the way, Alex and I talked about how most people lose touch with their passions, trapped in systems that prioritize survival over joy. That’s what unschooling, freedom, and Bitcoin are really about: reclaiming space to live with purpose, curiosity, and connection — to remember who we truly are.

So many parents feel the quiet tension between their hearts and the system — one sensing that school is breaking something sacred in their child, the other still believing it’s the safest or only path. I’ve met countless families standing in that place, torn between love and fear, freedom and conformity.

This letter is written for them — for the parent who still trusts school, not out of ignorance, but out of love. It’s an invitation to pause, to remember who your child truly is before they’re reshaped by classrooms, bells, and permission slips. Because learning doesn’t begin in a system — it begins in relationship, in wonder, in play, in family.

If you’ve ever questioned whether school is really helping your child grow whole, or if there might be another way — this letter is for you.

Many parents use the words homeschooling and unschooling interchangeably — but they’re not the same. While homeschooling often mirrors traditional schooling at home with structured lessons and curriculum, unschooling breaks free from that model entirely. It trusts a child’s natural curiosity and self-directed learning, turning everyday life into education.

In this article, Sylvia BP explores the full spectrum of home education — from strict homeschooling to radical unschooling — and shares how her family blends freedom, responsibility, and real-life learning on the island of Madeira.

We make unschooling easy