Our small learning village of homeschooled children (6-9 years old) runs on Monday & Wednesday from 9am- 1pm. This is not a co-op, rather a bespoke and closely guided community of learners for creative inquiry, exploration, project-based work, and foundational academics.
I facilitate 2 weekly homeschool-tribe groups, in the Northern Beaches (Tuesday) and in Mosman (Friday 1-4pm). These are gatherings of children 5-9 years old and their parents. We learn together, enjoy creative project-work, art, nature investigation, cooking and storytelling, focusing on a different theme each week.
If you have found your tribe of homeschoolers and require a facilitator for group learning, please contact me.
I work closely with families to provide holistic learning support. I specialise in children and young people whose parents homeschool for philosophical reasons, and those who aren’t thriving with traditional tutoring. If your child is not confident in themselves and thriving at school and you feel there is a missing piece or that they are not being ‘seen’ by the system, I would love to support them.
I provide comprehensive 1-hour coaching to parents, exploring options for pedagogy, philosophy and experiences to individualise their home education to best suit their family values, children’s needs, and their educational vision. This is not curriculum consultation, although curriculum is an element of our process.
In addition, building a community of philosophically aligned homeschooling families in Sydney, and continuing my own learning journey which I document on my blog and podcast.
Click on the above links or scroll down to learn more.
Homeschooling Village
Bespoke homeschooling based on and committed to the contributions of John Dewey, Maria Montessori and other inspiring humans. Closely guided, integrated, classical, and balanced learning strongly built upon the children’s passions and interests, but with an equal focus upon building friendship and emotional skills and resilience.
This learning village is not a formal school setting, nor is it childcare. It sits in between these spaces, providing closely guided, integrated and balanced learning upon a strong philosophical foundation. I take as my ethical responsibility the growth of the children in knowledge, social intelligence, creativity, awareness and independence through purposeful, collaborative and creative activity in service to each other, the wider community and themselves.
Our curriculum is rich and deep and will be explored with reverence for the children’s own passions and interests. I believe in the importance of academics just as much as that of the arts, social and emotional skills, collaboration, a love of nature and problem solving.
Our learning space has been carefully prepared and the children will come to look after it as their own. Children are offered Montessori materials, Waldorf and Montessori lessons, foundational academic work, storytelling, open-ended creative work and outdoor time. They will have opportunities for deep self-directed learning. Each child is supported to work at their own pace, and will be extended according to their readiness.
Days will follow with a predictable rhythm. We begin with a quiet arrival, followed by a work cycle, a shared snack and unstructured play time at the playground, and time for deep project and creative work. We end with a circle, storytelling and handwork.
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Monday & Wednesday, 9am - 1pm, in a beautiful prepared environment in Kurraba Point with access to a safe outdoors space, and across the road from a local park and playground.
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6 - 9 year old children in a small group of maximum 8 children, where the children work together in a joyful and industrious way, within an atmosphere of care and authentic connection.
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I take as my ethical responsibility the growth of the children in knowledge, social intelligence, creativity, awareness and independence through purposeful, collaborative and creative activity in service to each other, the wider community and themselves.
The foundation of our learning community is a sound philosophy based on principles which have been thought through and will continue to be over time, and in accordance with a curriculum which is rich and deep.
I believe in the importance of academics, just as much that of the arts, social and emotional skills, collaboration, a love of nature and problem solving.
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$200/day
($50 per hour per child)
Includes guidance, planning and learning, all materials, recording of your child’s activities mapped to curriculum outcomes, and scheduled email & phone updates regarding your child’s progress and everything we have been doing.
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The children will be guided by me, with safe access to their wider community, natural world, and other inspiring humans.
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This work is part of my belief in the power of global localisation, grounding ourselves and our children within small, trusting communities and taking the responsibility for such huge things as education into our own hands, rather than outsourcing them to systems we know very little about.
“Education is not preparation for life; education is life itself.” ― John Dewey
Learning is not separable from life itself, and learning is not the transmission of static bodies of knowledge to the passive and receptive child. There is a beautiful element of mystery in what the child will grow to become. This process is continually influenced by the child’s environment, the adults around them and the kind of activity they are engaged in. Real education should place the child in a safe and stable atmosphere of strong values, with curious and interesting adults, freedom and limits, and space to explore. It should allow them to act with ever increasing levels of independence, trust and complexity, in widening groups until the child is confidently able to take their place within society itself, possessing awareness of his/her gifts and a readiness to contribute them in service to humanity and the world.
Children need to be taken seriously, and guided with kindness, curiosity, and clarity.
I personally don’t believe that the physical institution of the ‘school’ needs to exist the way it does. But education is inextricable from maturing in our local and global society. And we are responsible for guiding this process for our children.
Here are what I believe some of the purposes of real education for a child:
To develop foundational skills of reading, self expression through writing, mathematics and geometry which form the bedrock of the child’s ability to access the knowledge of their own culture, present and past.
To have their mind ‘furnished with beauty’ through being immersed in quality literature, poetry, storytelling, music, the arts, and bodies of knowledge in ways that are not didactic but experiential, such that their souls become intimate with the beauty of humanity and the legacy of the present culture.
To form and develop the deepest core of one’s personality: the will, the moral compass, emotional awareness and regulation, and the worldview.
To develop a spiritual or values framework which is bigger than the individual human and serves as a north star in journeying through life.
To practice ‘learning capabilities’ otherwise known as ‘soft skills’ which carry all of us through life. These skills are increasingly being called ‘hard skills’ as they are applicable in every domain in life and are far more enduring than any curriculum knowledge we could obtain. They are also much more difficult to develop later in life. These skills, no matter when we acquire them, are built up over time through repeated experience and through conscious work or guidance.
To incarnate skills of social intelligence through being part of a community and social group which functions as a healthy society should. It is made of individuals who are aware of their place in the group and look out for one another and are aware of what would be required to make the group function better.
To learn how to learn: the foundation for this is curiosity and an absolute and unwavering love of the world. The school must be conscious of the myriad ways it can encroach upon and kill curiosity. Curiosity is a delicate state of being, especially in a child. Upon this foundation is built knowledge of oneself which is developed through piquing of curiosity and the provision of both time and (just) sufficient support in sating that curiosity, and also through, embodied in the way lessons are given, the discovery of knowledge through one’s own actions and discoveries, rather than being given them by a teacher.
Facilitated Homeschool-Tribe Groups
These groups are for children who have plenty of unstructured play opportunities with a tribe of other children, but need an opportunity to learn, create, discuss and imagine alongside children around their age.
Tuesday 1-4pm, Northern Beaches (FULL)
Friday 1-4pm, Mosman, children 6-9 years old
For 3 hours, the children engage in project based learning and activities with me while the parents sit nearby for tea and chats (bring your knitting!)
Each week the children focus on a different topic or idea. I integrate Montessori and Steiner ideas and lessons, and tailor sessions to the children and their interests.
We always have time for outdoor play, nature activities, project work (I bring along library books related to our topic), craft, and storytelling.
In recent weeks, we have been:
growing tadpoles and hatching butterflies
looking at the fundamental needs of humans and the way they have build their homes and used plants for food across time. We worked on food project and made scones when we learned about the cultivation and stone grinding of wheat
learning about botany (functions of leaves, roots)
evolution of life, animal senses and defence
paper making
The children will be able to work and learn together, form deeper bonds as they meet weekly, and be able to benefit from the facilitated support and collaboration.
PRICE: $50 for 3 hours
Learning Support and Tutoring
I provide individualised, holistic and high-quality learning support for children learning outside the system, or who aren’t thriving with traditional tutoring or in the mainstream education context.
I am a highly experienced educator with experience in mainstream schools, Montessori environments, bush school, specialised settings and home-based education.
I support children with a wide range of learning needs and abilities and my teaching draws on multiple educational philosophies and methodologies, tailored to the individual child. I incorporate emotion coaching and adapt our work to the child’s nervous system and emotional capacity which is important for building safety, resilience and true confidence.
Many children become tightly wound at school, as they try to keep up or adapt in different ways. Time in nature, unstructured play and open and curious adults support this, as do low-pressure and safe experiences where children experience mastery and work just at or beyond their own limits. I am talented in finding this edge in children (and over time, extending it).
Effective learning is grounded in connection. When a child feels safe they are more willing to approach challenges and extend beyond their comfort zone.
I make use of Montessori materials to support children in developing conceptual understanding. I also integrate opportunities for children to apply their skills in new contexts.
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$100/hour (home visits)
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15 years experience across mainstream, Montessori, and home-based education settings. I hold a postgraduate teaching degree, AMI Montessori Diploma and extensive experience with a range of children and learning needs.
ANU - Law (2009- 2012)
University of Sydney - B Science, B Arts (psychology, art history), University Exchange Scholarship
UNSW - Masters in Education & Teaching (specialising in creative arts and english)
Centro Internazionale Studi Montessoriani - Montessori Diploma 6-12 years, highest exam mark in the course.
Lindamood-Bell - many years’ experience providing explicit literacy support for children with dyslexia and dysgraphia, or difficulties with spelling, reading or symbol imagery.
Sydney Rudolf Steiner College - Waldorf training in theory, form drawing and early years curriculum
Green Schools - foundational principles for sustainable and green schooling and education
Neufeld Institute - Attachment based neuroscience, courses on bullying, understanding children and home education.
4C Transformative learning - developing transferrable ‘soft’ skills in children and innovating teaching practice.
Lee Trew - Rapport-based relating
Bush school training & experience
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K- Y8 (all subjects + enrichment)
Y9-12 (english, writing)
General learning support: finding and extending aptitudes and talents, building confidence and self-concept while working on areas of difficulty in a holistic way incorporating child-led projects and creative work.
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Real life, always.
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Monday - Wednesday afternoons. The location is Kurraba Point, but I may also be able to come to you.
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The context for effective learning must always be connection. Once there is a sense of trust the child will approach challenges and be open to being extended.
I work across many philosophies and I draw on different approaches depending on the child. I love Montessori mathematics materials for supporting children with abstract concepts.
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I utilise concrete materials and abstract methods, explicit teaching and self-directed. I am talented in finding a child’s edge and extending them beyond their comfort zone, helping them discover new confidence and skill.
Explicit teaching is necessary to some extent for most children, particularly those with a greater need for clarity and simplicity.
When fundamental skills have been developed, children require further challenge or practice applying this to new contexts. Self-directed learning may look like giving 2 children a challenging problem to solve, and guiding them gently at each roadblock they encounter. It may involve them deriving formulas alone using visual materials, such as the formula for the area of a rectangle, or Pythagoras’ theorem.
Concrete materials enable children to bridge between the concrete and the abstract. Mathematics requires children to have rich mental schemas which can only be developed through experience with the material world. Children show us when they are beginning to abstract concepts. These can then be applied to problem solving, novel contexts and more advanced mathematics.
Montessori uses concrete materials for everything, including binomial and trinomial cubing, square root, algebra and geometry.
Support for Home Educators
Effective & sustainable homeschooling requires a strong vision and careful planning. Work with me to create and execute a vision for a homeschooling approach which avoids the limitations of mainstream schooling, and builds resilience, creativity, curiosity and independence.
We will explore and integrate different frameworks to tailor an educational approach which corresponds to your family’s values, educational philosophy and your child’s uniqueness. Curriculum support is also available.
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Pedagogies and approaches, homeschooling frameworks, resources, registration, curriculum support, scheduling and timetables, additional needs, curriculum mapping with support and reflection calls for tailored modifications.
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6× 60 minute fortnightly calls
$1200
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Zoom calls of 1 hour each.
Please contact me to have a chat or ask any questions >