ESTHER JONES

Entrepreneurship is a natural part of life in this house. Just about every day someone comes up with a new idea for making their fortune, or one of the ideas that has been buzzing around a while takes on a new angle and springs back into life. I've always loved putting ideas into action. When I was a child, I found my perfect match in my good friend Jonathan who lived across the road. Together, we spent our Saturdays organising events, from bring-and-buy sales in the parish h

One of the most challenging aspects of unschooling for me was letting go of conventional paradigms about gaming, and screen time in general. Paying attention to my children has allowed me to see how enriching much of this activity actually is. Each of the children engages differently with games and screens. E does some gaming, but mostly uses his computer for researching and writing. C likes to play certain games, such as Roblox and Minecraft, particularly if she can play wit

I thought I'd start some posts about what our average days are made of. I chose Monday because it still feels like a minor act of rebellion not to wake up stressed at the prospect of the week ahead. Ever since my school years I've associated Mondays with either heroic energy or a slothful desire to pull the covers over my head and pretend I wasn't there. By mid-week I would have found my stride, but Mondays often felt a little forced. So, Mondays it is. What better day to obs

People often ask how I get anything done when I'm with the children at home. Surely, life is too chaotic for me to be productive. Is unschooling chaotic? It can feel that way sometimes. Five people moving to their own rhythms in the same place is bound to have its moments. The absence of imposed structure and rules doesn't lead to anarchy, but it can certainly lead to different sleeping and eating patterns, to wild bursts of energy and nourishing lazy times that have nothing

We came back to Spain a week ago, after visiting family for Christmas and New Year. I love to be with family and old friends in the UK, but it's good to be back here too. Barcelona in January always feels good for the soul. And, here on the hill, where we can watch the day break over the Mediterranean, then see the last of the sun slip away behind the mountains, the days are feeling particularly bright and long. We also came back to some little miracles of nature. Winter flow

I'm writing this post on the morning of New Year's Eve, at my mother's house in the Yorkshire town where I grew up. We come here at least twice a year and it has become a home from home for my children. As British/Argentinians born in Spain, their sense of belonging in the world is complex and intimately tied to this little town by the sea where I lived until I was 18. I always get reflective when I'm here. I'm sure anyone who returns to their childhood town once or twice a y