EU059: Unschooling Dads with Rocco Laricchia

Rocco Laricchia is an unschooling dad of three young adult children and is married to the show host, Pam! In this episode we talk about how he answered the typical kid questions at work, what he found challenging and what he enjoyed about unschooling, and what he appreciates most about unschooling our children.

Quote of the Week

“The symbolic language of the crucifixion is the death of the old paradigm; resurrection is a leap into a whole new way of thinking.” ~ Deepak Chopra

One of the additional challenges with the journey to unschooling is that oftentimes there is one parent who is spearheading this journey to unschooling for the family. What about the other parent? That was our situation, so before we got into the interview, I shared a blog post I wrote almost four years ago talking about ways to support our spouses or partners as they too learn about unschooling:

Learning is Learning No Matter Your Age … or helping the reluctant spouse/partner/other significant adult in your child’s life learn about unschooling.

Questions for Rocco

Let’s take a moment to go back to the beginning when I first discovered homeschooling was legal and, pretty soon after, we figured we’d try it out and see how it went. I remember it was March Break and I went around and told each of the kids that, apparently, they didn’t have to go to school and would they like to stay home instead? To which they all said, “Yes!” I remember feeling both scared, because this was so different than anything I had ever thought I’d do, and excited, because it seemed like an amazing answer to our challenges with the schools. Do you remember how you felt at the time?

I stayed home with the kids and you’d go to work every day and, especially since you were often meeting with customers, I bet you were regularly asked the typical social questions like, “Nice to meet you, Rocco. You have kids? What grade are they in?” How did you answer that question?

So, not only were you surrounded by conventional parenting and education conversations daily at work, you also weren’t at home most days to see the kids’ learning in action, which is what helped me better understand and build trust in unschooling. That’s so hard! And I know there were times over the years when you were feeling less sure about unschooling. What helped you move through those times?

What were a couple of the things you enjoyed most about the unschooling lifestyle?

What was one of the most challenging aspects of moving to unschooling for you?

Looking back now that our kids are now young adults, what do you appreciate most about unschooling?

Episode Transcript