When Learning Unfolds Naturally

Abi from Rebrandr shares how a child-led approach to education slowly grew within her family, and how it now sits alongside motherhood, business and everyday life.

For this conversation, I spoke with Abi, founder of Rebrandr, mother of three and long-time conscious business owner. Abi has built and sold several thoughtful, values-led brands, and now supports other business owners while home educating her children alongside her husband, Dan.

Was home education something you always imagined for your children, or did it unfold more gradually over time?

It definitely unfolded gradually.

I never really thought about anything other than school at first. In fact, we bought our last house partly because it was in the middle of three really good primary schools. It just seemed like the natural thing to do.

But when Seth was born, and we began moving through life together, I never quite felt ready to put him into that kind of setting. I didn’t feel it with nursery, and then when it came to school age, I still didn’t feel that it was the right time — or that he was ready, or that he would truly thrive there.

The following year, I still felt the same. By then we also had Sage, and we were travelling, and it just felt much more natural to keep them close and support their individual learning.

And here we are, eleven years later, still doing it — three children in.

So yes, it has been a very organic process.

Was there a particular moment or experience that made you feel this path was right for your family?

Because of the way it unfolded, there wasn’t one big conscious moment that triggered the decision.

It was more a feeling of let’s just do this until it doesn’t feel right anymore. And it has never felt wrong.

Now, three children in, the beauty of it is that each of their individual needs can be met so clearly.

I’m a big believer that if a child is really good at art and struggles with maths, why would you automatically get them a maths tutor? Why not get them an art tutor and give them more time being encouraged in what they love?

That’s what I always come back to when I consider whether this path is right for us — how able we are to support each child’s individual strengths.

Now I have an eleven-year-old, and I see how he interacts socially with others. They are incredible at engaging with people across different ages and generations, which I think is often missing in our culture. They are sociable, competent, and confident in their strengths. That confirms to me that this has definitely been the right path for our family.

How did you and your husband come to the decision together?

I think we almost came to it accidentally. Neither of us really felt differently about it.

We have always been aligned, and I’m very grateful for that. I know families where one parent wants to home educate and the other is really against it, but for us, it has never even really been a discussion. We’ve just been aligned.

It has felt very natural and organic — like the organs in your body. They don’t make a conscious decision to work together, but they operate in a way that supports the whole body. That is how it has felt for us.

How does learning look in your day-to-day home?

We follow a rhythm, but we don’t follow a curriculum.

We are very interest-led. At home, I tend to cover reading, writing, English, maths and science. If we are going to do sit-down, organised learning, those are the things we focus on.

We might spend an hour and a half to two hours in the morning doing that, usually all together, with each child set up with their own age-appropriate activity.

Beyond that, we follow their interests.

On Mondays, the children go to a home education bouldering group. On Wednesdays, my parents have them, and they often do a project together — usually around nature, the National Trust, cultural studies or religious studies. Sometimes they go on outings to London, to a museum or exhibition, which is lovely.

On Thursdays, Seth has an online Python tutor because he is really into coding and robotics. Sage’s passion is performing arts, so she does ballet on Thursday evenings and violin on Saturday mornings.

In between all of that, we go for a nature walk most days with the dogs. We explore, forage, learn about plants, medicinal properties, natural cycles, rhythms and the seasons. We also do a lot of arts and crafts, and creativity is something we encourage wherever possible.

We have days out and home education meet-ups too. There is a group of us who meet roughly once a month, which is really lovely.

If a particular interest comes up, we go right down the rabbit hole. At the moment, Seth is very interested in Greek mythology, so I’m looking for exhibitions, plays or anything else that can support that learning. We’ve been reading the Percy Jackson books, and he has been using that interest to write an essay as part of his writing work.

So yes, we are opportunistic, intuitive and interest-led. We follow an interest to the end and then pivot onto something else. I’m very much led by the children, while still weaving in reading, writing and the core skills.

We read a lot. Seth is an incredible bookworm — I think he has read about twenty-three books already this year.

Do you give your approach a particular name?

We usually say “home schooling” because it feels safer and easier for people who don’t quite understand.

But I tend to think of home schooling as following a curriculum, which we don’t do. I feel most curriculums are quite outdated, so that label doesn’t feel entirely right for us.

To be honest, it doesn’t feel that important to give it a name.

I also feel that by naming it, we separate it from life — and learning is so much a part of life.

I love learning, and children are like sponges. They are learning all the time. Whether we are going to the farm shop, getting groceries, going for a walk or exploring outside, they are learning from all of those ordinary life experiences too.

So I don’t really see it as “school time” and “the rest of life”. It is all one thing.

You’ve built and sold successful businesses alongside raising your children. How do you balance work and family life within this way of educating?

Everyone asks this, and sometimes I don’t know the answer.

Sometimes it does feel like a lot, and it is a big juggle. But I also don’t know how I would do it if they weren’t at home with me.

We can sit down and do two or three hours of learning, and I can be on my computer getting through emails while they work. Then they might have a question, or need help spelling something, and I can support them.

Then we come together for lunch, go for a walk, do an activity, or they might free play in the garden.

We are very lucky to have a garden, pets and to live in a safe area. Seth might be building something, Sage might be dressing up as a character and performing, and Eden will move between the two — while I respond to things.

I love the flexibility this gives me. I can be there for them and prioritise their needs, while also contributing something to the world outside of motherhood.

But I don’t really think of these as separate areas of life — being a mother, being an entrepreneur, being a wife. I see it all as me, and life as this beautiful medley of different components.

Do your children ever express curiosity about mainstream school?

They do, in a way.

We’ve read books like The Famous Five and Malory Towers, which offer a very romanticised version of school, so we’ve talked about that. They also have cousins who go to school.

Sage is very sociable and has sometimes commented that school seems like a very sociable place, and that it sounds fun.

I try to explain that school isn’t fun all the time. There are playtimes and occasional interactive lessons, but there is also a lot of sitting down, sitting still, putting your hand up when you want to speak, and asking if you need to go to the toilet.

When I told her that, she said, “What? I have to ask to go to the toilet?”

And I said, “Yes, you do.”

Then she asked, “What if I’m thirsty? What if I’m hungry?”

I said, “You have to wait until it’s time to eat or drink.”

And I think, once we talked about it properly, she realised that not being able to fully be her whirlwind, creative, wild-woman self might actually feel really hard.

We talk about school quite a lot, but none of them have ever said they want to go. If they did, that would be an entirely different conversation.

What have been the most challenging aspects of choosing this path?

The biggest challenge is that I don’t really get a break.

When children go to school, even if parents are busy during those hours, there is still a kind of mental headspace. A moment to gather yourself.

I think that is probably the biggest challenge for me.

I don’t really see challenges with the children. Nothing obvious comes to mind.

What has surprised you most along the way?

What has surprised me most is the unlimited potential that appears when children aren’t contained by the idea that “this is what you do at this age”.

Seth was going to a Lego robotics group on a Monday morning, which was meant to run up to age sixteen. When he was ten, the tutor took us aside and said, “He is so advanced, I can’t teach him anymore. I have nothing left to teach him.”

I just don’t know if that would happen in a school setting. I feel like it would more likely be, “Well, this is what we are learning right now.”

That freedom to go beyond age-based expectations has been amazing to witness.

For a parent who may be quietly wondering if there is another way, what would you say?

I would say, if it isn’t a hell yes, then don’t do it.

If a child is in the wrong setting, the wrong school, the wrong system or the wrong educational model, and it isn’t right for them, the experience of that can be very hard to undo.

Whereas at home, you know you are their safest place. If they are not thriving, you can look at the specific area where they need support and ask, “What one thing could help here?”

It doesn’t have to mean moving everything. There are so many tutors, groups and resources available now. There are lots of curriculums too, if that is what you want to follow.

I think it’s important to know that there are other options.

Home education doesn’t mean recreating school at home. You don’t have to sit and do lessons all day. We might spend two hours learning intensively, and then we continue with life — activities, outings, projects, nature, play.

It can be a really beautiful lived experience of lifelong learning.

I would also say, don’t rush. There is never any rush. If you feel at some point that your child needs exposure to a particular thing, that can come later. You can take the next step when it feels right.

Home education can look however you want it to. The incredible thing about it is that you can cater to your child’s individual needs.

Legally, all you are obliged to do is provide an education. That education will look different for every child, whether they are in school or at home. As long as you are meeting their educational needs and they are progressing, you are doing what is right for them.

Has this way of living changed how you see success — for yourself or for your children?

Yes, I think it has.

For me, success is when we are all happy, healthy and thriving.

I used to think of success as being paid well, having a high-powered job, or “making a difference”. But actually, none of that really matters if we aren’t well.

If being together and meeting their needs is how everyone thrives best, then that is my version of success.

I would much rather have them at home with healthy nervous systems than be trying to get three different children to three different schools by 8am.

Outside of educational needs, there are so many wider needs that the school system often cannot meet — nutritional needs, physical needs, emotional needs, nervous system needs.

The holistic approach you can take at home feels, to me, like the biggest success any of us could wish for our children.