Hey! I'm Issy, aka Stark Raving Dad 👋
Eight years ago, my family stepped away from the traditional path and embraced the freedom of living a life without school. At the time, I wrote down my thoughts and feelings as we went through the process of removing our children from a public school system that was (and there's no other way to say it) failing them. It was a cathartic experience, and one that resonated more widely than I could ever imagine. I was sent hundreds of messages from parents telling me my words made them feel seen, understood, validated. But the truth is, that’s what their outpouring was doing for me.
I've written over 300,000 words since that time. Enough to comfortably fill a few books. The Life Without School Podcast is only 29 episodes deep but has somehow been listened to over a million times.
More than five million people have read and resonated with my thoughts and feelings.
So, I’ll say it again - I feel so seen.
And so should you.
By being here, you're part of a growing movement of families daring to do things differently. I’m excited to share more of this journey with you, and I hope my words can be a source of support and inspiration as you navigate your own path.
I send encouraging, supportive emails most weeks, but if you’d like to dig deeper right now, come and explore my Life Without School Collection - a complete library of everything I’ve created. Inside, you’ll find five downloadable guides (the Grandparent’s Guide is my favourite), weekly audio episodes that are deep, research-backed conversations to help you build real confidence in this lifestyle (there's over 21 hours of listening there already), a three-part self-paced course to design your ideal home educating approach, three hours of recorded masterclasses with expert guests, our completed (and approved) school exemption documents, and more.
It’s everything I wish I'd had when we were first stepping into this journey, and it’s there for you whenever you're ready.
Talk soon!
Issy / Stark Raving Dad 💛