Worldschooling Teens

One of the questions we get asked a lot on our worldschooling journey is some variation of: “But…aren’t they teenagers?”

There’s an expectation baked into that question — that teenagers are supposed to hate their parents, slam doors, withdraw, and rebel at every turn. And honestly, that stereotype couldn’t be further from our reality.

Our teens are not perfect, but neither are we. Despite not being perfect, we have built something together that feels grounded, honest, and deeply connected. Worldschooling has played a huge role in that.

One of the biggest shifts happens when kids aren’t treated like passengers in their own lives. We give our teens space to be themselves and a seat at the table — sometimes literally, always figuratively. Their voices matter. Their ideas matter. Their feelings matter.

And because of that mutual respect, something surprising (and wonderful) happens: they respect us back.

They hug us every day. They tell us they love us. We do the same. It’s not forced, it’s not performative — it’s just who we are as a family (and I am not even a hugger!).

Do they test boundaries? Of course. They’re growing. Stretching. Figuring out who they are.

But the testing isn’t rebellion — it’s evolution. And it happens in a safe, supported space where curiosity and communication come before punishment or frustration.

We talk. A lot. Heart-to-heart conversations about life, choices, fears, dreams, mistakes — sometimes at the dinner table, sometimes on long travel days, sometimes at midnight when someone can’t sleep.

We play games together. We watch shows and movies together. We laugh, we debate, we learn. We’re genuinely part of each other’s daily lives in a way that many families don’t get the chance to be.

Worldschooling gives them agency over so much of their world — what they learn, how they spend their time, what interests they want to dive into. They have a say, so they have buy-in.

They enjoy the things they do. And even when it’s something they don’t enjoy — like dishes, or cleaning the bathroom, or the little unglamorous tasks of daily life — they still do it with minimal pushback. Because they’re not cogs in a machine; they’re integral members of the family team, and they feel that. They understand that life is a give and take.

We think of it like gardening:
A plant can only grow as big as the pot allows. Give it too small a pot, and it won’t thrive — it might even wither. Give it space, and it blossoms. Our job is to keep repotting them as they grow, giving them more room, more responsibility, more trust, more sunlight.

Watching our teens grow up as worldschoolers has been one of the greatest joys of this journey. They’re well-adjusted, curious, hardworking, and self-motivated. They’re becoming adults who think for themselves, who care deeply, who navigate challenges with resilience and humor. We don’t have all the answers, and we never pretend to. But we do have a front-row seat to an incredible transformation — one we get to witness every single day as they thrive in an environment built on trust, freedom, and love.

Worldschooling hasn’t just changed the way our kids learn — it’s changed the way we grow together as a family. And for that, we’re endlessly grateful.