Christian and Maggie Peterson are teachers with the Calgary Board of Education who started a tutoring business entitled Freedom Teachers. Freedom Teachers is a network that connects, supports, and educates parents and teachers about alternative education by organizing pods and connecting parents with tutors and other likeminded families. Their model is built on the core principles of building community, fostering resilience, fostering a learning environment and safety, as well as empowering and educating parents and educators. Christian and Maggie recognize that the educational landscape is changing dramatically and that information is power. Their vision is to build their network to transfer power back into the hands of parents, and to support future generations.
00:01:17.720Thank you guys so much for having us on.
00:01:20.400As Heather mentioned, we are both teachers that talk in the public system here in Calgary.
00:01:26.480And we took a very big leap in December and started a homeschool collective or a learning pod is what people kind of have come to know them now.
00:01:38.620There's a ton of information that I have to share with you guys.
00:01:42.600And I think the most important thing is kind of understanding where we came from.
00:01:47.620The landscape of moving from a public school and especially a teacher moving into a private field like this is a really big leap.
00:01:56.980And it took a lot of faith and a lot of movement on our end and a lot of, I guess, like risk taking is what I would say.
00:02:06.560We when we started, we were started in September with just connecting with groups, getting to know people, networking a lot.
00:02:18.660We wanted to get people connected with that were tutoring.
00:02:22.380We wanted to get educators connected with parents.
00:02:24.960And so we started a really big network of spreadsheets of connecting people with different resources.
00:02:31.000And what we realized is that when January came, that we just knew right away that this was not going to be a system that we wanted to be involved in anymore.
00:02:40.440So we took what we were kind of what we were teaching, what we were sharing with people, and we put that to use and we built something ourselves.
00:02:47.760And we spent months knocking on doors and getting connected with people and trying to find a location that would have us.
00:02:56.100And we finally found a church that brought us in and was amazing.
00:03:04.220And so we teach out of a small church here in Calgary in the Northwest.
00:03:08.100And that in and of itself was was a huge calling and a really positive experience.
00:03:13.600But more so were the parents that we started to connect with and seeing where we started and where we are at now with such a huge transition has has been really amazing.
00:03:25.380We started with three families who just knew that they didn't want their kids in the public system and these two strange teachers were offering this thing that they knew nothing about, but they were willing to take a risk on.
00:03:38.300And so we started with the few parents we had and and very quickly grew and grew.
00:03:44.840So so so that was very exciting and very challenging at the same time we what what else I guess on a on a general on a general scale we we grew really quickly.
00:04:04.200We tripled in size in the first two months we brought in another teacher we we found really what parents needed.
00:04:11.660And when we went into this, we knew that the most important thing was that we were no longer working for the system where we were working for parents.
00:04:18.220And so that's who we were catering to.
00:04:20.160And so the relationship with parents became the most important thing and transparency with the parents and knowing where their kids were at and supporting and bridging this gap.
00:04:28.980One thing that we found was the the gap between parents and something that I saw in the in the chat when we started was parents going, I want to homeschool, but I have no idea how to get into it.
00:04:39.780It's very intimidating. I have conversations with parents on a regular basis about how overwhelming the idea is.
00:04:45.460And I think Doris mentioned it as well. This overwhelming idea of how how do I start?
00:04:51.060What do I do? And, you know, I laugh a little bit sometimes, but I tell parents all the time.
00:04:55.780It's never as hard as you think it's going to be. You just kind of have to take that leap of faith.
00:04:59.820And I think that's really important for parents to know is there is there's like some really basic steps involved in getting started.
00:05:06.780And then there are resources out there to help you. And I think that's kind of where we fit in with our niches, bridging this gap for parents,
00:05:14.320helping parents get connected with a homeschooling board and helping them to understand where they're getting their information from and empowering them to be able to to make those decisions and
00:05:22.820and and learn for themselves and find out where their kids are at, but have experience and knowledge with that and not just be dependent on
00:05:29.820on an organization to be able to do that for you.
00:05:40.780So one thing that's really big for us and kind of the big gap that we're filling is focusing on the parents who like there are a ton of really good,
00:05:50.960strong homeschooling parents out there. And like Doria said, you don't need to be perfect.
00:05:54.720You get really good with time. And most parents are just going to praise those parents for taking that leap because because they think it's like the hardest thing to do.
00:06:03.280But there are also a lot of parents out there who are working full time, double income or maybe going to school.
00:06:09.700And so what we realized is that there was this gap that needed to be filled for parents who want that homeschooling experience, but need support to be able to do it.
00:06:18.200And so we try really hard to to get to bridge that gap for parents to be able to to connect with them and say, you can do this.
00:06:27.240We have the resources. Teachers are by nature hoarders.
00:06:30.660We have a ton of information and resources that we share with people to get them connected and just know that they're they're not alone.
00:06:36.820And that a lot of the parents that come to us are looking for that community.
00:06:42.160And like Dora said, the parents, all they all the parents who came to me have asked for a socialization.
00:06:48.160And what parents, I think, don't realize is that socialization is really the easiest part because it's a very natural thing for kids.
00:06:53.820And so when when parents come to us, really what they want is they just want to be told you're doing good.
00:07:07.880And you are. And it's it's never as it's very empowering.
00:07:11.680We have connected with a lot of parents who came to us saying, I don't know what to do.
00:07:18.020I don't know where to start. We've had parents randomly knock on our doors and say, hey, I heard something was happening here and I want to be a part of it.
00:07:24.160And it's almost instantaneous with parents that get connected with our community because there's no there's no gray area.
00:07:32.340There's no in between finding out where people are at and what they think.
00:07:34.800And it's very easy for people to get connected right away with like minded people and know that they're in the right place and that their kids are safe and that they're happy.
00:07:43.480And that's the I think the biggest thing that we've seen in the growth of of our space is the growth with the kids and with the parents.