In this episode, we explore being back in Hong Kong after two years in London, giving children a fair amount of freedom at a very young age, picking up schools, inspiring teachers and more.

00:00 – Introduction: Meet Carina and Franco, parents raising two young children in Hong Kong with a unique approach to freedom and independence.

01:30 – Family Background: Moving between Hong Kong and London, and how their experiences shaped their parenting.

03:00 – Parenting Philosophy: Embracing being the minority in Hong Kong by encouraging freedom, independence, and limited extracurriculars.

06:00 – Balancing Love: Honest stories about sibling rivalry and the challenge of giving equal love to both children.

09:00 – Language & Culture: Navigating bilingualism, cultural expectations, and the influence of tradition in Hong Kong.

13:00 – School Choices: Picking schools based on happiness and strong teacher-student bonds, not just academics.

18:00 – Extracurriculars & Free Play: Why they intentionally limit activities and prioritise unstructured family time.

22:00 – Reflections on Upbringing: How their own childhoods and inspiring teachers influence what they want to pass on to their kids.

27:00 – Technology & AI: Thoughts on introducing AI, screen time policies, and preparing kids for a changing world.

32:00 – Core Values: The importance of self-confidence, family connection, and leading by example.

36:00 – Inspirations & Final Thoughts: Who inspires them, what they hope to pass on, and advice for other parents.

39:00 – Outro: Reflections on parenting, support, wrap up

01:07 intro 

03:30 Montessori schooling and Taking Children Seriously

04:59 about to relocate: from a Montessori school to homeschooling with a tutor

11:25 Lindl’s experience as a homeschooled kid

14:52 Steyn’s experience in a mainstream school

16:09 the ideal mix

17:36 what’s an exceptional tutor

20:00 Steyn’s focus : the ability to feel and sense, to better solve problems

24:42 Lindl’s focus : be true to yourself (about manners, too)

25:28 about discipline

25:57 the non-coercive approach : how do you make other people feel

29:21 screen time : creating an environment where they will flourish

31:32 how their kids deal with screens

32:58 crafting the environment

37:38 building a YouTube look-alike app using AI, involving kids in the curation

40:20 Minecraft and creativity ; video games

41:49 watching stories together 

46:48 screens and boredom

51:01 trust the process

52:39 no time outs 

53:44 dealing with crisis and sibling rivalry

59:39 Taking Children Seriously

01:00:58 The Sovereign Child

01:02:16 disagreements

01:07:05 AI and kids : from fact checking to video generation

01:11:30 AI and what to be hopeful for

01:15:11 content they’d like to share with parents (see below)

01:18:24 about their life philosophy : "I don't know what can be more important in life than how we make other people feel, which makes it easier to raise your kid in a non coercive way" ; "being able to say I am sorry"

In this episode, Sylvana and Eamon talk about the importance of treating their children as whole people, taking their thoughts and feelings seriously from the time they were born. They talk about the benefits of (alternative) school, about learning how to love being alone, about how you instigate and nurture a growth mindset, and why - although crucial to them - they think it’s too early to teach their daughters computer programming. It’s been quite a passionate exchange! 

00:00 intro
01:24 [singular choice] treating our children as whole people, why it matters to them
10:36 [mainstream choice] school as the place to navigate the challenges of being around other humans
15:50 why a montessori school
23:30 montessori vs waldorf
25:56 [wish was taught at school] don’t get in the way of curiosity!
32:30 [from their own education, the good] embracing being alone, risk taking and giving a try
40:37 [from their own education, the less good] the importance to prepare for motherhood, to be a really present and loving father
44:59 [the trait they're trying to nurture] growth mindset, knowing some basic programming concepts
51:11 [technology serving this mission] helping kids make informed choices
1:03:16 [advice to your earlier selves] patience & refill your own ressources
1:04:47 parenting resources that Sylvana & Eamon recommend
wrap up
1:07:50 wrap up

Dig deeper:
• coding programs for kids, Scratch
• making sense of the past, the Landmark Forum
• toddlers growing, around the world, Becoming You, The First 2000 Days of Life
• creating healthy connections first, Listen, Five Simple Tools to Meet Your Everyday Parenting Challenges, by Patty Wipfler and Tosha Schore

In this episode, we discuss about raising a multi-cultural child - Sandra’s from Colombia, Yotam’s from Israël, kiddo’s been born and raised in Australia: the sense of identity, the ability to communicate in multiple languages with the extended family. We talk about discipline. We explore the importance of routines, their three-question routine at night (1. your favorite part of the day ; 2. something that made you laugh; 3. something you didn’t like). We dig into what’s most important to nurture, in that case for them equanimity, knowing where you come from and being able to make friends. We also talk a bit about how they see technology serving their 5 year old kid and as he gets older. About being flexible on things that matter less (short videos while you brush your teeth) and strict about just a few, important things. I couldn’t wrap this up better than with Sandra’s own words:

00:00 intro
02:34 raising a trilingual child, why it matters to them, the challenges
10:19 discipline, how they are trying to stay away from what seems to be the norm in Australia
14:45 the importance of routines
19:58 traits they're trying like to nurture : equanimity, a multicultural background, the ability to make friends
29:25 technology and raising a kid
34:45 AI tools for kids
40:53 parenting resources that Sandra & Yotam recommend
46:50 wrap up

Dig deeper:

• Seen, a film about parenting, about knowing where you come from (aka your own childhood) to make more informed decisions as you’re raising your child
• MindHeart, about gentle parenting (esp. targeting Latin American parents)
• Parent.tv, about helping parents navigate specific questions along their parenting journey, video content behind a subscription wall (Sandra actually translated their content to Spanish 😎)
• Maggie Dent, about raising boys, and her books From Boys to Men and Mothering Our Boys (that I haven’t read yet but certainly will)
• (bonus: the dino friend we came across last summer)