Collective Retreat Program

What Is the Collective Retreat Program?

The Collective Retreat Program brings together multiple families from different countries for a week-long immersive experience at a beautiful destination. It's not a traditional organized program. It's a community-led gathering where every family contributes, leads, and participates.

Think of it as a co-created learning retreat. Families stay at the same resort, children play and learn together, and each pair of parents takes turns running workshops, activities, and sessions for all the kids.

How Does It Work?

Location: We choose a family-friendly destination with rich culture and affordable living. For 2026, we're looking at Thailand (likely Chiang Mai) with a resort that offers great communal spaces.

Duration: 5-7 days. Long enough to build real connections, short enough to fit into summer schedules.

Families: We're looking for 5 more families (making it a total of 6 families) with one to two kids aged 3-6. Ideally, each family is from a different country, creating a truly international experience.

Structure: Each pair of parents leads 2-3 activities during the week. This could be workshops, reflections, casual activities that you're comfortable with: crafts, storytelling, nature exploration, scavenger hunt, beach games, creative projects, etc. You'll prepare and bring along the materials. We don't plan to create a full schedule for the entire period - we're not a summer camp program. Let's reserve time for free play, exploration, and informal connection.

Community Project: During the week, each family works together on a collaborative project and they can present to the whole group at the end. This could be a performance, a mural, a story collection, or anything the family dreams up.

Why the Collective Model?

Cultural Exchange: When children spend a week with families from (for example) Hong Kong, Korea, Germany, Canada, and Australia, they experience diversity firsthand.

Shared Responsibility: Every family is both participant and facilitator. When everyone contributes, the experience becomes richer and more meaningful.

Lifelong Friendships: A week of living, playing, and learning together creates bonds that last.

Different Perspectives: Every family brings their own teaching style, cultural practices, and wisdom. Kids get exposed to multiple ways of thinking and learning, which is invaluable.

What's Expected of Families?

Be Prepared: We'll coordinate the full schedule beforehand. You'll decide on activities you and your spouse can prepare for and lead. These activities don't need to be facny; simple is often better. Think about what your family is good at or what your culture does uniquely.

Be Present: Participate actively, engage with other families, and be open to different parenting styles and cultural norms.

Be Flexible: Things won't always go as planned, especially for a co-created learning retreat. That's okay. Some of the best moments happen spontaneously.

Be Respectful: You're part of a global community. Respect different languages, food preferences, parenting approaches, and cultural practices.

What About Costs?

There's no program fee.

We want this to be a co-created learning retreat. While my family will coordinate most of the big items, we expect you to contribute by preparing and running your activities, actively leading your family and other families to achieve learning objectives, and being a role model to all adults and kids.

You'll cover your own travel, accommodation, and expenses.

Summer 2026: Our First Gathering

We're planning the Summer Worldschooling Collective Retreat for August 2026 in Thailand. The exact location will be decided later.

What we're looking for:

• 5 more families with kids aged 3-6 years old
• Each family from a different country (diversity is the goal)
• 1-2 kids per family
• Families who believe in learning through travel and cultural exchange
• Parents willing to actively participate and lead activities

You'll be joining:

My family: Audrey (will be 3.5yo), Avery (5.5yo), Lydia & Kevon

Interested in Joining?

If this resonates with you, we'd love to hear from you. The Collective Retreat Program is about building a community of families who believe children learn best through exploration, connection, and cultural exchange.

To make sure the right families make up this experience, we'll connect virtually to do a vibe check.