--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: People should be free to find or make for…" description: "\"People should be free to find or make for themselves the kinds of educational experience they want their children to have.\" — John Holt" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dd0/john-holt-14171_children_people-should-be-free-to-find-or-make-fo_882057.jpg" --- # People should be free to find or make for themselves the… ![“People should be free to find or make for themselves the kinds of educational experience they want their children to have.” quote by John Holt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dd0/john-holt-14171_children_people-should-be-free-to-find-or-make-fo_882057.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dd0/john-holt-14171_children_people-should-be-free-to-find-or-make-fo_882057.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dd0/john-holt-14171_children_people-should-be-free-to-find-or-make-fo_882057.jpg) > “People should be free to find or make for themselves the kinds of educational experience they want their children to have.” [John Holt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-holt/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Advocates parental control over education, letting families choose or create learning that fits their values. **In simple terms:** Parents should shape their kids' education. Key Takeaway Empower families to design learning. Themes education parental rights individualism Mood hopeful determined Type advocational inspirational When to use this quote - family meetings - home schooling - community learning centers - custom curricula - parent‑teacher collaborations Key Concepts homeschooling curriculum design learning autonomy Questions to Reflect On - How can families access quality resources? - What support structures are needed? A Different Perspective May lack resources or expertise for diverse curricula. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Children](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/children/) [Education](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/education/) [Educational](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/educational/) ## Related quotes > [Quite a few, actually, are involved in education. They have had the same experience Hanna and I had: when they started having their own…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-greenberg/quite-a-few-actually-are-involved-in-education-they-have-had-the-same/) [Daniel Greenberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-greenberg/) > [The important thing is the educational experience itself — how to survive it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-barthelme/the-important-thing-is-the-educational-experience-itself-how-to/) [Donald Barthelme](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-barthelme/) > [Don't let failure deter you; use it as a stepping-stone and an educational experience towards making your mark on the world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-parr/don-t-let-failure-deter-you-use-it-as-a-stepping-stone-and-an/) [Ben Parr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-parr/) > [When I went back to finish my undergrad, after a long and ignoble absence, my very first class was Intro to C for Cognitive…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vivienne-ming/when-i-went-back-to-finish-my-undergrad-after-a-long-and-ignoble/) [Vivienne Ming](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vivienne-ming/) > [But you take a four-year state college, with a broader range of admission, and what happens during those four years may be an even…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roy-romer/but-you-take-a-four-year-state-college-with-a-broader-range-of/) [Roy Romer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roy-romer/) > [I got a degree in architecture for the educational experience but in terms of career, everything is cinema.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kalyani-priyadarshan/i-got-a-degree-in-architecture-for-the-educational-experience-but-in/) [Kalyani Priyadarshan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kalyani-priyadarshan/) > [More people have access to education today than ever before. But I cannot help but feel that the modern educational experience is not preparing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matthew-kelly/more-people-have-access-to-education-today-than-ever-before-but-i/) [Matthew Kelly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthew-kelly/) > [If life ever ceased to be an educational experience. I probably wouldn't get out of bed in the morning.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-tudor-jones/if-life-ever-ceased-to-be-an-educational-experience-i-probably-wouldn/) [Paul Tudor Jones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-tudor-jones/) > [The chips fall into place, but the educational experience I had at Cal, second to none.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jaylen-brown/the-chips-fall-into-place-but-the-educational-experience-i-had-at-cal/) [Jaylen Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jaylen-brown/) > [“Without knowing it, I had stumbled upon one of the basic postulates of homeschooling: Anything you do with a home-schooled child outside the home…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/quinn-cummings/without-knowing-it-i-had-stumbled-upon-one-of-the-basic-postulates-of/) [Quinn Cummings](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/quinn-cummings/) > [“A life worth living, and work worth doing - that is what I want for children (and all people), not just, or not even,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-holt/a-life-worth-living-and-work-worth-doing-that-is-what-i-want-for/) [John Holt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-holt/) > [No country and no people can be free and ignorant at the same time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-jefferson/no-country-and-no-people-can-be-free-and-ignorant-at-the-same-time/) [Thomas Jefferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-jefferson/) > [These ballot initiatives against same sex marriage remind us that America is the land where people are free to dream whatever they want, so…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lewis-black/these-ballot-initiatives-against-same-sex-marriage-remind-us-that/) [Lewis Black](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lewis-black/) > [The American people are free to do exactly what they are told.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ward-churchill/the-american-people-are-free-to-do-exactly-what-they-are-told/) [Ward Churchill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ward-churchill/) > [Freedom is not something that anybody can be given. Freedom is something people take, and people are as free as they want to be](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/freedom-is-not-something-that-anybody-can-be-given-freedom-is/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) ## More by John Holt > [“When children are very young, they have natural curiosities about the world and explore them, trying diligently to figure out what is real. As…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-holt/when-children-are-very-young-they-have-natural-curiosities-about-the/) [John Holt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-holt/) > [The idea of painless, nonthreatening coercion is an illusion. Fear is the inseparable companion of coercion, and its inescapable consequence. If you think it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-holt/the-idea-of-painless-nonthreatening-coercion-is-an-illusion-fear-is/) [John Holt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-holt/) > [The biggest enemy to learning is the talking teacher.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-holt/the-biggest-enemy-to-learning-is-the-talking-teacher/) [John Holt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-holt/) > [“Fear, boredom, and resistance--they all go to make what we call stupid children.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-holt/fear-boredom-and-resistance-they-all-go-to-make-what-we-call-stupid/) [John Holt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-holt/) > [“Much of what we call History is the success stories of madmen.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-holt/much-of-what-we-call-history-is-the-success-stories-of-madmen/) [John Holt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-holt/) > [Schools assume that children are not interested in learning and are not much good at it, that they will not learn unless made to,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-holt/schools-assume-that-children-are-not-interested-in-learning-and-are/) [John Holt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-holt/) > [“John, if you ever get a family, there’s one thing you should know. No matter how well you get along with your children when…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-holt/john-if-you-ever-get-a-family-there-s-one-thing-you-should-know-no/) [John Holt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-holt/) > [It is hard not to feel that there must be something very wrong with much of what we do in school, if we feel…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-holt/it-is-hard-not-to-feel-that-there-must-be-something-very-wrong-with/) [John Holt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-holt/) > [“Why do they do this? Because it gives them a license to act like tyrants and to feel like saints. “Do what I tell…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-holt/why-do-they-do-this-because-it-gives-them-a-license-to-act-like/) [John Holt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-holt/) > [“We learn to do something by doing it. There is no other way.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-holt/we-learn-to-do-something-by-doing-it-there-is-no-other-way/) [John Holt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-holt/) > [Since we can't know what knowledge will be most needed in the future, it is senseless to try to teach it in advance. Instead,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-holt/since-we-can-t-know-what-knowledge-will-be-most-needed-in-the-future/) [John Holt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-holt/) > [“Leaders are not, as we are often led to think, people who go along with huge crowds following them. Leaders are people who go…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-holt/leaders-are-not-as-we-are-often-led-to-think-people-who-go-along-with/) [John Holt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-holt/) > [“Someone asked the other day, "Why do we go to school?" Pat, with vigor unusual in her, said, "So when we grow up we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-holt/someone-asked-the-other-day-why-do-we-go-to-school-pat-with-vigor/) [John Holt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-holt/) > [“I doubt very much if it is possible to teach anyone to understand anything, that is to say, to see how various parts of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-holt/i-doubt-very-much-if-it-is-possible-to-teach-anyone-to-understand/) [John Holt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-holt/) > [We can best help children learn, not by deciding what we think they should learn and thinking of ingenious ways to teach it to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-holt/we-can-best-help-children-learn-not-by-deciding-what-we-think-they/) [John Holt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-holt/) [Explore all 46 John Holt quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-holt/) ## More Children quotes > [I am certain that children always know more than they are able to tell, and that makes the big difference between them and adults,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacques-lusseyran/i-am-certain-that-children-always-know-more-than-they-are-able-to/) [Jacques Lusseyran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacques-lusseyran/) > [Behind every successful child is an adult who believed in him.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-warren/behind-every-successful-child-is-an-adult-who-believed-in-him/) [Rick Warren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-warren/) > [I believe in freedom to do what you want if you aren't hurting others, but pictures of obese protesters giving their children big gulps.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-defranco/i-believe-in-freedom-to-do-what-you-want-if-you-aren-t-hurting-others/) [Philip DeFranco](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-defranco/) > [If the audience likes your work, if they like you, they don't think whether you are married or have children or not. I made…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dimple-kapadia/if-the-audience-likes-your-work-if-they-like-you-they-don-t-think/) [Dimple Kapadia](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dimple-kapadia/) > [It doesnt seem to me strange that children should like the macabre, the sensational, and the forbidden.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-hecht/it-doesnt-seem-to-me-strange-that-children-should-like-the-macabre/) [Anthony Hecht](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-hecht/) > [Let children support their parents or be imprisoned.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/let-children-support-their-parents-or-be-imprisoned/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Gratitude isn't just a feeling, it's an action. Expressing gratitude by writing in a journal, taking a photo, or shooting a video creates a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/janice-kaplan/gratitude-isn-t-just-a-feeling-it-s-an-action-expressing-gratitude-by/) [Janice Kaplan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/janice-kaplan/) > [My embarrassing confession is that my father is a 'Camelot: The Musical' obsessive. So as a child, when we were going to visit relatives…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-chibnall/my-embarrassing-confession-is-that-my-father-is-a-camelot-the-musical/) [Chris Chibnall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-chibnall/) > [I have many who keep me going, I am very fortunate in this sense. There is nothing like a child who knows more about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/floyd-cooper/i-have-many-who-keep-me-going-i-am-very-fortunate-in-this-sense-there/) [Floyd Cooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/floyd-cooper/) > [My school was one of the most beautiful places a child can grow up in. You are surrounded by nature - cats, dogs, birds…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amala-akkineni/my-school-was-one-of-the-most-beautiful-places-a-child-can-grow-up-in/) [Amala Akkineni](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amala-akkineni/) > [A lesser complaint: hair extensions. There are moments on 'All My Children' when half the women actors, young and old, seem to be afflicted…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/camille-paglia/a-lesser-complaint-hair-extensions-there-are-moments-on-all-my/) [Camille Paglia](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/camille-paglia/) > [As a child, I had a lot of older gay men taking care of me. There's a trust there. I feel like little girls…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-cho/as-a-child-i-had-a-lot-of-older-gay-men-taking-care-of-me-there-s-a/) [Margaret Cho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-cho/) > [If my child had prejudice in his head, I'd be ashamed. I would see it as my failure as a parent.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/salman-rushdie/if-my-child-had-prejudice-in-his-head-i-d-be-ashamed-i-would-see-it/) [Salman Rushdie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/salman-rushdie/) > [“Children's lives are always beginning and adults' lives are always ending. Or is it the opposite? Your childhood is always ending and your adult…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alison-espach/children-s-lives-are-always-beginning-and-adults-lives-are-always/) [Alison Espach](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alison-espach/) > [As a child I was very involved with sports and I knew at age 9 that I wanted to be an Olympic champion.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marion-jones/as-a-child-i-was-very-involved-with-sports-and-i-knew-at-age-9-that-i/) [Marion Jones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marion-jones/) [Browse all 62,396 Children quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/children/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "People should be free to find or make for themselves the kinds of educational experience they want their children to have.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "John Holt" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-holt/people-should-be-free-to-find-or-make-for-themselves-the-kinds-of/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Children" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-holt/people-should-be-free-to-find-or-make-for-themselves-the-kinds-of/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dd0/john-holt-14171_children_people-should-be-free-to-find-or-make-fo_882057.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dd0/john-holt-14171_children_people-should-be-free-to-find-or-make-fo_882057.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dd0/john-holt-14171_children_people-should-be-free-to-find-or-make-fo_882057.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“People should be free to find or make for themselves the kinds of educational experience they want their…” — John Holt", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "John Holt", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-holt/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "People should be free to find...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-holt/people-should-be-free-to-find-or-make-for-themselves-the-kinds-of/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-holt/people-should-be-free-to-find-or-make-for-themselves-the-kinds-of/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```