Ignite Learning Academy
School, wherever we’re standing.
For six years our kids have done school from Zodiacs, jungle lodges and airport lounges. Ignite Learning Academy, an accredited online private school, is how.
Our story
The school that made our travels possible.
In 2020 we stopped planning for the life of our dreams and started living it: three kids in online school, Phil working remotely, and the freedom to go see the science, history and people the kids were studying. The one thing that couldn’t be improvised was school.
It took us three tries to find the right program. The first two were fine, but fine isn’t fit. Ignite Learning Academy fit. It’s fully accredited, it teaches the same curriculum as any good school, and its deadlines flex as long as the work gets done within the semester. That one detail is what lets a school week include the Galápagos.
Brooklyn spent a year at ILA before choosing in-person high school. Colt is still there, on track to graduate at 16. We’ve watched it work for two very different kids, and it’s the reason we can travel the way we do.
The curriculum, in person
What our kids have learned by being there.
Textbooks tell you the Empty Quarter is the largest sand desert on earth. Our kids trekked into it on camels. A few of the lessons that left the page:
Earth scienceCamel trekking the Empty Quarter, the world’s largest sand desert
Earth scienceStanding inside a volcano on Hawaii’s Big Island
Earth scienceFloating into the Puerto Princesa Underground River, one of the New 7 Wonders of Nature
BiologyPenguins, glaciers and the Drake Passage in Antarctica
BiologyRetracing Darwin’s route through the Galápagos
BiologySwimming with wild whale sharks in Donsol, Philippines
BiologyTracking Africa’s Big Five on safari at Phinda
BiologyMeeting rescue elephants in northern Thailand
World historyTouring the Taj Mahal
World historyWalking the Colosseum and Forum in Rome
World historyExploring Maya history at Chichen Itza
CultureLiving tradition in Kyoto’s geisha district
CultureNavigating the lanes and markets of Old Delhi
ArtArt classes in Florence, the Renaissance’s hometown
Skills earnedSCUBA certification in the Philippines
Living abroadA year living in Manila
Our episode
Traveling the world with Ignite Learning Academy
Traveling the world with Ignite Learning Academy
Our top priority is giving our kids the best education possible. Ignite Learning Academy helps make that happen. Here’s how.
Episode notes + more filmsHow ILA works
Accredited first, flexible second.
Fully accredited, K–12
A real private school, not a parent-led homeschool project. The same subjects and exams as the school down the street, and every door to higher education stays open.
Deadlines that flex
Work just has to be finished within the semester. Colt works ahead before we lose connectivity, so a 10 a.m. Zodiac ride never costs him a grade.
Your time zone, not theirs
Live and self-paced options mean school happens when it fits the day, whether that’s a hotel desk, a galley table or an airport lounge.
From anywhere
A U.S. private-school education wherever you live or travel, at tuition that’s approachable for most middle-class families like ours.
Is it right for your family?
Not automatically. Two of our three kids ultimately chose a brick-and-mortar school, and that was the right call for them. Online school rewards a self-directed kid who’s comfortable working solo, and a family rhythm that doesn’t fit a classroom’s calendar: full-time travel, competitive sports, or a kid who simply does better at their own pace.
Savvy Traveler articles
Everything we’ve written about ILA.
Talk to ILA yourself
Bring them the weird questions.
Your travel calendar, your kid’s grade level, credit transfers, mid-semester enrollment. A call with an administrator costs nothing and answers more than ten review posts ever could.
Schedule a call with an ILA administratorFull transparency: Ignite Learning Academy is an Always Be Changing partner, and that link tells them we sent you. Our opinion of them predates the partnership; Colt’s transcript is the receipt.