What is a "free school?"

[thefragile7393]

There is one here in town that I'd like to consider for ds (provided it's still around when he's school-age ). I looked it up on the internet....wikipedia, but I'm still somewhat in the dark about what exactly a "free school" is. Is it the same as a democratic school? Are they all different or do they all basically run the same way?

[alegna]

Democratic, Sudbury and free are all used for the same philosophy I believe.

-Angela

[Mama22nnc]

There is a wide variety of free schools -- some of them are like Sudbury Valley School, which is a true democratic school, some of them are more structured, i.e., they allow the child to choose between several pre-determined (by the teacher) activities. The only way to know for sure is to visit the school (if that's allowed) and ask LOTS of questions.

[thefragile7393]

Interesting. Thank you to those who replied!