Inside Ecola Criar and the Power of Simplicity

Escola CRIAR is one of those places that quietly rearranges your expectations.

From the outside, it really does not look like anything particularly special. It is tucked between buildings in Cascais, without the dramatic forest entrance, sprawling gardens or polished "international school" glamour that many schools love to showcase. No endless sea views, no designer architecture whispering "future Ivy League student" before you even enter the gate.

When I first walked in, I honestly did not know what to think.

What I saw instead were children everywhere. Running, laughing, climbing over each other, fully immersed in their tiny but very serious worlds. Teachers greeting children with hugs, spinning them around, crouching down to talk to them properly rather than speaking at them. The atmosphere felt busy, alive and unexpectedly warm.

At first, I almost struggled to place it. I have visited schools where nature itself steals the show and others where everything feels beautifully curated. CRIAR felt different. More grounded. More... real.

As I stood there listening, I heard English, German, Dutch and Portuguese floating through the air and suddenly it reminded me of a small city school somewhere in the Netherlands. International, relaxed, slightly chaotic in the best possible way.

🌱 First Impressions

And then Mariana arrived.

She walked in carrying a baby strapped to her chest with two children orbiting around her legs like loyal satellites. Without missing a beat, she adjusted the baby carrier, answered a question from one child, smiled at another and began showing me around. The kind of multitasking that only educators and mothers seem biologically capable of.

She showed me the little bathroom where tiny toothbrushes stood neatly lined up in cups, the small canteen where meals are prepared fresh onsite and where healthy eating is taken surprisingly seriously. Then she told me about "the soup incident."

Apparently, one day a group of children collectively decided they no longer liked soup. Which, honestly, feels like the kind of political uprising every parent eventually faces.

But instead of forcing the issue or turning lunch into a battlefield, the school sat down with the children and discussed why soup can actually be good for them. Then they offered choices: vegetables in a bowl or soup. The children still had autonomy, but within healthy boundaries.

And somehow that small story explained the entire philosophy of the school better than any educational jargon ever could.

🌿 The Concept

CRIAR draws heavily from Movimento da Escola Moderna, often called MEM, a Portuguese pedagogical movement inspired by democratic education and cooperative learning. The core belief is simple but powerful: children learn best when they actively participate in their own learning and in the life of the community around them.

In practice, this means children are not simply told what to do all day long. They participate in planning, decision-making, discussions and problem solving. Teachers act less like authority figures standing at the front of the room and more like guides helping children navigate learning together.

And you can feel this immediately when walking through the school.

The children speak openly. They question things. They negotiate. They are encouraged to express disagreement respectfully, even with teachers. Everything feels very discussion-based, very collaborative, very human.

🏡 Structure & Daily Life

The classrooms themselves are intentionally simple. Younger groups can have up to twenty children with a teacher and one or two assistants, while the older groups are much smaller, with around twelve children and two teachers. Lessons are conducted in Portuguese because the school follows the Portuguese curriculum, but it does so in its own very child-centered way.

The school is also neurodivergent-friendly, with a psychologist onsite and speech therapy support available to help prepare children for first grade.

There are also touches of Waldorf Education and forest school philosophy woven throughout the environment. A small vegetable garden allows children to plant and learn about food, and there is a playground that, at first glance, again surprised me with its simplicity.

🌼 A Playground Built by the Community

But then it started making sense.

The school moved to this location relatively recently and instead of arriving with a fully designed Pinterest-perfect playground, they decided to create it as a community project. They want to observe what children actually use, what they enjoy, what they invent themselves. Because children, when you think about it, can spend three hours happily playing with a stick, a cardboard box and one oddly shaped rock they have emotionally adopted.

And maybe that is the point.

The simplicity leaves room for imagination.

Families and children are actively involved in developing the space. They organise events, sell tickets, raise funds and collectively decide what gets added to the playground. It becomes less about consuming a finished product and more about building something together.

💛 Community & Values

That same collaborative spirit runs through the entire school structure. CRIAR is now managed through a council involving both directors and teachers to ensure everyone participates in decision-making.

What struck me most, though, was that the people behind the school are mothers themselves. Women who struggled to find the right environment for their own children and eventually decided to create something different.

And perhaps that is exactly why the place feels the way it does.

Not overly polished. Not performative. Not trying to impress anyone. Just deeply thoughtful.

A school created not only by educators, but by people who understand children emotionally, practically and instinctively. People who recognise that the world has changed and education probably needs to change with it.

🌿 My Honest Reflection

CRIAR may not be glamorous in the conventional sense. It will not seduce you with architecture or luxury facilities.

But underneath its simplicity is something increasingly rare: a genuine sense of community, trust and emotional intelligence.

And honestly, that might be far more valuable.

🌿 Closing Note

Alternative education is a beautiful, complex journey — and I know this first-hand through my own experience with my son.

If you need guidance, reassurance, or simply someone to help you make sense of it all, I'm here.

🌿 Feeling Unsure What This Actually Means for Your Family?

Reading about schools is one thing — figuring out whether they're the right fit for your child is something else entirely.

Every family I speak to is navigating slightly different questions:

And this is often where things start to feel overwhelming.

I work with families to bring clarity to that process — to help you understand not just what a school offers, but whether it genuinely aligns with your child, your values, and your plans.

If you are exploring alternative education and need guidance, reassurance, or simply someone who understands the journey — I'm here to support you.

Kasia,
Founder of Roots & Pebbles
Alternative Education Guidance.