This article stems from a doctoral study about alternative education around the world and the author's personal journey to identify characteristics of the "ideal school." The focus here is a case study of one small primary school in Australia, through which it shows that there can be a larger amount of freedom and self-actualisation available to students in the classroom even when a school is governed by teaching a compulsory state curriculum. By sharing the story of this school, the article aims to enable educators to reflect on how they structure classrooms and to offer ideas of educating differently.