Over the years, the tabloids have tried to make Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt sound like terrible parents. At this point, I don’t really believe it. I think they’re probably as hands-on as they can be with two competing careers, and I think they have tons of nannies, helpers, tutors, private teachers and others to help them along the way. One thing I’ve always believed is that Angelina is the disciplinarian, and she’s the one organizing the family. That’s my assumption, but Star Magazine claims she’s a “hippie” who doesn’t believe in “rules.” Eh. Doubtful.

Three former nannies who worked for the Jolie-Pitts is filling Star in on the startling details of their mysterious universe—a rarefied world of security guards and nannies and nothing that other kids have: no friends, no school, no rules. While Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie themselves have enjoyed wondrous experiences few could imagine, their children—Maddox, 14, Pax, 11, Zahara, 10, Shiloh, 9, and 7-year-old twins Knox and Vivienne—may have the most unique lives of all.

“Brad and Angie are very unconventional parents, to say the least,” one nanny said. “It’s like they’re living in a hippie commune most of the time, because Angie doesn’t believe in rules. She thinks it’s important for their children to have freedom of expression, but that doesn’t always work out well,” the tipster said. Perhaps the most clear-cut example of Angelina’s “anything goes” parenting style is the fact that the children don’t go to traditional school.

They used to attend the Lycee Francais—a French-language school with campuses all over the world, so students can continue their lessons while traveling—but they eventually dropped out. Now, the kids are homeschooled by a team of international teachers.

Angelina refuses to impose any structure on their studies, according to one of the nannies. “She lets the kids learn what they want and ignore the stuff that doesn’t interest them,” dished the source. “And they don’t take tests or do homework.” Adds a nanny, “Let’s face it, none of those kids will ever be going after low-level jobs, so it’s not like they need a formal education the way other kids would.”

Even access to the Internet is largely unrestricted in the Jolie-Pitt household. “The kids are allowed to browse the Net as much as they like, and the older ones use social media, though their security team monitors it for their own safety,” the source revealed. “They’ve even seen some of their parents’ R-rated movies, like Fight Club and Inglourious Basterds—and Mr. & Mrs. Smith! It was weird for them to see their parents acting sexy onscreen in that, but they loved it.”

[From Star Magazine]

Gasp, children watching R-rated movies! My parents let me watch everything when I was little too, which probably instilled a love of movies from an early age. I doubt the little ones understand Fight Club, but I bet Maddox and Pax like it.

As for not even giving the kids tests… well, you know how I feel about that. I side-eye the hell out of these actors deciding that their kids should only learn about artsy-fartsy stuff. Kids that age are little sponges and they need to be exposed to everything, from math, science, technology, art, literature, history and everything else. I get that Brad and Angelina are trying to give their kids the childhoods they never had, but I do think most kids thrive with stability, a reliable school schedule, etc.

Photos courtesy of Fame/Flynet, Pacific Coast News.