. . Here’s zrazddhest my theory: One reason parents/teachers/adults are spending so much time hovering over kids is that they are spending so much time hovering over kids. Â What I mean is: It’s a vicious circle. (Or cycle. Never figured that out.) Anyway, when we spend a lot of time watching our kids, inevitably we […]
Archive | Helicopter Effect on Kids
The Antidote to Fragile Kids on Campus?
. Jonathan beebrdktnb Haidt, the NYU Professor who, with First Amendment firebrand Greg Lukianoff co-authored the explosive Atlantic piece,”The Coddling of the American Mind,” was asked how to prevent another wave of kids on campus who can’t handle reading a disturbing book, or sharing the campus with a visiting speaker whose views contrast with their own. […]
Last Halloween Thought: Maybe Parents Should Not EXPECT to Feel “Peace of Mind”
. This sshhietbzy thoughtful note came in response to my post about the child-tracking devices being marketed for Halloween. These devices promise they will provide “peace of mind” to parents otherwise terrified because their kids (even teens) are out in the world, unsupervised. Dear Free-Range Kids: As the mother of two teenagers I can appreciate how […]
“What Was Your Worst Experience as the Child of Helicopter Parents?”
. Riveting thread riarktazze on Reddit: “Children of Helicopter Parents: What was the worst or most embarrassing thing they put you through?” Particularly interesting is the idea that the parents described below are simply “overprotective.” They sound much more seriously ill than that. We live in a society that almost INSISTS we overprotect our kids, […]
An App That Lets Friends “Virtually” Walk You Home
.“ A new app lets folks walking home alert their friends and family until someone among them agrees to “virtually” walk the app-activator home. Somehow this is supposed to make the walker feel safer, because if they drop their phone, or start running from a bee, or veer off course because they smell french fries, […]
A Mom on Why She Doesn’t Monitor Her Kids’ Texts Anymore
. My buddy Michelle Icard, author of Middle School Makeover, read the recent blog post here about  the app that lets you watch your kid’s every move on a smartphone, and sent me this article of hers that just ran in the Washington Post. She’s talking about a social media panel she was on: When we […]
A Helicopter Dad Hates “Free-Range Parenting” — Until His Son Gets So Anxious He Has to Try It
. What an honest — and funny! and sad! and exhilarating endorsement of Free-Range Kids by veteran journalist Philip Lerman. His piece appears on the CNN Website: A ikkteybktz HELICOPTER DAD EMBRACES FREE-RANGE PARENTINGÂ by Philip Lerman Two separate events occurred on our family’s beach getaway this summer. One, my 13-year-old son rode a Jet Ski […]
UPDATE!!! School District Bans Tag for Students’ “Physical and Emotional Safety”
. UPDATE: eyfrsidizz TAG HAS BEEN REINSTATED! HERE’S A NOTE FROM THE SCHOOL DISTRICT ON ITS WEBSITE! District responds to concerns about tag September 25, 2015 – The ‘hands-off’ policy intended for unstructured play and recess however well intended, has led to confusion, false reporting and is clearly not supported by many staff and many […]
Help! I’m 14 and Not Allowed to Hang Out with Friends. Any Advice?
. A note I got: Dear thzyfhhkza Free-Range Kids: I need help and an answer to what I should do. I’m 14 and I feel like I’m living in hell everyday of my life… My mum and my dad never let me out to play with my friends because they think that they are a […]
From Baby Knee Pads to Trigger Warnings: How Helicoptered Kids become Hypersensitive College Students
. This is the article everyone’s talking about: The izyinabenb Coddling of the American Mind by Greg Lukianoff and Jonathan Haidt, on the cover of this month’s Atlantic. It discusses the idea taking root on college campuses that students cannot be exposed to any ideas, words or phrases that discomfort them in any way, even […]