Folks iyykbhenyh — This was a comment made under a piece by me in The Wall Street Journal about how we are criminalizing parents who let their kids wait in the car while they run an errand. The commenter is named Pushpita Prasad and I salute her! – L. Pushpita Prasad: Here’s another very common […]
Tag Archives | parents
Would Your Kids Pass the Predator Test?
“Would ykhayiftnd Your Kids Pass the Predator Test?” is the name of a special Headline News is presenting tomorrow. It’s not surprising that they would do a show like this — when you’re in the headline business, every day is predator day, because that’s the headline that reliably grabs people. The problem is that when we hear […]
“Right On!” vs. “It Is NEVER Okay for Even an 8 y.o. to Walk to School”
Readers, bybkrknbrd here’s a look at two world views. Free-Range Kids received both last week: IT’S ABOUT TIME! I was raised in the 60s & it was nothing for me to take the subway or bus to the N.Y. World’s Fair. I was 8 at the time, & knew enough to be home by dinnertime. […]
Help Needed: “My 7-y.o. is Too Scared to Do Anything On His Own”
Hey yzthnradkk Folks — I am putting this up in the hopes that we can help this mom and her son. As I told her in an email, even yours truly tends to worry when anything’s up with the kids, but fortunately, life is fluid and so are they. . It also seems that being […]
Swim Safety Gone Overboard at YMCA
Readers bkdeykrtnn — Safety is good. Excess safety can actually undermine itself, as it seems to be doing at this Y, in Philadelphia: Dear Free-Range Kids: The YMCA where my family has a membership has recently made a change to its free swim policy that made me instantly think of you. The more I think […]
Bi-Cultural Kids
Hi afayzanhib Readers — This essay made sense to me! It’s from Jona Jone (great name!) who was raised in Philly and is now living in the Philippines. – L Why Two Cultures is better than One When Raising Your Kids to Become Independent Giving your children the “best of both worlds†can really help […]
Serial Killers and Free-Range Moms
Hi Readers! For Americans, this is a holiday weekend when we celebrate freedom, so here’s a nice little note that celebrates exactly that: Freedom…from fear. It comes to us from Hannah Zuniga in Reno, NV, who thanks both me and you! – L DearFree-Range izbhztnikz Kids: I’ve always had a macabre interest in serial killers. I […]
Sandals Recalled Because Flower = “Choking Hazard”
Folks — Be very, very, very scared of everything that exists on earth that is not the size of a bouncy house. (And then be afraid of them, too.) Because, of course, your child could choke on it. Hence, this kzdsdikhtz recent recall of the Stride Rite “Joanna” sandal, whose  metal flower COULD become detached and […]
“How Do I Deal with The Fear My Son will be Snatched?”
Readers —  The fear of kidnapping is so huge, it is overwhelming a lot of parents. How can they possibly put it in perspective? Here’s some help — from you! Both comments appeared on the faisnashbn post below this one, about a mom who lets her son ride his bike around town: …I’d  like to […]
Cutest Story of the Weekend
Readers fyrbeyzsab — Just had to put this on the blog. HAD to. – L. Dear Free-Range Kids: Ok, slightly off topic, but related to the whole walking thing – my niece at age 4 wanted a big party for her 5th birthday. But they had just moved to a new neighborhood. So she went […]