Serious: The chart lists 20 things teens should be able to do before they leave home, like: Make a doctor’s appointment, pay bills, return something to the store… Silly: It looks like one of those “I Brushed My Teeth!” charts for 5-year-olds. That’s what makes it fun. You can download it for free. Click here!
That’s one of the jumping off points in the Let Grow Summer Journal kit for kids. If they’re like me, they’ll ignore the prompts and write a journal of everything that bothers them from now through college (Warning: Never read it!). But maybe your kids are more chipper. Either way, click this link for our […]
But it’s hard! In part, that’s because with three kids and so much chaos, it’s easier for her to just do things for the youngest (rather than letting him muddle through), so everything goes a little quicker and smoother. But in part, she confesses, she is also holding onto his childhood because he’s her last. […]
Let Grow is running a Cardboard Challenge! Have your kids create something using a certain brown material, send us a photo, and they could win $500 — or two runner up prizes of $50 each. Not bad for an activity that gets them busy doing something creative and, hopefully, a room or two away from […]
Kids! Just click here for instructions on how to make your very own TV! TV. TV. It’s…like TikTok, but larger. With fewer talking dogs. Longer shows. And not as many people cooking whole meals in 60 seconds. And for a while there was a dial on the… Never mind. PARENTS: Click here for instructions on […]
Kids drop out of sports because they aren’t having fun. There’s too much time, or pressure, or it simply is too similar to the rest of their day: More adult instruction. Let Grow’s content guru, Stacy Tornio, loved sports as a kid and is raising two athletic children. They moped when COVID put an end […]
On my latest “Supervision Not Required” podcast, I talk with “Range” author David Epstein who studies the zig-zag path to fulfillment/creativity. He says that pushing kids to specialize — or even READ! — early does not help them in the long run (and may even hurt them). What DOES help? Lots of experiences and exposure to […]
Something about dealing with a deadly virus seems to be making the rest of us want to conquer weird science, by nurturing a sourdough starter, or fermenting food (just made my first sauerkraut!), or growing mushrooms (I have a neighbor and son doing this). But few of us can hold a toadstool to 12-year-old Te’Lario […]
Want a lovely assortment of bookmarks for your kids? We’ve got a bunch of free ones to print out over at Let Grow. Click here and send them outside with a good book (and a baked sweet potato. That’s how my mother-in-law spent her summers).
It’s always a good time to watch this: Dr. Peter Gray’s TEDx talk on the decline of free play and its consequences (anxiety, depression). Click here to see it. And for some solutions, visit LetGrow.org. Schools & parents can start Let Grow Play Clubs where kids make their own fun and solve their own spats. […]
