Readers: I’m sure if my kid were deathly allergic, I would be a wreck. Even so, I’m pretty positive I would not expect a whole school to stop serving milk and eggs — two staples — just for my child’s sake. This is what Philip Howard talks about in his book, Life Without Lawyers: the way we have gone from pushing for civil rights for whole groups (African-Americans, women, gays, etc.), to the “right” of a single individual to be surrounded by an accommodating world, no matter what the cost to the common good. It’s a fascinating way to start…
Author: lskenazy
Readers, this comes up often: terrified grandmas who were fearless moms (or at least feared less): Dear Free-Range Kids: Funny thing about my mother… I was very much raised Free-Range. From the time I was six or so, I left the house in the morning, returned for lunch, and then got called home after dark The only rule was don’t leave the block without telling someone. My friends and I ran in a pack, organized our own games, settled our own rivalries, and learned important lessons like… ‘poking sticks in the gutters is only fun until you bother a raccoon.’…
Readers — This looks silly and also extremely fun. Bigger question: Is it the future of sports for our kids? Weigh in! – L
I couldn’t resist this ad for Procter & Gamble. And I KNOW it seems to show moms constantly picking the kids up instead of kids out there on their own, but its meta-message (besides buy Pampers and Tide) is, “For teaching us that falling only makes us stronger, thank you, Mom.” Let’s remember THAT part! – L
Readers — Donald Christensen, a longtime Free-Range supporter, deep thinker about encouragement, and author of the blog Tryathlete.org, came up with a great idea: Let’s make a then-vs.-now poster with all the modern-day things we say to kids to keep them “safe”… that really just depress, demoralize or defeat them. Woo hoo! Now, I realize this poster can be hard to read on a screen, so here’s what’s on it so far: THINGS TO TEACH CHILDREN 1980: …
Hi Folks! Here’s my piece in today’s Wall Street Journal. It’s not straight-on Free-Range, just a little slice of life. I hope this link works! (If not, maybe this one?) Anyway, the piece begins: A Hearty Breakfast of Google and YouTube by Lenore Skenazy This is a tale of two breakfasts. Breakfast when I was 15, staring at the back of a cereal box: “Hey kids! Help the Cap’n find his way home!” Breakfast this morning with my son, 15: “Hey mom! Let me show you this commercial I saw during the game!” He hops online, searches YouTube for a…
Hi Readers — I was only vaguely aware of the shelf elf, so I’m grateful to reader Frankie Wood, who just sent this in: Dear Free-Range Kids: I know, Christmas is past now, but the topic of the Elf on a Shelf came up in a recent conversation and since I don’t have my own blog in which to rant, I thought it be an interesting (if belated) topic for you. Have you heard of this thing? It’s a little elf doll that comes with a book explaining all about how hateful Santa is that if you aren’t…
Readers — One of you sent me this fascinating piece on hitchhiking that ran in the New York Times last year. The writer, Ginger Strand, author of Killer On the Road, points out that hitchhiking had been a normal mode of transportation, never considered particularly dangerous, until the late ’50s when: The F.B.I. began warning American motorists that hitchhikers might be criminals. A typical F.B.I. poster showed a well-dressed yet menacing hitchhiker under the title “Death in Disguise?” In the ’60s, the focus began to shift, emphasizing dangers to the hitchhiker instead of the driver. Although many states had some…
Readers — Over and over I keep realizing how grateful kids are when we lean OUT of their lives a little and let them show us how competent they really are. I love this letter! – L. Dear Free-Range Kids: I stumbled on your site when a backpacking guide friend asked me what approach she should use in talking to Girl Scouts and their moms about camping and other “risky” outdoor activities. I’ve been witnessing the changes in outdoor programs since I joined the Brownies in 1955! My parents gave me my first jackknife when I was 8.…
Readers — Show us your chops! Here’s a song I wrote last night, inspired by this AP story by Nedra Pickler about some schools, including those in Glen Ridge, NJ, that “want to end their traditional role as polling places because of security concerns since the 2012 massacre at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Connecticut.” (As one commenter once wrote about this issue, “Guess all of those Election Day Massacres finally took a toll.” ) Your job? SING THE SONG AND SEND US A LINK in the comments below! Or just send me the video via email: heylenore3@gmail.com . Do…