Readers — Sometimes I am ready to jump out of my skin when I read about child “protections” put in place that do nothing but stymie kids’ development. Like this case, about a basketball player sidelined for “safety’s” sake. The standout quote? “The state high school organization made the tough call that Bailey’s prosthetic legs complicate safety for himself and the competition.” So should he NOT play ball? Somehow that’s BETTER for everyone? – L
Author: lskenazy
Readers, my Facebook friend Ali Bergstrom recently showed me a child development form filled out for her son. This is to assess 5-year-old with disabilities: In case this is too hard to read, the benchmarks are: Child may play safely at home without being watched constantly. Goes about familiar environment outside of home with only periodic monitoring for safety. Follows guidelines/expectations of school and community setting. Explores and functions in familiar community settings without supervision. Makes transaction in neighborhood store without assistance. What’s fascinating is that this test is measuring whether a child with disabilities can do the things we…
Readers — Remember, even a feel-good story could always use a frisson of fear! Marie, author of the blog HandbasketNotes, explains: Dear Free-Range Kids: I heard a story on NPR tonight about how kids spent the night at school during the recent Atlanta snow and ice storm and I thought of you. Audie Cornish interviews a teacher who stayed at the school with the kids. The teacher described how the teachers and administrators baked chocolate chip cookies and served them with milk. She told about the kids had a big sleepover, with the girls on gymnastic mats in one area…
I know some folks may think there’s a good reason Illinois’ Madison County Health Department shut down 11-year-old Chloe Stirling’s cupcake business. But here’s what bugs me: If you are buying cupcakes from a kid, you KNOW they’re not being baked at Entenmann’s headquarters. And that’s a “risk” you are taking. A society that doesn’t even allow microscopic risks is a society more obsessed with rules and liabilities than gumption and frosting. Me? I’m in the gumption/frosting camp. – L. (Maybe Chloe can raise enough money for a non-time-delayed headset for the local reporter!)
Readers — This powerful comment came in response to my piece about the New Jersey woman who let her toddler sleep in the car for 5-10 minutes while she ran an errand. She was arrested, found guilty of abuse or neglect, and put on the state’s Child Abuse Registry. Two weeks ago, a New Jersey appeals court upheld that conviction. I love this letter: Often as not, the Child Abuse and Sex Offender Registries are out to SHAME, not SAVE. (Prop stockade from BJWinslow)Dear Free-Range Kids: I think what we’re really seeing here is just our country’s punitive mindset. It’s…
Readers, This blog, Math With Bad Drawings, says something I’m always trying to say — but adds bad drawings! Here are a few gems from the post, “Headlines from a Mathematically Literate World.” Our World: One Dead in Shark Attack; See Tips for Shark Safety Inside Mathematically Literate World: One Dead in Tragic, Highly Unlikely Event; See Tips for Something Useful Inside And Our World: Rates of Cancer Approach Historic High Mathematically Literate World: Rates of Surviving Long Enough to Develop Cancer Approach Historic High So when, for instance, you read this (real) headline, that ran in the New York…
Readers — A bunch of you have been sending this fantastic story from New Zealand, where a school abandoned its plans to build a fancy, new playground because there were just too many regulations and expenses. Instead, it decided to let kids play the old-fashioned way, by making their own fun. The results? Astounding. As the principal noted: “When you look at our playground it looks chaotic. From an adult’s perspective, it looks like kids might get hurt, but they don’t.” What’s more: Mudslides, skateboarding, bullrush [which sounds like Kiwi Red Rover] and tree climbing kept the children so occupied…
Hey Readers — Here’s a piece I wrote for the Wall Street Journal a little while back that I can now legally reprint here! Bringing Up Baby and Fretting About Vital Signs New gadgets, like diapers that monitor kidney function, are turning baby nurseries into ICUs. By LENORE SKENAZY Almost anything you can put on a baby is cute. A hat. Sunglasses. A bib (especially the one that says, “Some moron put my cape on backwards!”). But now comes the Owlet Baby Monitor—a little electronic device strapped to a sock at bedtime. It measures your baby’s heart rate, blood oxygen…
Yep, kids built a fort on an empty lot. Then someone called in a complaint. First off, here’s the letter the kids wrote to the city: Dear City, Please do not tear this house down! We have all worked for almost a year on it, for hours and hours. We have all had fun climbing on it, camping in it, having picnics in it. Many happy memories were forged here. We all hope that it won’t be torn down. So please don’t tear it down! Can you guess what happened next? Here’s the story, from KCTV in Missouri. Missouri! Isn’t…
From my mailbox, ever-filled with flacks seeking publicity: Hi there — Hope you’re well. Wanted to reach out quickly with an interesting snow storm related story idea: with kids stuck at home with a snow day, they are more likely to be on their smartphones/computers, increasing the chances of them cyberbullying someone or getting cyberbullied themselves…. If you’re interested, I have a client that launched the first anti-cyberbullying app today… What’s next? “Hi there. Hope you’re well. With all the snow, your children will be surrounded by white crystals, perhaps starting them on a tragic life of cocaine addiction….” And…