Hi Readers? Can you guess why I so cherish this recent home page from the folks at One Step Ahead? It’s because the headline sums up EVERYTHING that is wacky about our culture, starting with the fact that no child is allowed to enjoy any activity unless it is scientifically proven to GET THEM AHEAD. (At least one step ahead.) That’s why what used to be called “playing” is now called an activity that promotes social skills and verbal skills. See? It’s developmentally beneficial! But of course, for all that good stuff to kick in, first you must BUY something.…
Author: lskenazy
Hi Readers. Here’s the latest kids-in-car/mom-arrested story. I know it seems like I’ve posted a flood of these cases lately and I’ll pause for a bit after this one, but this woman is asking for support and I’d like to provide some. As you’ll see, it’s strange that somehow her 3-year-old got out of the car — that’s certainly something to look out for — but should she have been investigated by Child Protective Services? Should she have to go to court? Is she an irresponsible parent? No way. – L. Dear Free-Range Kids: I have found you through researching…
Hi Readers! Just got this article from a self-described “heathen daddy from Attleboro, Mass.” who summarized the story thusly: A kindergarten girl gets on wrong bus on her second day of after-school care. Instead of going to the program she gets on the bus for home, gets home, realizes she made a mistake because no one is home, knocks on the neighbor’s door in tears, neighbor takes her in, gives her a snack, calls her mom, grammy comes for the afternoon. When I grew up that was called “S*** happens, that’s why we live in a neighborhood where we watch…
Hi Folks! This guest post comes to us from the proud papa of a bouncing new baby book! Safety Products You Need NOW! by Jacob Sager Weinstein For my book How Not To Kill Your Baby — a parody of overbearing, fear-inducing pregnancy and parenting books — I made up a series of ludicrous child-safety products. My challenge was: could I come up with something more ridiculous than the stuff actually marketed to parents? I’ll let you decide how successful I was. Below are four marketing pitches. Only three of them describe genuine products you can actually buy. Can you…
Hi Readers — Just read this stunning story about an Indiana teen expelled from his high school, three months before graduation, for using the “F” word in a comment he seems to have tweeted at 2:30 a.m. In other words, a tweet he made NOT at school, and yet possibly FROM a school-issued computer. The tweet said (don’t expel me from my blog!): “BEEP is one of those BEEP words you can BEEP put anywhere in a BEEP sentence and it still BEEP makes sense.” Here’s what does NOT make sense: Why is the school censoring his tweets? While it…
Hi Readers — My very own state — New York — just passed an overprotective, unnecessary, parental-decision-damning bill. Here’s the scoop, according to the Queens Chronicle: In order to better ensure child safety, the state Senate unanimously passed a bill on Feb. 29 that would make it illegal for parents or guardians to leave children under the age of 8 alone in a motor vehicle. Multiple infractions would constitute a misdemeanor. The bill applies to any person legally charged with care of a child and states that they cannot be left alone or with anyone under the age of 12,…
Hi Folks! Just got two articles on school-wide bans and the coincidence compelled me to share them. Here’s a piece about a middle school in New Jersey banning hugs, because some “unsuitable” ones had been witnessed and, said the superintendent, the schools must teach “appropriate” behavior.( Of course, the school isn’t doing that at all, since it seems to be damning appropriate hugs right along with the “unsuitable” ones.) Here’s another piece on the story. And then there’ this piece from England about the small trend of schools banning best friends, so kids don’t get hurt if-or-when they get dumped.…
Hi Readers! This poster comes to us from Ann Sattley, author of the book and blog Technically, That’s Illegal. In case you can’t read the fine print, it says, “Please remember that the library, though a fun and entertaining place to be, is a busy public facility and all public places do present hazards for unsupervised children.” Aside from the extraneous “do” (which I thought was confined to stewardess-speak) and referring to the library as a public facility, which somehow makes it sound like a giant john, this is a bald admission of the mainstream outlook today: Children should never…
Hi Readers — A bunch of you have been sending in this story, about an Illinois man who offered a lift to two 13-year-old girls. He just pleaded guilty to disorderly conduct. According to The Daily Herald, the local newspaper in suburban Chicago where the incident took place: An Arlington Heights man pleaded guilty Monday to misdemeanor disorderly conduct for alarming two 13-year-old girls in Barrington by offering them a ride home March 2, police said. But Rodney T. Peterson, 33, continued to proclaim his innocence afterward, saying he agreed to a sentence of two years’ supervision and $400 fine…
Hi Readers! Sometimes I hear from Free-Range parents who feel alone and judged when they let their kids rise to some occasion. Here’s just such a mom in Australia. To her and everyone else trying to buck our fear-everyone/everything/all-the-time culture, I say: We are with you and support you! – L. Dear Free-Range Kids: I recently started to allow my 7-year-old to walk home from school on her own. I make sure I get home from work by the time she is home. But last week I also allowed her to walk home to an empty house and wait…