It had better be Chasing Childhood, which premieres at the DOCNYC film festival on Nov. 11. Click here to read my Q and A with the movie’s co-director, Eden Wurmfeld, who was inspired to make it after noticing the stark disconnect between her “Free-Range” childhood and the way she was raising her own sons. Where had all that freedom (maybe even too MUCH freedom) gone, and what was taking its place? A great film! And not just because you get to see me in action, meeting with some 6th graders who had had very little independence who go on to…
Author: lskenazy
Thanks to a year that has grown increasingly Dali-esque, kids are noodling around, finding interests and learning life lessons they may never have been exposed to in normal school times. It stinks that this year is so jumbled and upsetting. But when we look back, the pandemic may prove to have been a time of great growth for kids, who are getting into everything from bugs to Bitcoin, on their own. My take on kids becoming quirkier (and the results of our Let Grow survey of 1600 kids’ new hobbies) is right here. Come on! Click it! Photo by Kiana…
This week there’s a lively discussion on Let Grow’s Facebook group page where a mom asked: At what age do you let your kids stay home alone for short times (not date night, but maybe a few errands)? What benchmarks do you require first? Like knowing how to call 911, or anything else? My kids are 10, 8, and 6, and I don’t mind leaving them alone to go grab library holds or pick up 2-3 things at the store. But I wonder whether I “should” if it’s something less necessary… As a gal who remembers walking to kindergarten solo…
You’ve probably seen those Facebook memes, “We survived the ___s!” Fill in any decade: whoever survived it is proud. But ’80s kids did survive something many kids are no longer faced with. That may have been the last era when it was truly taboo for children to interrupt grownups talking. This and other well-aged parenting rules and norms can be found over at Let Grow, in “What the ’80s Got Right About Parenting,” by Shawnta Smith Sayner. And she is. Sayner, that is. Sayner than most. Click here to read her piece! Photo by Eric Nopanen on Unsplash
Attending kids sports practices can be a chore or a treat. For me, I loved meeting up with my fellow moms. Our kids weren’t doing anything too serious — it was a local baseball club, the kids were 9 or 10, I’m not sure if there were actually teams — so we gabbed the whole time, and it was fun. At least, that league was. Others were in colder weather, and further away, and I didn’t understand the game and didn’t get to know the other parents. Less fun. Then, too, some kids have a lot more practices, and some…
What happens when something safe is seen through the eyes of cultural prejudice, and thus declared dangerous and depraved? Well, in the olden days, a woman who seemed powerful or spooky might be considered dangerous and depraved: a witch. That sometimes ended in stoning. More recently, a black man looking at a white woman might be considered dangerous and depraved: the equivalent of a rapist. That sometimes ended in lynching. And today, a parent who lets his or her kid wait in the car while running an errand can also be considered dangerous and depraved: A monster. That sometimes ends…
This story by Carol Nestikis, the mom of a 30something, intellectually disabled “sex offender,” is eye-opening and heart-wrenching. The sex offense laws much change. They are not making kids safer. They are just a simple, slimy way for politicians to sound like they are doing something “for the sake of our precious children.” Well the son in this story is a precious child, too: When Adam was a toddler, he was diagnosed as having an intellectual and developmental disability (the updated term for “mental retardation”). Many clinicians over the years have confirmed that he will never have the ability to…
THIS HEADLINE STINKS: “Bergen Boy, 13, Says Men In Landscaping Truck Tried To Abduct Him” You will note from the article that it turned out to be a misunderstanding (the boy didn’t understand the landscapers, who were speaking Spanish) and police determined there was NO ABDUCTION ATTEMPT. But if you glanced at the headline, you’d be scared for your kids — which is exactly what it was designed to do. Attract you, scare you, and add another notch to the site’s metrics as you click. That this is spreading baseless fear, and prejudice, and leading to a society…
So many times, autumn do-it-yourself projects for kids end up being things like, “Take a leaf and make it into a hair ornament by sticking it into your hair.” Over at Let Grow, we’ve got some much more beautiful and scientific ideas. For instance, did you know you can extract the color from a leaf? Be-leaf me, it’s true! Click here to see the list of seven projects. Photo credit: Me! Those are my leaves!
Here’s a plea from a 5th grade teacher who wants parents to stop doing their kids’ homework. He knows it is tempting, he knows it is quicker, he knows that it’s horrible to watch your kid squirm and struggle. But he also knows when you’re stepping in, Steinbeck. Read his thoughts, over at Let Grow, by clicking here. Photo by Taylor Wilcox on Unsplash