Hi Readers! Here’s a guest post from the very funny Thelma Adams. You may know her as the film critic for Us Magazine and, before that, the New York Post. But TODAY St. Martins Press/Thomas Dunne Books is publishing her novel, Playdate! Here she ponders a Free-Range Childhood. — L. Free-Range Children by Thelma Adams I didn’t grow up Free-Range. We lived on a San Diego cul-de-sac surrounded by hilly miles of sidewalk going pretty much nowhere. Civilization — the Woolworth’s! — was a car ride away. Until the very first day one of my friends got a driver’s license,…
Author: lskenazy
Readers: Here is a note from the young woman who wrote the petition in the post below this. Dear Free-Range Kids: While I am thrilled with the response my petition has gotten, I have decided to suspend it indefinitely. This morning there was a student suicide at my school. In light of that tragedy, I have no desire to give my school any more publicity. Thanks. This is beyond sad. — L.
Hi Readers: I’m so proud of this high school student — for what she’s doing and also all her clear thinking. The points she makes about her school’s no-touching rule could be made about most Zero Tolerance laws. Be prepared to cheer! — L Dear Free-Range Kids: I am a senior at a a small New England high school. A few days ago, the administration implemented a new rule: No physical contact at any time. The only appropriate touch, we are told, is a handshake. Presumably, this is to thin out the kissing couples who clog up the halls. I…
Hi Readers! Here’s a note about something that went right. but it could have gone even, uh, righter. — L Dear Free-Range Kids: I had my first half-way Free-Range encounter with another parent the other day. I was at the ice rink with my toddlers, watching the kids on the ice from a bench near the front door. A man with a young boy, 4-ish, approaches the bench and sort of looks us over. The dad then tells the boy to stay here and wait, but is looking at me strangely. Then he goes to the desk maybe 10 feet…
Hi Readers — I touched (ha ha — so to speak!) upon this issue in my Golden Helicopter Awards: The fact that the British Musicians Union has told its members (ha ha again) not to lay (ha ha) a finger on any child they are giving music lessons. Most cheeringly, England’s Education Secretary, Michael Grove, has called these restrictions daffy. Here’s some of his wisdom, via The Telegraph: It plays to a culture of fear among both adults and children, reinforcing the message that any adult who touches a child is somehow guilty of inappropriate contact,” he said. “If we…
Hi Readers — Sent by one of you, from a Facebook exchange: KM: Today I toured a “preschool” that makes the kids (4/5 year olds) nap for 2 hours everyday. Lights out, kids laying on cots in the dark for two hours! WTF! AND it cost $140/week. MGK: Um, kids should never be left in the dark at any daycare. Sadly predators will take any chance. KM: There was a teacher in there flipping through a magazine. The place was really small and the doors locked. MGK: Even worse. One teacher, alone in the dark with a child/children and the…
Hi Readers! As the day winds to a close, I am happy that a whole lot of people read the Wall Street Journal piece about treating all men as potential pedophiles. There were about 200 comments over there. And this is one of the cutest ones I read right here. — L Dear Free-Range Kids This brings me back to about 1973, when I was a wee little preschooler, sitting around on the sidewalk (unsupervised—gasp!) in front of our house on a summer day. My mom came out and said, “Now Mollie, if a man comes over to you and…
Check this out. If I could figure out how to show you the picture here, I would. But I can’t, so click and enjoy! (Or whatever.) — L P.S. Ah! Thanks to my friend Floyd, HERE is the object in question!
Hey Readers! Here’s my piece in today’s Wall Street Journal: Eek! A Male! Treating All Men As Potential Predators Doesn’t Make Our Kids Safer You’ll recognize a lot of the stories from this very blog, so THANK YOU ALL for sending me so many interesting anecdotes and links. Together we are getting the message out: Excess fear does no one any favors — especially kids! — L
Hi Readers — Just because it’s an outrage kind of day, here’s another: A woman was detained at the Canadian border because she was bringing in a Kinder Surprise Egg. You know — the chocolate candy with a prize inside. The problem? That prize presents a choking hazard! The BIGGER problem? A law equating candy with crystal meth! Of COURSE there is a prize inside. That is why people BUY them. The adults know it’s there. The KIDS know it’s there. That is why the word “KINDER” as in “KINDERGARTEN” is featured rather prominently in the candy’s name. What next?…