Hi Folks! Remember the case of Lia Grippo, the California mom who runs a day care center with a focus on nature? Her plight constituted our first Outrage of the Week. She let three of the kids in her care — two of them her own — climb a cliff while on a field trip to the beach. (The cliff was not above the water.) Though her kids had climbed this cliff before (as have kids since time immemorial — climbing used to be a normal part of childhood), onlookers freaked out and called the cops. Child Protective Services was…
Author: lskenazy
That’s what’s happening in England, folks: A new proposal to have safety experts go into families’ homes to make sure they’re utterly safe, right down the stair guards. Woe to the family that babyproofs in a manner not approved by the state! Here’s the Times OnLine article about the new guidelines, and here’s a comment someone posted that I especially enjoyed: [The article said that] “About 100,000 children are admitted to hospital each year for home injuries at a cost of £146m.” I’m delighted to hear that. It indicates that at least 100,000 of the next generation will still be…
Hi Folks! When not busy blogging here (and lecturing, and writing non-blogs), I run a humor contest in the magazine The Week. My question is usually a wacky twist on something in the news and last week I was fed up with that pre-school TV show in England that had tinkered with the ending of Humpty Dumpty. Remember? Worried, I think, that their little viewers could not handle the shock and horror of Humpty’s actual fate, the show changed the ending to, “All the kings horses and all the kings men/Made Humpty happy again.” So my Week contest asked readers…
Dear Readers — Take your chill pill FIRST. Then read on: Dear Free-Range Kids: I’d like to tell you about a recent experience of mine and would love to get your feedback. I am a mother of three children and a preschool teacher at a small, private preschool in my town. About two weeks ago, my class of four-year-olds was marching in from the playground. We routinely do this about five minutes before dismissal time. The line leader on this particular day was a very bright, outgoing girl. Unfortunately, I did not notice that, upon re-entering the…
Hi Readers! I’m writing this at 10 p.m., when my younger son is finally going to bed after (not quite) finishing his 6th grade homework. I am so sickened by the fact the school day extends ad infinitum — and basically ate up all of yesterday, too, a beautiful fall Sunday. Grrrr. Anyway, here’s a girl who put the whole issue into a letter that proves: 1 – Too much homework deadens the soul. And, 2 – She is already so articulate she could drop out of school and still run for Congress. (Or from Congress, she’s that smart.) Here’s…
Hi Readers — As disturbing as this story is, I love reader Tracey Rollison’s take on it. Voila: Dear Free-Range Kids: I thought you might find this interesting: http://www.wishtv.com/dpp/news/local/marion_county/Toddler-found-wandering-on-west-side . A year-old child was found wandering around Saturday night near some corner stores. This is in a rather rough area near downtown Indianapolis. Strangers took care of her until police arrived and took her into foster care. A full day passed before her family came forward to identify her (link to second story is on the page above). This area is what most suburbanites would call a slum. It’s really…
About two dozen eighth graders at a Chicago magnet school were arrested for cafeteria food fight. I do love the idea of disciplining them for a food fight. Those fights are gross. But fingerprinting? A court date? Whatever happened to making them clean up and then good ol’ study hall for a week? Or have them tutor some younger kids? (Not in food fights. In something else their magnet school has taught them.) — Lenore
Hi Readers — This comment, from a gal named Elizabeth, puts things in perspective — especially when it comes to the current obsession with never letting go of our kids, ever. Not even for a minute. Literally. Yes, free-range is about empowering children, no doubt. But it’s also about not living in fear and realizing that other human beings can be sources of help, suppors, and understanding. Sometimes, taking a deep breath and realizing that it is infinitely more likely that nothing bad will happen than that it will does make parents’ lives easier in the moment, and it also…
Hi Readers — Allow me to introduce Rob, a dad headed for divorce court tomorrow. He sent this note asking whether I think what he did “proves” he is a bad dad, as claims his ex. I have no idea who he is, why he got a divorce, or anything, really, other than the fact the incident he describes below strikes me as a decent parenting decision. Here goes: Dear Free-Range Kids: I am going to court on Monday morning to request an increase in my child custody from 6 days to 7 days per 2 weeks. Pivotal to my…
Hi htibasiaei Readers! Want to know what happened? Read on! Dear Free-Range Kids: It’s so inspiring to hear that there are others out there who refuse to freak out at every little thing. I am a first time mom to a now 4-month-old and I don’t sterilize his pacifiers when he drops them on the ground, I refuse to ever use a shopping cart cover, and a month ago, I did the unthinkable. I left my baby with a stranger while I used the bathroom at Starbucks. My son and I were about three hours into a road…