Remember the Outrage of the Weekend? Two moms sharing a job were trading off taking care of each other’s kids. Or at least they were until this was declared illegal because they are not licensed day care workers. Well it looks like the authorities over there in jolly ol’ England are realizing this may actually be one of mankind’s stupider ideas. Take heart! Here’s the piece — a lovely essay in The Guardian. Note at the end: “Unsurprisingly, given the debate this case has generated, the children’s minister has now ordered a review of the ‘babysitting ban.'” Huzzah huzzah! —…
Author: lskenazy
What’s the difference between a 17-year-old who touches a 13-year-old’s breast and a 34 year old creep who likes little girls? Nothing. At least, not on the Sex Offender Registry. The other night I was a guest on the blog radio show, “American’s Reality Check,”a show mostly devoted to sex offender registry issues. A guy called in who is on the list for fondling a 13-year-old when he was 17. Now he’s 34 but next to his name and current age it states his offense: “Indecency with a child.” As if that’s still what he’s doing today. So to the…
Hey Folks! Grab some confetti, stand up and throw it in the air. We are getting somewhere! Read on! Dear Lenore — I watched Penn & Teller’s “Bullsh*t” episode featuring you and your son, Izzy, which led me to your web site and, subsequently, the recent purchase of your book, “Free-Range Kids.” I’m loving the book. I am the over-protective mother at whom you are aiming. I keep a blog about what I’m reading — flabbybrain.com — and I wanted to share with you my post about the Free-Range baby step I took on Friday. Here it is: I’ve been…
A reader writes: Lenore, I am a free range parent. My kids are (almost) 15 and 12. I don’t own a cell phone. I was leaving them home alone to attend our high school’s pto meeting while my husband was out of town. As I was heading out the door I told them I’d be at the school. My daughter, the 12 year old, asked what the phone number was. In my best serious voice I said, “9-1-1.” They both laughed and I went (guilt-free) out the door. Robin in New Jersey See readers? Sometimes, you can…
Hi Readers! Glad a few of you sent this one in. I’m not sure it has to do with Free-Ranging exactly — it sounds more like regulations gone wild. Moreover, I bet it’ll be rectified soon. But in the meantime, let’s hear it for neighbors helping neighbors (rather than neighbors turning IN neighbors). Here is the article in its entirety from WZZM, the ABC TV station in West Michigan: MIDDLEVILLE WOMAN THREATENED WITH FINES FOR WATCHING NEIGHBORS’ KIDS A West Michigan woman says the state is threatening her with fines and possibly jail time for babysitting her neighbors’ children.…
Hi Readers! Here’s an interesting little note that just came in from Jennifer in Canada, the gal behind the blog highlyirritable: Good morning, Free-Range Kids! This article appeared in the local paper, The Milton Canadian Champion, and I found it and I found it both fascinating and scary. (Note: I have removed the school name and identifying street names, because, well, YOU KNOW…) Shortly before 7:30 a. m., an 11-year-old boy left for XXXX School. When he reached XXXX Avenue and XXXX Drive, he noticed a man walking behind him and became suspicious. The man continued following the boy…
Hi Readers — What’s the story today? Simply this: After four years of gathering every week at the local library for a morning of coffee, tea and friendship, a group of retirees is being chased out. Why? A nursery school started bringing its kids there at the same time and the old folks COULD SPILL THEIR HOT DRINKS ON THEM. Here you go, from The Daily Mail: Council officials have now axed the meetings claiming that toddlers from a nearby nursery who use the library at the same time could be injured if hot coffee spilt on them….…
Hi Readers! This wisdom for pre-school parents comes to us from Jen Singer, who is NOT just a personal friend, NOT just the blogger behind mommasaid.net, NOT just the gal who penned, You’re A Good Mom (and Your Kids Aren’t So Bad Either), but is ALSO the author of the brand-new Stop Second Guessing Yourself –The Preschool Years. That book inspired this post: FLASHCARDS vs FUN by Jen Singer Wait a minute: Are those flashcards in that mom’s hands? At a baseball game? Yes. Yes, they are. She’s holding them up to test her preschooler on her letters and…
Dear Readers — Sometimes, one person standing up for sanity can make a difference. Here’s a cool lady: Before retirement, I was a volunteer coordinator. My job was to find volunteers for all non-profit and government agencies in the county. We had a PenPal program which entailed matching about 35 senior citizens with an equal number of 5th grade students in a specific class. We worked with the same teacher for years. Letter-writing was one of the skills children were to learn, and our only personal contact was a school party at the end of the year, where the kids…
Hi Folks — This just in from a town outside of Georgia. (That’s the American Georgia, for all our international readers!) A “Webelo Scout” is a youngster on the cusp between Cub and Boy Scout. My son is Webelo scout and earned his whittling chit last year. This year I volunteered at the district day camp and led the Bear den. When it came time for the boys to earn their whittling chit, the instructor showed them all the proper ways to handle the knife and then — he handed them each a potato peeler! It was pathetic. So…