Gotta thank Amy Bronee, host of the show Real Parenting on C-FAX in Canada for alerting me to this story in the National Post: Minding your marshmallows Katherine Dedyna, Canwest News Service Published: Friday, July 24, 2009 There’s no such thing as being too careful when it comes to kids and camping – even for hyper-vigilant parents. But peril can take unexpected forms – including the seemingly innocuous marshmallow, if improperly handled. For maximum health and safety, one B.C. doctor offers his wish-list of marshmallow-roasting techniques for 21st-century campfire kids: 1. Apply hand sanitizer before selecting marshmallow. 2. Sterilize the…
Author: lskenazy
Sometimes, when I try to explain how frenzied we have become about the real but extremely rare crime of childhood abduction, I compare our era to that of 1692 Salem. There was no way — back then, back there — to convince the average person: Don’t you see you’re being swept up on a wave of mass hysteria? History will judge you as totally mad! (Though eventually, I suppose, that’ll be great for tourism.) Folks in and around Salem were convinced that witches were everywhere casting spells. In the end, 150 people were tried as witches and 19 hanged, all…
Now I know how Al Gore felt. Well, at least about playing to TV. Remember how he was caught rolling his eyes during one of the Presidential debates, and that sealed his fate — for some folks, anyway — as a hopelessly smug know-it-all? I rolled my eyes on TV today, too. Wish I hadn’t, because I don’t mean to be a know-it-all. But I’ve done my research and I do know some. The show was “Fox & Friends,” where I’d gone to debate the idea of Free-Range Kids with a nice lady who believes that children are being snatched…
Here’s a piece about the wonderfulness of sidewalks — a great place for kids to play, meet, walk, chalk, ride. BUT! In the sweet town this lady is writing from — Bangor, Maine — she has gotten complaints from drivers: Kids shouldn’t be on sidewalks! They’re too close to the road! Excuse me? Where SHOULD kids be? Inside playing Halo 3? — Lenore
I’ll be on Fox & Friends tomorrow morning, defending Free-Range Kids as a sane, safe, happy, healthy way to raise children with some moxie! But maybe I won’t call it “moxie,” for fear of sounding 389 years old. Maybe I’ll say it’s a way to raise children with some solid “self-esteem” — which is also true. (As I like to say there’s a reason it’s CALLED “self” esteem…not “parent-assisted” esteem.) — Lenore
Seven of the little rascals. Together, in Haverford, Pennsylvania. Going door to door, trying to gin up some cash with the cold stuff. Read all about it here. One brilliant neighbor realized how incredibly dangerous this was. After all, it was teaching children all sorts of terrible lessons like: Get to know the folks on your block. Be independent. Have adventures. So, naturally — like everyone who sees any child doing anything without an adult these days — he called the cops. In the cop’s defense — just barely — I will say that when he…
Hi! Lenore here, feeling it is time to weigh in on the Montana mom case still causing a commenting frenzy. This is the case where a mom named Bridget let her 12-year-old daughter and her daughter’s friend, both experienced babysitters, take their siblings, age 3, 7 and 8, to the mall. After a morning of shopping and lunch, the group went to Macy’s. The 12-year-olds tried on some shirts while the other three waited in the handbag department — the 3-year-old now in a stroller. When the 12-year-olds returned a few minutes later, all five of them were scooped up…
Here it is — ABCnews.com looking into the case of Bridget Kevane, the mom who trusted her 12-year-old daughter and the daughter’s friend to take their younger siblings to the mall. For which she got arrested. ABC found that most people felt support Kevane and believe the authorities overreacted, as do I. And a little later today I’ll post my thoughts on same. Meantime, here is the ABC piece. — Lenore
Great (slightly wordy) article on Psychology Today blog about how, with all our exhortations about “stranger danger” we are teaching our children “that the world is a dark and nasty place were everybody wants to murder and rape them…” The assumption of disgusting intentions has gone so far that the blogger, Helene Guldberg, author of Reclaming Childhood, had this happen to her at a local pool in England, where she lives: Today it is almost impossible in the UK to take photos of one’s children, grandchildren, nieces or nephews in public places – if they are surrounded by…
It’s no secret that parents worried about how their kids are going to do in kindergarten are willing to work hard to help them make the grade. But a new study reported in Connect with Kids shows that teaching pre-schoolers the academic stuff — letters, numbers, etc. — may not be the best approach. What is? Chores. Teaching them to listen to you, follow instructions and complete a task: According to a study of 379 children published in the ‘Journal of Personality’, kids who had more responsibilities at age five, were more likely to have better grades and better behavior…