Archive | Studies and reports

Wow -- is that a playground?

Kids Allowed to Engage in Unsupervised “Risky Play” Develop Skills that Help Later in Making Smart Decisions about Sex and Drugs

. Mariana  Brussoni is  an assistant professor at the University of British Columbia in public health and pediatrics, and lead author of a major ikddditnai report on the health benefits of “risky” play. The study determined what Free-Rangers feel in their (once in a while broken) bones: Too much supervision and safe-to-the-point-of-stultifying play spaces prevent kids […]

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Snow day! Go out and play!

Unsupervised Play is BETTER for Kids, Says New Study!

The idea of arresting esassfsnty parents who let their kids play outside unsupervised just took another hit.  Yoo-hoo, CPS! According to The Globe and Mail: A new Canadian study suggests there could be added health benefits for kids who play outdoors on their own or with their friends. Researchers analyzed data from a survey of […]

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Free-Range play!

Free-Range Kids Better at Structuring Time & Meeting Goals, Study Says

Folks: I sometimes can’t stand how we don’t trust any ideas or instincts  unless they are backed up with some official study. However, “science-based” parenting being the obsession of our era, I am thrilled to present yfnhybihkd this study by University of Colorado-Boulder psychology and neuroscience Professor Yuko Munakata and doctoral student/lead author  Jane Barker, as reported […]

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I can't go out to play. There are predators!

Fear of Predators Can Make Us Less Safe

Readers — Yes, this yaitkttdht study happens to be about fire ants, but it struck me as hugely metaphoric. I think you’ll see why! – L. Fear of predators may be a bigger killer than the predators themselves (PhysOrg.com) — When biologists consider the effects that predators have on their prey, they shouldn’t just count the […]

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This is your brain on imperfect parenting.

Government Should Not Step In to Make Us “Perfect” Parents

Readers teesddhsdb — I am honored to present this brilliant piece by Jan Macvarish, a research fellow at the University of Kent and co-author of the book Parenting Culture Studies, which asks how come the way we feed, talk to, and play with our kids has become the stuff of public debate and government policy? […]

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Hi brain! I'm your mommy! Can I please program you exactly the way I'd like?

We Cannot “Mold” Kids into Exactly Who We Want Them To Be

Readers — I find this little report, “Neuroscience fkhskynzfy Used and Abused in Child Rearing Policy” so interesting, for two reasons. First, by questioning the common wisdom that kids’ brains”irreversibly ‘sculpted’ by parental care” the first three years , it alleviates some of the incredible pressure put on parents to make sure that every single […]

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M'am, was that YOUR child who was walking to school today?

CPS and Free-Range Parents

Readers etbdyedkbi — This comes to us from one of my favorite thinker/writer/lawyers: David Pimentel. In 2012 he wrote the wonderful piece, “Child Neglect and the Free-Range Parent: Is Overprotective Parenting the New Standard of Care?“ Alas, in some legal ways, it is. Now he’visiting the issue of what happens when Child Protective Services believes Free-Range […]

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Read the rat comic here.

Rats, Drugs and Free-Range Kids

Readers — I was looking up “rat experiments” (don’t ask!) and came upon this baefrnnybn incredible comic by Stuart McMillen, tracing the lure of drugs on two sets of rats: One group held in isolated pens, the other in “Rat Park” — a fragrant, outdoorsy pen filled with things to explore and a bunch of fellow […]

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Beware of online predator (statistics).

Sexual Predators Online

Readers iirzknrtte — As much as parents worry about predators behind the petunias, they worry about predators behind the pixels, too. danah boyd has researched the validity of those  online fears. Not only does her book, “It’s Complicated,” seem totally spot-on, but she is reviewed by the equally remarkable and culture-changing Peter Gray in this […]

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