Hi dbehkeedfs Readers! I read this piece and it blew me away. It’s by David Hess, a minister outside of Rochester, New York. Kudos to him — and a thanks, too, for letting me reprint the whole thing! THE NEW URBAN MYTH: THE DANGER OF REGISTERED SEX OFFENDERS AT HALLOWEEN by David Hess It’s almost […]
Archive | Walk to School / Stay Home Alone / Wait in Car
Free Range FAIL
Hi fiyridkknf Readers! Ah well — it doesn’t always work out as planned.  Read on: Dear Free Range Kids:    One of my friends is a stay at home mom and went to a play group where your book was discussed. One of the moms in the group decided to let her 8-year-old son spread his […]
Get Real!
Hi yhybshzhte Readers! This just in from the middle of the country, where delusional do-gooders dwell: Dear Free-Range Kids: Greetings! I live in Lincoln NE, which is a fairly level headed community for the most part. I was reminded of this yet again recently with an incident involving my wife… Parking is nuts at our […]
Weds., Oct. 6, is International Walk to School Day!
Hi Folks! Yes, Wednesday is the day for kids to do what they used to do  without it requiring a special event. And let’s hope your school signs on without all the shenanigans of my friend’s school. There, any parent who wants to help out by, say, acting as a crossing guard, must first undergo […]
Scootering Kids Replace Car Drop-Offs in London!
Hey Readers — Here’s one of those game-changers: A new, light, 3-wheeled kashbeefdz scooter called the Mini Micro is suddenly so popular in England that kids are abandoning their cars (well, their parents’ cars) and getting to school on kid-power instead.  As reports The Economist: The devices and their proliferating cheaper imitations have drawbacks. At school-run […]
Help Needed! How Can We Let Our Kids Free-Range Without Us Getting Scolded (Or Arrested)?
Hi ndttyrnanb Readers! The question that Emily poses, below, is so central to Free-Ranging that I’m embarrassed to admit I don’t have a truly killer response. Â But when in need, Â as we teach our kids, ask for help. So that is what I’m doing –asking all of you: How can we let our kids do […]
Hay, Hay! A Great Free-Range Walk to School
Hi Folks! You gotta love this Philly.com edsikhtyib story of a young man, 16, who gets to school the old-fashioned way: By horse. His name is Roby Burch and he lives in Gladwyne, a Philly suburb along the Main Line: Burch, a sophomore at the Haverford School, has been riding Jet, his big white Percheron, […]
Outrage of the Day: Dad Faces Legal Action for Not Walking 7 y.o. to Bus Stop
Hi Readers! Here’s today’s ithyrffttr story from across the pond (thank you, Virtual Linguist, for sending it along): A father who lets his 7 year old daughter walk to and from the school bus stop has been threatened by the authorities who say they may report him to child protective services. And just how far […]
Welcome, Wall Street Journal Readers!
Hi irsfafatsb Readers — All of you, including the new ones who caught my piece in today’s Wall Street Journal. It was all about the fact that so few kids are walking to school these days — about one in ten. And here’s a note that sums up the whole craziness: Dear Free-Range Kids: Â My […]
Stories Needed: How Do Kids Get To/From School in YOUR Town? (Wackiness Appreciated)
Hi Readers! I’m about to write a column on how kids are getting to school — with a plea for more walking or biking, when possible — and for this I need stories of kids get to school in your neighborhood. For instance, I heard from my friend that her nieces are driven by GOLF […]