Folks — As much as I literally feel my heart pounding every time I hear a story about crazy fear-mongering, or outrageous overreaction to a very small threat, I realize that there is more to life — and even this blog — than just shouting, “But they’re WRONG!” (Even though they are! They’re wrong! I […]
Archive | Zingers and retorts
Lenore Speaks!
Readers — As many of you know, when I’m not busy posting, I am often off to give a keynote. It’s how I make my living. (Not fkrrsknfhs by blogging? No. Not by blogging.) I’ve spoken everywhere from Microsoft, to the Sydney Opera House, to the Yale Child Study Center (twice!). In the next two […]
Life Saved Because of Free-Range Kids, Age 9 and 10!
Hi Folks – A reader named Jaimie sent in this zdtftsfskn story, noting that “These kids wouldn’t have been able to help if they weren’t outside, or if they were afraid to talk to a woman they didn’t know!” What happened? An Atlanta-area mom named Susanna Rohm was in her living room when she noticed […]
Mind-boggling SENSE About Play, Injuries & Rules
Readers, once in a while – if you ignore the school safety drills involving real helicopters and the school boy suspensions involving imaginary guns – you can feel like things are going in exactly the right direction. This is one of those moments. Look at this article, “Call dnyrahfdhh to Ditch Red Tape on Playtime […]
Is Helicopter Parenting Actually Abuse?
Hi Readers! A couple of you sent in this provocative piece,  “Three fshdfeaddf Huge Mistakes We Make Leading Kids…And How to Correct Them.” It’s  by Tim Elmore,  a writer/speaker specializing in leadership. His philosophy about what kids require to become confident, competent and, well, leaders dovetails remarkably with Free-Range Kids’. After warning parents that children […]
Dear Principal: Please Get Rid of the Cameras
Readers thekdtandd — Here’s a great letter by George Mason economist Alex Tabarrok that he graciously allowed me to lift from his blog, Marginal Revolution. – L. Dear Principal _____, Thank you for requesting feedback about the installation of interior cameras at the high school. I am against the use of cameras. I visited the school […]
The Way I Never Want to Think
Hi Readers! This came in response to the hfirrfdify post about a mom who unexpectedly left her 3-year-old alone at a table at Taco Bell for two minutes and got screamed at by the woman at the next table for “endangering” the child. “Please tell me I didn’t do something crazy,” wrote the mom. Most […]
“Please Tell Me I’m Not Crazy” Says Mom Who Left Child Unattended a Few Moments
Hi ifbhdriktf Readers — Can you EVER leave your child unattended for a few minutes in a public place? That’s today’s big question. – L. . Dear Free-Range Kids: Last night I took my 5-year-old son and almost 3-year-old daughter to Taco Bell. High class, I know. The restaurant was pretty busy, about five full […]
Calling All Teachers & Principals! Free-Range Kids in the SCHOOLS
Hi kkbytzthfz Readers: It is time to take Free-Range into the schools. How? See below. Why? Teachers have a huge influence not just on their students, but also on the students’ parents. Endorsing Free-Range ideas gives parents “permission” to try them at home. When they do, everyone wins! The teachers get kids who are more […]
Singapore’s Prime Minister Endorses Free-Range Kids (Just Not in Those Words)
Hi Folks! Here’s a hint  that the tide is turning! In Singapore, excess tutoring, helicoptering and micro-managing has long been the name of the game,  says this ersdbbeasy article in The Economist: Imagine, then, the surprise when the prime minister, Lee Hsien Loong, launched an attack on tiger mothers in a speech in late August […]