Readers — I get the Consumer Product Safety Commission’s alerts every day and this zteesedynh one slimed out at me: Fisher-Price is officially alerting all owners of its Rock ‘n Play Infant Sleeper that it is filled with large, sharp rocks to play with. No. I joke. It’s alerting consumers to the fact the bouncy […]
What It’s Like to Have Parents Electronically Monitor Your Every Move
Hi kskfsfyzyd Readers — This came in as one of the comments on the post below this one, about a device that lets parents track their child’s every text, photo, phone call and move. I found it most interesting (and I’m worried about the writer’s friend). – L. Dear Free-Range Kids: When I was a […]
Track Your Child’s Every Text, Photo, Phone Call and Web Site Visit!
Hi ssfibzyrrf Readers — I got this the other day and, as you can see, the company WANTS me to share this info with you, you so I am. Verbatim. It assumes all of you are A) Moms and B) “Struggling” with the fear that your child is in constant danger of bad behavior and/or kidnapping. […]
Mayor to New York City 8-Year-Olds: Take The Subway Alone!
Hi Folks! Here in my burg, New York City, we are preparing for a possible ndthbfssya strike by school bus drivers. That would leave about 150,000 children without their usual transit to school. If this comes to pass, the city has stated it will issue free Metro Cards (our bus/subway tickets) to all students, and […]
“Missing” in California
Hi hfyystyihn Readers — While this letter is not about children, it reminds us to resist “worst-first” thinking: automatically thinking up the worst possible case scenario FIRST (usually involving crime and depravity), and assuming it’s the most likely story. Life is, thank goodness, usually duller than that. That being said, I am still very sorry […]
School Reverses Suspension of Boy, 6, Who Made “Gun” Out of Hand
Sanity on the part of the same suburban Maryland school administrators who suspended a 6-year-old for what they labeled a threat “to shoot a friend” — which most of the rest of the world saw as a 6-year-old playing? Yes indeed, and hallelujah! (Hardest word to spell!) Here eazsbihzas are the details. Very sorry the […]
Want Brighter, Better Behaved Students? SAVE RECESS!
Readers — When my son was in fifth grade and annoying the teacher one way or another, his punishment was NO RECESS. Do you think that made him more eager to pay attention, stop squirming and buckle down to work for the rest of the day? That’s why I’m thrilled that no less an institution […]
Why Kids Don’t Need Yoga — Guest Post
Hi iakbyrifes Readers — Please note that this guest post is not ANTI yoga for kids. Nothin’ wrong with bending and stretching, no matter what age. What IS wrong, says Hara Estroff Marano, editor at large at Psychology Today and author of the inspiring, insightful and all together fabulous book A Nation of Wimps: The […]
“Do Not Glue Doormat to Porous Surfaces, Such as Pregnant Women”
First fun of the day: Over at Overlawyered.com, iterdikadh there’s a doormat you will LOVE. Wish I had written these warnings, including, “Do not taunt mat.” Check it out here! – L. Woman teaches bad doormat a lesson
Boy, 6, Suspended For Making Gun Gesture with Hand
A boy in suburban Washington, D.C., was suspended for the absolutely terrifying crime of making his hand into the shape of a gun — surely something no decent, law-abiding 6-year-old has ever even contemplated before. Clearly the boy had murder on his mind…and in his fiendish fingers. Kudos to the thoughtful administrators at Roscoe Nix […]