Hi Readers! Here’s an interesting angle on Free-Ranging, brought to us by Kathy Seal. Kathy is a journalist in Santa Monica and co-author of rekndbnhra Pressured Parents, Stressed-out Kids: Dealing With Competition While Raising a Successful Child  and Motivated Minds: Raising Children. Her websites are www.kathyseal.net and  www.pressuredparents.com. Voila: CAN YOU HELP WITHOUT HELICOPTERING? Ok, I’m […]
The Enrichment Activity That Beats ‘Em All
August 19, 2009
Here’s a phenomenal azhzfaiyyf NPR piece – transcribed — that solves the classic overprotection question, “Well, why NOT keep kids inside all the time if it’s safer?†A lot of parents think it was fun back when they played outside as kids, but since that kind of thing presents at least SOME danger (no matter […]
Free-Range Success — Thanks to Laziness!
August 18, 2009
Dear fzahniarhr Readers — Here’s a success story from Plano, Texas! We live about 200 yards from the school. Our block ends across the street from the front of the school. The crossing guard is one street over (on our same block, so no need for kids to cross a street). Yet, every single child […]
Half of All 5-10 Year Olds Have NEVER Played on Their OWN Street
August 18, 2009
Dear Readers — Here is an extraordinary nhehtiekda essay from the Times of London, “We Approach Others’ Children at Our Peril.” It traces how “what began 25 years ago as an understandable desire to raise awareness of child abuse is turning into something extremely distructive — an instinctive suspicion of any encounter between grown-ups and […]
What Age Can Kids Start Walking to School?
August 17, 2009
Here’s my eayhaeszkn take on the issue, published in Sunday’s Chicago Tribune. Some of it will sound a little familiar to Free-Range Kids regulars, but it bears repeating:Â Most of the world’s kids walk to school by themselves starting in 1st grade. But here? Are you kidding? While the majority of us parents walked to […]
Hey White House Honchos: Your Country Needs You More than Your Kids!
August 15, 2009
Note bhdkatehrk to White House budget chief Peter Orszag: You are completely, dangerously deluded. Not about the economy! (Or maybe you are — I can’t say.) But you definitely are deluded about your job as a parent. And so are a bunch of your buddies. A recent article in The New York Times, “‘Family Friendly’ […]
Outrage of the Week: Dear Abby!
August 14, 2009
Dear berfartniz Abby: I have a problem. I read a supposedly “helpful†advice column yesterday about public bathrooms and whether children are safe from pedophiles if their mom is waiting right outside the door. The piece said no! No way! As a matter of fact, it added, slightly off tangent, “Children have been violated in a […]
A Fleeting Thought…
August 14, 2009
Super scary predators. Innocent victims. Great ratings. Anyone else get the sneaking suspicion that Shark Week is just a fish version of Nancy Grace?
New Feature: Free-Range Kids Movie of the Week!
August 13, 2009
Hi rdeetyirnn Free-Rangers! Daniel Bigler, a pre-school teacher/Children’s Studies major in Spokane, Washington — and the blogger behind Danielsaurus.com — has taken it upon himself to find us some inspiring movies. “The premise,†he says, “is simple. Each week we go out in search of a fresh movie either for or about kids that keeps in […]
Reviews, Anyone?
August 13, 2009
Just shows how much you can learn from Twitter. I just read a Tweet that had this remarkable revelation: When you ask people to review your book — they do! Or some of them do, anyway. So — call me a fruitcake — I’m thinking of doing the same thing for Free-Range riakshdfsz Kids: Giving […]