Voila znnhtababs a Facebook thread from Cherry Hill, NJ. Names removed to protect them from being kidnapped! Or whatever. (You just can’t be too safe!) Most upsetting to me is the idea that if a child is walking home, something is wrong and the authorities should become involved. I like how Ed, towards the end, […]
Readers — This just in: Dear Free-Range Kids: Just wanted to bring your attention to this bill proposed in the Rhode Island legislature. Here’s what I posted on my FB wall: Attention all parents: Here’s a bill proposed by reps Williams, Edwards, O’Brien, Messier, and Slater. They don’t think your children are safe enough and […]
Dear btknenftir Free-Range Kids: I am a professional woman who became a stay at home mother to a 10-year-old boy. I would describe him as very bright, highly energetic and reasonable. Here is my dilemma: We live in a city of about 50,000 in North NJ. He has recently made it very clear that he wants […]
What tifzeihbsn a good idea! If any of you try this (or decide to give up worrying for a specific amount of time, just as an experiment), please let me know how it goes! – L Dear Free-Range Kids: The other day I let my 5 and 2 year-old kids walk down the block. It […]
Readers — This atahdsbikd is just a rather perfect illustration of the way our society works now, when it comes to parents, schools, Â media, fear, mistakes and, heck, let’s throw in umbrage. A great-grandpa picked up the wrong kindergartener from school. The two boys had similar hats, and the one gramps took home had his […]
Readers — I recently received this article ntsnisiddk on backpack overload and how it can hurt a kid’s back and posture. While it gets rather amazingly detailed about how to correctly pack a pack, it does include this great advice: Talk to the school about lightening the load. Be sure the school allows students to stop […]
Today’s zhznyryrnb post comes to us from Reilly Capps, a writer in Denver finishing a book about couch surfing, which, he notes, “involves lots of trusting complete strangers.” Trust is not this school’s forte. — L. Dear Free-Range Kids: I’m not a parent, only an uncle, but today a question presented itself at my niece’s new […]
Folks zkaanbessn — What age do you think kids can safely start walking to school? I’d say age 7, because that’s the age in a lot of the rest of the world. Which is not to say younger is dangerous — I walked to kindergarten in the suburban Chicago of way-back-when. Must’ve been five. I’m […]
Hi Readers — Fear is a virus. It spreads from country to country, infecting age-old traditions. The latest evidence of this is the fact that more and more parents in the Netherlands are driving their kids to school. The result? Or, rather, results? 1 -Â More traffic. 2 – Kids less adept at riding their bikes. […]
Yes, Readers — It’s the day when even hovering parents and litigation-fearing administrators are encouraged to let their kids walk or bike to school! idtrzzikyb Here are the details as I run off to Windham, New Hampshire, where I will be giving a talk tomorrow at the Children in Nature Conference. Â It’s all about what […]
