Kids Don’t Have to be This Anxious
What if one of the big reasons kids are so anxious is simply this: They’re micromanaged by adults? As you may have heard me say over and over (I’m...
About: Lenore Skenazy
Posts by Lenore Skenazy
The Lawyer on the Playground
“Welcome! Play Safe” reads the sign at a Fairfax County Public School playground in Virginia just outside of Washington D.C. It goes on to list a few simple rules...
The Key to Less Lonely Kids
The Surgeon General is right: Loneliness is a massive problem. It’s not just sad, it’s unhealthy. So, let’s look at the quickest, easiest way to solve it, at least...
Letting Your Kid Play at the Park Is NOT Child Neglect
The Tucson mom found guilty of neglect for letting her 7-year-old son play at the park has finally had her name removed from Arizona’s Central Registry, a government blacklist...
Something Bad Could Have Happened!
It’s like steak seasoning. The media takes a rather straightforward story and liberally sprinkles its favorite seasoning on it: a zesty mix of fear, hypothesizing and cherry-picked “man on...
Baffled by a Playdate
A mom took to TikTok, begging for advice: “My kid was outside, another kid was walking outside somewhere, and then they stopped and started playing together.” She was baffled....
Why Our Kids Would’ve Died in the Jungle
You may have heard that emergency workers recently rescued four siblings between the ages of 1 and 13 who had survived in the jungles of Colombia for 40 days...
Fearmongering Moms, Take Note!
Maybe this will convince other moms not to make outrageous claims on social media. A Petaluma, California, “momfluencer” who claimed her kids were the victims of an attempted abduction...
Let Freedom Keep Ringing After July 4
Independence Day won’t end on July 5 for families in Virginia, Connecticut and Illinois this year. They’ve got a huge stretch of freedom ahead. “Ever since the law passed,...
Show The Nice Man Your Resume, Tyler
A recent front page article in The Wall Street Journal chronicles a problem that seems to be a sign of the times: parents accompanying their kids on job interviews....
Cops Telling Parents How to Raise Their Kids
At last, it was the big day for Tom D’s daughter, age 6: The day she would walk to get a Gatorade all by herself. She wouldn’t have to...
Let Your Kids Waste Some Time
Meet Rod Brooks, a guy whose life story embodies the big idea: What we do as kids, just for fun, is developmental GOLD. It can help us discover our...
The Scariest Danger of Summer
If you want to keep your kids safe this summer, don’t focus on stranger danger. (Especially since the vast majority of crimes against children are committed by people they...
Why Do We Keep Underestimating Kids?
Child protection laws and policies that determine at what age kids can do things on their own are often wildly out of whack with actual child development — and...
Beach Blanket Book Suggestions
Summer awaits, and with it, beaches, and with them, reads. Here are the most anticipated titles of summer 2023. “The Body Keeps the Scone”: In this slightly less hopeful...
No, Her Kids Were NOT Almost Kidnapped
“My children were the targets of attempted kidnap,” Katie Sorensen, 31, announced in a viral two-part video on Instagram two years ago. Last week, the “mom influencer” was found...
Why It’s So Hard to Get Kids Off Their Screens
“How many of you have closed your email and then immediately reopened it because you might have just gotten an email?” Laughter rippled through the audience — including me...
Commencement for the Rest of Us
Thank you for that warm welcome. Or is it me? In any event, I’m very honored to be here today, welcoming those of you in your late 30s, mid-40s,...
When Preschool Pranks Lead to Criminal Charges
Two Colorado child care workers will go on trial this June for presiding over a day care center where a 5-year-old pulled down a 3-year-old’s pants. Twice. Amy Lovato...
Virginia Makes It Legal for Kids to Play Outside
Children in Virginia can now play outside without their parents getting investigated for neglect. Imagine that! Sunday night, Gov. Glenn Youngkin signed what is colloquially called the “Reasonable Childhood...