Today’s Childhood vs 12 Years Ago: What Has Changed?

It’s been 12 years since Free-Range Kids was published. In honor of the new edition, which just came out, I look at how childhood has changed, for the worse but also the better, in the years since it came out.

What did I find? Check out my piece at Let Grow, by clicking here. But basically it boils down to:

Getting Worse: The micromanagement of kids, in all sorts of spheres. Their anxiety. Parental anxiety. And the idea that kids spending any time unsupervised or undirected is reason enough to worry, and perhaps call 911.

Getting Better: New laws that codify the right of parents to take their eyes off their kids, and a new perspective on helicopter parenting. A whole lot of teachers, psychologists and parents themselves are ready to give kids more freedom just because the consequences of NOT doing that are becoming so obvious.

There’s hope, there are social norms to be changed, and there’s a new generation of kids that deserves some time to Free-Range. – L.

Photo by Caleb Jones on Unsplash