What are people's thoughts and experiences on free range parenting? How "free range" is honestly reasonable in your opinion?
That'll put marzipan in your pie plate, bingo!share
Not a parent but I think independence within reason is so important. Not to the point where their safety is genuinely in danger but...
shareIs that a real term or did you make it up?
I don't have kids either so I can only say that if I feel the need to intercede for someone's safety in a public place, that might be too much "free range".
Obviously, I'm not counting the unexpected or times when a parent may be distracted for a bit; we are all only human and should help one another and always make sure the vulnerable are safe whether we know them or not. More like, if I know where their kid is and they neither know nor care -- might be time to at least get a few more ranchers on the range!
"It's a real burden being right so often." Captain Malcolm Reynolds, Firefly
It's a real term.
shareIt's a real term.Thanks A_A! I had never heard of it before and I thought it was another of your rapier-sharp witticisms!
I had to look up the term as well, as it was the justification for all of the freedom.
That'll put marzipan in your pie plate, bingo!share
Battery cage parenting is the only way. -(I am going to miss that emoticon )
Can monkeys surf the net... and corrupt our kids?
Cry...Cryo...CryoBerries has returned!
That'll put marzipan in your pie plate, bingo!share
Ello A_A. I think you're one of the only ones who remember me, lol.
Can monkeys surf the net... and corrupt our kids?
I remember you too! I was a regular on here back in 2011-maybe bits of 2012 too. Just came back to say my farewells, since I think this is the board I have participated most intensely in.
More on free-range parenting: apparently there is overlap between free-range parents and antivaxxers, which (the latter) I consider extremely irresponsible if not criminal. Some of these people are just crazy. Though what you describe sounds like sheer laziness and neglect, labelled "free-range" parenting for the sake of convenience. The real hardcore free-range parents are usually doing it as a full-time commitment (at least one of the two if there's two anyway)
~*~
CryoBerries ~ I remember you, too! You probably don't remember me, but I think it was A_A who wrote that they can always tell my posts because of the HUGE gap between post and signature. (As you can see, I've worked on it but not terribly successfully!)
Hope all is well. (Aside from the Uber-suck of the boards shutting down.) Take care!
"It's a real burden being right so often." Captain Malcolm Reynolds, Firefly
I'm not a parent yet, but I probably will be in the near future, so I do think about these things. The free-range model that I've seen in some youtube channels is a bit crazy. The kids are kept at home, but not being homeschooled, just supposed to do their own learning through discovering things by themselves (e.g. learn math by having to measure ingredients while cooking).
Although I am pro-alternative schooling, especially at younger ages (e.g. Montessori Schools), and I do see a lot of problems with the current prevalent Western educational model, I think those parents are taking it a step too far and depriving their kids of basic skills that would allow them to evolve and find their place in society. It is quite arrogant on the parents' side to think that they can provide their kids with everything they need to know without even following a curriculum (like they would do if they were properly homeschooling). The kids may have talents and skills that will completely go undiscovered, since "free-range" limits the range of things they are exposed to (yes, they are exposed to a lot more "real-life situations" than they would be at school, but what if a child's talent is in advanced mathematics or in violin playing, how will they know if there isn't anyone to teach them in a disciplined way?).
Did you see the movie "Captain Fantastic"? It was a very cool conception of a kind of free-range family, with the difference that the parents were very highly educated (unlike most of the real-life examples) and there was a very demanding schedule in the kids' learning and activities. This was certainly a bit Utopian and many things relied on luck (like the kids not getting killed during their daily high-risk training), but it was the only way of raising a free-range family that I would get behind.
~*~
I'm asking more so because of a specific situation, where the single parent allows their child (there are three [ages 6, nearly 4 and 20 months], but usually only one there at at time) complete free range of the house. The youngest one is usually there and has full access to all three levels of the apartment. It is usually the youngest that is there and I have seen her pick up large kitchen knives, she goes up and down the stairs and grabs whatever she can (toothpaste, shampoos, other creams and ointments and medications) often spilling or squirting them out and very possibly eating them. She had a nail file in her mouth sucking on it (the chaotic way she runs around, as a 20 month old girl, makes having a pointy nail file in her mouth kind of dangerous, IMO). And other similar, possibly worse situations that I can't think of off the top of my head.
If objects or access is denied she'll often cry/screech (as any toddler will do) and the parent will just give them whatever they want/had so the child will stop crying.
Is this truly "Free Range Parenting", or does it sound more like an excuse to keep a child quiet and occupied while the parent often sits at a computer on FB smoking and blowing the smoke out the window?
That'll put marzipan in your pie plate, bingo!share
In all seriousness A_A, that sounds like neglect and endangerment of the children.
Can monkeys surf the net... and corrupt our kids?
To be honest that kind of sounds like something that should be reported to social services. That 20 month old in particular is in danger.
You don’t have to be angry to have an opinion worth hearing.
They've (CPS) been involved before I knew her. There's a whole lot of other things involved that I didn't know about before I got "involved".
That'll put marzipan in your pie plate, bingo!share
It kind of sounds like you are describing Felicia Day's childhood she was homeschooled most of her life very loosely following any sort of curriculum and she still ended up being pretty successful oddly enough she has no high school diploma but ended up graduating from college anyway. Thats pretty bizarre in my opinion but her parents still exposed her to other stuff like dance and violin. Not saying its a normal way to grow up but I just thought it was funny that what you were describing sounds just like her life.
Free Range parenting is not even remotely the same thing as neglect which is straight up what this is.
shareLike Xander in Bad Eggs?
(I wanted to be internet-hip and post a pic but Googling "Buffy Xander tossing his egg" led me to bad places).
___
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qssvnjj5Moo
BUMP
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