How Far Do You Let Your Child Roam?
Great piece in the UK paper a while back about how the distance we allow our kids to roam has been drastically reduced over the last 4 generations. I can’t find the article, but this graphic says it all…
p.s. Thanks Rodney (see comments) for finding the original article at http://www.dailymail.co.uk/pages/live/articles/news/news.html?in_article_id=462091
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Hi Frank,
I found the original article here:
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/pages/live/articles/news/news.html?in_article_id=462091
This is very intriguing research – When I was 9, my parents would let me wander very far away – taking unsupervised trips to the zoo on public transit (8.3 miles) and museum (2.5 miles) with my friends and younger sisters, in the pre-cellphone days of the mid 70s.
I don’t see that as much now; realized just typing this that this distance would shock me if I had a kid!
We’re more connected now than ever. What happened?
PS: Great blog!
Hi Frank – I keep going back to this post.
I saw this today which adds a little more light to the question of why don’t kids wander far or walk to school anymore:
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080326161643.htm
Their answer is “not enough sidewalks”. That’s not the entire picture; although sidewalks have been disappearing more and more the past 20 years.
Hope all is well,
– Rodney