keep em safe the beat you can 

 *best 

 Very much agree. I take this as let them play outside until it gets dark, spend a lot of time with other kids, don’t correct their imagination, and don’t force them into formal education like 4k. 

 It depends on what your definition of being a kid is. I know people with the age 40 who still are kids 😜 

 SEEN™️ 

 I hate statements that include words which must be closely defined to judge the statement...  

like "what do you mean with "being a kid"?? 

 This is part of what I was curious to find out. 

 YES.

they’ll be fine. 

 I strongly disagree. Kids are voilent animals with no respect for other people. They must be shown that the real world has consequences since early ages. In general, to "let kids just be kids" means protecting them from real world consequences. In doing that, you are raising entitled pricks (no always, but often).

You should also show them that even when there are no real world consequences (for example the 9 year old kid who killed with cruelty 28 pets in a pet farm in brasil, and wont be charged because he is under 12 y.o.), there are moral reasons for being a humane and caring person.

So no, don't "let kids just be kids", raise them to be responsible and humane persons. 

 kids are respectful and caring and loving when we give them space and give them precise limits and boundaries. 

they are understanding their own space in life and if you guide them to be responsible for what they feel and do, being there with them to embrace their emotions and saying no to some actions, they will certainly respect others space as well. 

the consequences of their actions are not punishment, but having to deal with the emotions they feel after they notice they have hurt someone and with the "no" someone said to them. I have so many experiences of kids being so genuinely nice to each other after they had a conflict and an adult was there with them without taking sides, just willing to listen to each  kid, how they felt, what they needed. that's, I think, is the job of adults. 

 The way i’d interpret it, i mostly agree. 

They naturally want to grow up without being pushed to. At which point they’re much more available to input… pull > push 

 I agree with this. I take it as letting kids play with toys that might be a little young for them as long as they want, believe in the tooth fairy etc. but also, trying to shield them from some of the harsh realities of the world. Not unreasonably (or if this could put them in danger etc) but enough so they can enjoy life’s daily pleasures for as long as possible without having added stress. 

 If you’re raising goats then animal husbandry. They grow up. Have you ever seen an animal raised without guidance? What happens?  

 I will forever take care of my children. Given they should be able to socially interact with others and to be productive and live meaningful lives.  

 If you left the kids being what they already are, you are not doing your job as parent. Parenting is not leave the kids being kids, is teach/prepare them to the next phase of life.
This kind of approach is what led us to a society full of adults (on the matter of age) with a kid mentality (running from responsibilities and looking for government support), known as "weak men". 
Now it's time to the "Strong Men" era, and we parents are the responsible to teach our kids how to be their best version and continue what we have started. 

 I interpret it as how much grace and forgiveness you provide while they are learning, and they are making mistakes.  As a parent you then also learn, we are all fucking up, all the time, forever…. You will always be a child to your parents and a parent to your children. I agree with your statement in principle though. 

 Of course this is true……. Now we can spend the remainder of human existence arguing about what indicates that the moment has come where it is no longer possible to let kids be kids without causing them harm. 

 Living a society with plenty of 40 year old children now...

...hard disagree. 

 😂 I get your point. I guess when I read "letting" children be children, I didn't think it meant wrapping them in proverbial bubble wrap, because that's certainly no way to be a child. But yes, we should definitely not be shielding children from the realities of the world, and instead let them discover it (or guide them thought it?). It's the shielding that leads to adults never growing up imo.  

 I thought of children playing with other children. In that sense, I agree because playing not only keeps them active but also allows them to develop other skills such as sharing, negotiating, experimenting, etc.
When my kids were younger they loved playing with little cars in the mud, sand, wherever they got dirty and I let them (as you can imagine, I did a lot of laundry) 😊 

 if you treat kids like adults this statement makes tons of sense 

 Someone could easily write a book on this. Kids should be provided with an environment to explore their interests and have room to make mistakes through trial and error within reason (safety). They need to know what is happening in the world and how to survive. They must be protected from mental and physical trauma. 

 There's a lot of books about this! Recently read one called Free to Learn by Peter Grey. Although it's less about protection than providing an environment of freedom. 

 Great question. Ever since reading "Free to Learn" I would say, for as long as they want to be. Going to be following this thread with interest to see what people say! 
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#mumstr #momstr #family #kids #parenting #kidstr 

 1) I took that as giving kids the freedom to explore without dictating a path for them. 
2) Yes if 1) is the case. 

I think some of the confusion here is whether you're looking at it from a top-down approach, ie. a parent as a dictator. For me, parents are just guides - let them explore the world in their own way, and they'll come to conclusions themselves. You shouldn't stop them from exploring, even in the name of protection —sure, you don't want them to fall off a cliff, and you want to be firm with your boundaries, but my point is minimal intervention — that's how you create blind spots, or as some people would say, entitlement and just generally peopleq with no empathy or awareness of others. Tbh most of us (parents) don't know what tf we're doing, so my approach is to be humble about it and observe, learn, be a good example, be water (as Bruce Lee says), and hope for the best. It's like planting a seed, there's no guarantee what turns out even if you give the seed all the "right" things. In short: I'm not a believer of helicopter parenting because that's what breeds the 40-year-old kids everyone's so worried about (including me).  

 I understood it this way:
don't give children responsibilities that are for an adult - such as offering loving and precise limits so that they can explore and create from their potential. Let them live their childhood for the time they deserve and offer support for this.

I agree with this and it is what I have tried to do with my children. Help them to take responsibility for what they can already take responsibility for as children - learning, creating, playing, experimenting, feeling all emotions, taking care of their own space - with my support giving room for all of this. 

 You have to hand over responsibility to them gradually and it’s different for every kid. 

There is nothing better for them than when something they work hard and long at starts to pay off… like a skill if some kind. 

 I would prefer what we used with our five kids.

Never do for your kid what they can do for themselves. 

Much easier said than done but vital to their success. 

 Helicopter parents are a relatively new phenomenon

… imho kids left to their own devices can get into trouble and require real parental discipline but for the most part will learn many valuable lessons including the occasional asswhooopin for boys when they cross social lines (not necessarily a bad thing imo). 

I watch our current political leaders dialogue and often tell my wife “ there is a lil worm that’s never been punched in the face at recess in his entire life”… I think a lot of those little lord fontleroys were deprived of valuable lessons in their lil Oxford shoes, pressed shirts and ivory towers… but wtf do I know🤷🏽‍♂️ 

 Prepare the kid for the path not the path for the kid 

 children need to be taught from infancy, let them be children but education needs to begin earl.
That’s my opinion! 

 The job of a parent is to teach his child how to be good adults. The job of a child is to become a good adult.

This fetishising of children, which started in the victorian era, has a strong connection to nihilism. Adults did not like responsibility. They did not like the fact that they were in charge. They craved "the good old times" when they had no worries and a loving parent told them what to do.

I think it's clear why a nany state sounded to them so appealing.

Not only do we need to teach children to be independent. We need to teach them to love and cherish their independence. And that is done by pushing them to take as much independence and responsibility as they can, and be proud of what they achieve with it.

 

 I have no idea what _you_ mean with that statement, so I apply my own meaning. Being a kid, to me, is in not having to carry responsibility and just enjoy life as it is. From this I'd say yes, children should just be kids for as long as possible. Even adults should connect to their inner kid and be able to just fool around. I think that lightheartedness can really make your own life much more fun. 

 Given the context I would vote modestly agree. Everything is context specific, but feels like a half decent general principle 

 Let them enjoy and be free has not contradiction with education, love and dicipline imho. A game is fun when there is rules, without them it is just a mess 

 Lots of great responses on this one. 

It's interesting how people responded to the question in very different ways. 

The context from my side is trying to strike a balance between not burdening my kids with the way the world really works vs answering their questions in a way that isn't hiding the truth or assuming they can't handle it. 

Kids are curious. I feel like it's my duty to try and give them thoughtful answers to their questions and leave them the space try and understand complex topics when they want to.

It's easy to overdo it though. 

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 I'm not sure about the for "as long as possible" part but yes, kids should be kids. Life will catch up with them soon enough. 

 kids with guidance from loving parents hopefully 

 In the following sense, completely disagree:  “sheltered from knowledge of socially uncomfortable realities, or from the expectation to behave responsibly”

In the following sense, completely agree:  “encouraged to play and pursue their interests; not shamed for being playful or silly or for where they find joy in life” 

 To me, being a kid means living day to day with no particular thought to the future, in an innocent and not thoughtless manner. 

Well, mine are in their early teens and they don’t seem to be kids anymore. They sure have their moments, but overall? One is asking about when to get married and the other wants business advice. 🤷🏼‍♀️ 

 That’s a tough one indeed. Depending on the day I find myself either wanting to completely shield them from clown world so they can enjoy their innocence as long as possible, or put my spartan face on and prepare them for a lifelong battle.  One thing I do like to do is get as many well researched/thoughtful ideas as possible to help in my parenting journey. I liked the following series of over a dozen podcasts on radical personal finance, he covers lots of areas and really makes you think https://radicalpersonalfinance.libsyn.com/how-to-invest-in-your-children-at-a-very-young-age-part-4-give-your-children-words-and-background-knowledge 

 If you want to end childhood, give them a screen. 

 Absolutely agree. As a parent, I want my children to enjoy the magic of childhood for as long as possible.

Too much of the adult world‘s noise and problems are streamed into their developing minds of young children…We need to protect their consciousness and not give them an overdose of adult anxiety. That way they can really grow and thrive into being the magnificent creators they intended when they arrived here