Let Grow

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Let Grow Let Grow leads the movement for childhood independence. We believe that when adults step back, kids step up.

We challenge parenting norms and create easy ways for adults to give kids the free time and space they need.

Some of the best parts of childhood don’t come with instructions.A bike ride that turns into an adventure. A made-up gam...
10/10/2026

Some of the best parts of childhood don’t come with instructions.

A bike ride that turns into an adventure. A made-up game that lasts all afternoon. A pile of random things that somehow becomes a fort. Being trusted with a real job and realizing, “They’re counting on me.”

These moments may look small, but they give kids opportunities to practice independence, creativity, problem-solving, and responsibility.

That’s what Let Grow is working to bring back into everyday childhood.

We create FREE resources for parents, educators, schools, and communities who want to give kids more chances to play, explore, and discover what they’re capable of.

👉 Learn more at LetGrow.org

And we have to ask: What did you spend HOURS doing as a kid?

What if the problem isn’t that independent childhood disappeared completely…but that we’ve forgotten what it looks like?...
10/09/2026

What if the problem isn’t that independent childhood disappeared completely…but that we’ve forgotten what it looks like?

Let Grow president Lenore Skenazy joined the discussion with WBUR’s On Point to talk about where we draw the line between protecting kids and giving them the freedom to develop judgment, confidence, and independence.

The episode begins with the story of a Virginia mom whose 5-year-old took a walk along a familiar route in their gated neighborhood. The situation eventually resulted in a conviction and placement on Virginia’s child abuse and neglect registry, despite the state having a law designed to protect reasonable independent childhood activities.

One point especially stuck with us: when children doing ordinary things on their own becomes unfamiliar, independence itself can start to look alarming.

🎧 Listen here: https://www.wbur.org/onpoint/2026/09/16/free-range-parenting-zero-risk-state

What did you do independently as a kid that would turn heads today?

Here’s an easy family idea we love: Start an “I CAN” list. 🙌Every time your child learns to handle something independent...
10/08/2026

Here’s an easy family idea we love: Start an “I CAN” list. 🙌

Every time your child learns to handle something independently, write it down.

“I can make breakfast.”
“I can talk to the cashier.”
“I can get myself ready.”
“I can solve this before asking for help.”

Over time, it becomes a running record of just how capable they’re becoming.

And when they’re ready for the next “I can”? The FREE Let Grow Independence Kit is packed with ideas.

👉 Explore it here: https://letgrow.org/join/

Your kid comes back after trying something new and says: “I DID IT!” 🙌Before moving on, stay there for a minute. Ask wha...
10/07/2026

Your kid comes back after trying something new and says: “I DID IT!” 🙌

Before moving on, stay there for a minute.

Ask what surprised them. What went wrong. What they figured out. What they’d try next.

Those little conversations can help kids recognize that they didn’t just finish a task.

They problem-solved, adjusted, and learned something about what they can handle.

That reflection is part of The Let Grow Experience, where kids get real-world opportunities to practice independence.

👉 Explore the FREE program here:
https://letgrow.org/program/experience/

What does independence look like for kids with disabilities or neurodivergence?The path may look different for every chi...
10/07/2026

What does independence look like for kids with disabilities or neurodivergence?

The path may look different for every child, but having opportunities to build confidence, capability, and independence matters just as much.

Join Andrea Keith, Let Grow Executive Director, Brianna Parillo, Special Ed. Teacher at Arongen Elementary School, and Thaís Freitas, author and parent of a neurodivergent child, for a practical conversation about supporting kids while still giving them room to try, grow, and do more on their own.

📅 October 21 at 7 PM ET

👉 Save your seat! Even if you register but can’t attend, you’ll be sent the recording! https://bit.ly/4AXQ67Y

Sometimes the breakthrough isn’t just with the kid. It’s with the grown-up too, according to this Middle School Dean in ...
10/07/2026

Sometimes the breakthrough isn’t just with the kid. It’s with the grown-up too, according to this Middle School Dean in Louisiana,

“The student needed some confidence, and the parent needed to let go a bit.”

That balance is where so much growth can happen.
Kids build confidence by trying. Adults build confidence by giving them the space to try.

Simple idea. Big shift. 🙌 Are you ready to give it at try?

👉 Explore Let Grow’s free resources for families and schools:
https://letgrow.org/

You do NOT need a closet full of expensive toys to get kids playing. 🙌Sometimes the best setup is a pile of things with ...
10/06/2026

You do NOT need a closet full of expensive toys to get kids playing. 🙌

Sometimes the best setup is a pile of things with no instructions attached.

Cardboard boxes. Buckets. Fabric. Chalk. Balls. Sticks. Containers.

These kinds of open-ended materials are often called loose parts, because kids get to decide what they become.

The trick? Try not to turn the pile into an adult-planned activity.

Put the materials out and let the kids take it from there.

👉 Explore the FREE Let Grow Play Club resources here:
https://letgrow.org/program/play-club/

Need a little help getting everyone outdoors? Start with story time. 📚🌱In our latest blog, children’s author and researc...
10/05/2026

Need a little help getting everyone outdoors? Start with story time. 📚🌱

In our latest blog, children’s author and research scientist Heather C. Morris shares books that can spark curiosity about the world right outside the front door.

Think berries, bugs, leaves, pockets full of treasures, and plenty of reasons to go see what’s out there for yourself.

👉 Read the blog and save the full book list here: https://letgrow.org/books-to-get-kids-outside/

There’s a pretty great moment when:“Can you do it for me?” starts turning into…“Wait...let me try.” 🙌That shift doesn’t ...
10/02/2026

There’s a pretty great moment when:
“Can you do it for me?” starts turning into…“Wait...let me try.” 🙌

That shift doesn’t happen from simply telling kids to be confident. It happens when they get real chances to try, struggle a little, problem-solve, and realize they can handle more than they thought.

That’s the heart of The Let Grow Experience.
Kids take on real-world challenges. Parents get to watch capability grow. 🌱

👉 Explore the FREE program here:
https://letgrow.org/program/experience/

A child walks to the library. Another walks home from a friend’s house.For some families featured in The Cut, those ordi...
10/01/2026

A child walks to the library. Another walks home from a friend’s house.

For some families featured in The Cut, those ordinary moments of independence ended with police showing up.

“The Helicopter Parent Next Door” looks at what happens when our cultural expectations around supervision become so strong that seeing a child without an adult can trigger alarm.

Let Grow President Lenore Skenazy also explains why learning to navigate the world, ask for help, and handle age-appropriate independence is part of growing up.

👉 Read the full story:
https://www.thecut.com/article/helicopter-parent-next-door-police-cps.html

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