Let Them Grow: Why Kids Need Independence - Lenore Skenazy

About this episode

Hunter Clarke-Fields interviews Lenore Skenazy about the importance of childhood independence and its impact on confidence and mental health.

What happens when we stop hovering and start trusting our kids a little more? In this episode of the Mindful Mama Podcast, Hunter talks with Lenore Skenazy — president of Let Grow and author of Free-Range Kids — about why childhood independence is becoming one of the most important parenting conversations of our time. After a media firestorm erupted when she allowed her 9-year-old son to ride the subway alone, Lenore became a leading voice advocating for kids’ freedom, resilience, and confidence. Together, Hunter and Lenore unpack the cultural fear driving overprotective parenting, the rise in childhood anxiety, and the growing movement to normalize age-appropriate independence again. They explore how programs like The Let Grow Experience help families break the worry cycle, why “reasonable childhood independence” laws are spreading across the country, and how small acts of freedom can transform both kids and parents. This conversation is hopeful, practical, and deeply empowering for any parent wondering how to raise capable, confident kids in a fear-filled culture. In This Episode, You’ll Learn Why childhood independence is directly connected to confidence and mental health How…

People in this episode

Host: Hunter Clarke-Fields

Guest: Lenore Skenazy

Topics covered

• childhood independence
• parenting
• anxiety
• overprotection
• confidence
• mental health

Keywords

• independence
• parenting strategies
• child anxiety
• overprotective parenting
• Let Grow movement
• reasonable childhood independence
• freedom
• resilience

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Let Grow

Books & works: Free-Range Kids

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