Research: Rachel Garlinghouse has a great post on her blog about the importance of unstructured time in children’s lives. We live in a society that measures children’s success by comparing them to one another, counting how many activities they are involved in and boasting how packed their schedules are. But what children really need is time and space to pursue their own interests, find creative solutions to problems, and grow in their independence.

Practice: Summer is a great time to allow children some down time to grow into themselves. While the days of roaming the neighborhood are lost, we can certainly protect their time, set them up with materials or resources that invite their creativity, and step out of the way to allow them to drive their own interests and make their own choices.