I set up a free-range playdate for kids in our area. Parents take turns watching the group, and we don’t hover over them as they play.

Sara Pecora took this photo from a distance during her shift as the one parent at the playground. 

When I reflect on my childhood in the early 90s, some of my best memories are hanging around our neighborhood with my friends.

We’d explore the woods behind the houses — building forts out of sticks — and spend hours messing around in an empty lot at the end of one of the cul de sacs.

Nobody came to check on us. It was a case of being home by a certain time.

Now that I have a child of my own, I’ve struggled with the general shift toward helicopter parenting and the lack of independence among kids. So I’m doing something about it.

I want my daughter to grow up independent

This summer, I read “The Anxious Generation” by Jonathan Haidt. It discusses how an increasing number of kids are experiencing mental health issues, partly due to the overuse of phones and other devices.

It also examines the trend of over-protective parents who coddle their children, often due to largely perceived dangers like abductions by strangers.

Those risks — sometimes fueled by the media — are minimal. Combined with too much technology, they’re stopping kids from being kids. And I don’t want that for my 9-year-old daughter, Aster.

Haidt’s book mentioned the “Let Grow” movement which advocates for kids interacting with each other with minimal parent involvement. It fosters free play and friendships and helps them with independence and conflict resolution among themselves.

We take turns to be near the kids as they play

The website offers tips to parents and teachers on setting up independent playgroups for children who are old enough not to require one-on-one supervision.

Instead of a bunch of parents hovering around our children in our local play area, I thought it would be a good idea for us to take turns as the designated lone adult.

In August, I posted my plan on our neighborhood Facebook group. “Ideally, the kids would meet once a week on Sundays from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m. in the playground,” I wrote. “E-email, comment, or message me if you’re if this is something you’d be interested in.”

Pecora and her daughter, Aster, 9. 

Nearly 20 families responded. Their kids were aged between 5 and 12. I made it clear that it wasn’t a free babysitting service; the children would be responsible for organizing their own activities, and the one parent “on duty” would sit there — preferably at a distance — in case of an emergency.

We set up a text chain and an informal rota for the supervising parent each week. I “hosted” the first playgroup in September. I packed a First Aid kit with things like bandages and asked the kids with phones to hand them in. I sat on a picnic bench at the far end of the space and read my book.

We’ve been lucky with the weather

Some kids brought crafts, and they made stuff like bracelets. Others just played on the playground equipment. There’s a nearby creek along a path that’s wooded. They got dirty picking up sticks and dragging them through the stream.

It’s become a weekly fixture. The most kids we’ve had was 15, the least was just Aster and another child. Nothing is set in stone. We want this to feel as organic as possible for the kids. We don’t want them to think it’s a place that they have to come every Sunday.

Meanwhile, we’ve had a lot of luck with the weather. Touch wood, there hasn’t been a rainy day since we started.

A few kids like to be nearer to the adult, but for the most part, they’ll sit for a few minutes, then take off and go do something else. There’s a lot of laughter and fun.

A kid got completely covered in dirt

One funny incident happened to our youngest member — a 5-year-old girl. She’d been playing near the creek with the older kids who were watching out for her. They’d made mud pies, and she got covered head-to-toe in dirt.

The parent on the bench thought she’d better call her mom, “Hey, your daughter’s OK, but I wanted to let you know that she’s really muddy,” she said. The mom was thrilled. “It’s what childhood is about,” she replied.