Lenore Skenazy, who unwittingly spawned a new parenting movement called free-range kids following a column she wrote explaining why she let her nine-year-old son take the subway home alone, will be sharing her parenting ideas with reality TV viewers.

Lenore Skenazy with her nine-year-old son Izzy.

Still in the production stage, Skenazy,  a New-York based syndicated columnist, author, blogger and public speaker will host a reality show called Free-Range Parents (working title), which will explore her view that parents need to dial back the paranoia and let their kids be kids.

Skenazy never dreamed that her 2008 New York Sun column titled “Why I Let My 9-Year-Old Take The Subway Alone,” would arouse the kind of reaction it did.

“I had a column in the New York Daily News for six years… and I had a column for two years in the Sun, and it was only that one column that had the Today Show calling and everyone else,” said Skenazy, who has since appeared as a guest on shows including Dr. Phil, The View, Good Morning America and Nightline.

In a followup column, Skenazy wrote in 2008 in response to the backlash, she said that the odds of a child being murdered by a stranger are miniscule, with crime rates lower today than they were in the 1980s and ’90s, yet the culture of fear continues to gain momentum.

“Far more people die from falling off the bed or other furniture. So for safety’s sake, should we all start sleeping on the floor? Well, upon reading that, I’m sure some people will. I’m also sure that pretty soon you’ll see some ‘expert’ on TV talking about the hidden dangers of furniture. Behind her, a huge photo of a bed will be captioned: ‘Worth the Risk?’” she wrote.

During her CJN interview, Skenazy said parents today are bombarded with warnings about so-called dangers “whether it’s the danger of going outside, or drinking from a plastic cup, or sleeping on their stomachs, or falling behind in kindergarten…

“It’s a burden on us, and I don’t think it’s something that we parents sat down and decided, ‘Let’s be really paranoid and worried all the time because that will certainly enhance our lives and our children will appreciate it, too.’ It’s been foisted upon us,” said Skenazy, the mother of two preteen boys.

“I want to raise my kids similar to the way my parents raised me, which was loving, caring, Jewish, and to a certain extent, worried. And yet, back then, worried did not include terrified at all times that any moment could be my last.”

Since Skenazy coined the term “free-range kids” three years ago, she’s turned the concept into the focus of her career, having published a book titled Free-Range Kids, How to Raise Safe, Self-Reliant Children (Without Going Nuts with Worry), giving lectures on the subject, running a blog, and now, hosting a parenting show that will air on the Slice channel.

She is currently travelling between Toronto and New York to tape 13 episodes of the show, which she hopes to finish by the fall.

“Each episode is about a different family that wants to sort of loosen the reins a little,” she said.

“The show is not about daredevil activity, because I hate daredevil activity. I hate the idea that some day my child will be old enough to ride a motorcycle.”

Rather she’ll be overseeing families who have a problem with the idea of  letting their children walk to school or cook a meal on their own.

Skenazy, who was in Toronto late last month filming an episode with a Toronto family, said they are currently casting  more families in Ontario and the New York City area.

“What we’re looking for are families that feel like they’ve been overprotective, but recognize that, and for one reason or another, they are open to change and open to loosening the reins a little bit.”

Praised by some and dubbed “America’s worst mom” by others, Skenazy said that her free-range kids concept is not about neglecting your kids.

“It’s more about getting a grip on reality versus the horrors that are presented to us by everything from parenting magazines to the Nancy Grace show,” Skenazy said.

Skenazy recalled the reaction she got when she blogged about a mom who left her child alone in the library’s children’s room for three minutes while she went upstairs to check out a book.

“There were 1,400 letters about this blog post. Most of them said, ‘I wouldn’t let my child stay there for three seconds without me, much less three minutes! Or, ‘I don’t care if the odds are one in two or one in two billion,’ and it’s like, really? You can’t see the difference? Because if you can’t see the difference between one in two and one in two billion, you shouldn’t put on your shoe because there could be a deadly tarantula in there. The odds are slim, but they’re there!” she said, laughing.

Skenazy said her idea of ideal parents are those who believe in their kids.

“When a parent says, ‘Well, I do believe in you… I just don’t believe you’d be safe if I left you in the park with your three friends for half an hour while I got a Starbucks.’ That’s the opposite of believing in our kids, even though we love our kids.”

Skenazy said she also doesn’t buy the argument that they trust their kids, but not everyone else.

“Well, guess what? Your kid has to interact with everyone else. And what you’re saying is, you don’t believe they can handle themselves in this situation or that.”

She said that her philosophy is not “an all or nothing thing.” People can choose to adopt whatever techniques and ideas they are comfortable with.

“It’s not like I do all or nothing. I talk about how crazy it is that we’re all so worried about our children falling behind, but I have a tutor for one of my kids. So at some point, you might say, this might be crazy, but I don’t want him to repeat the seventh grade!”

Check out Skenazy’s blog at www.freerangekids.wordpress.com.