Minimalist Moms Podcast | Purposeful Life & Parenting Tips

Grow Wild, My Child: Restoring the Wonder of Childhood | Ainsley Arment (Bonus Episode)

October 4, 2026·29 min
Episode Description from the Publisher

If you've been listening for a while now, you know, I've talked about the benefits of getting kids outside or living a slower childhood or having less screen time. But in today's conversation, we're going to be talking about the negative side of making our children's childhood too structured and adult directed. And what children can gain when we give some of that back?Today, I'm joined by Ainsley Arment, founder of Wild and Free, an author of the new children's book, Grow Wild My Child, for a conversation about protecting the wonder, curiosity, and freedom of childhood, we talk about how easily parenting can become over-structured and adult-directed, why not every childhood interest needs to become productive and the tension between guiding our kids and knowing when to step out of the way because our job isn't necessarily to manufacture a magical childhood for our children, but to leave enough space for them to experience one.Links Discussed in This Episode |Checkout the podcast storefront for recommendations from Diane.Subscribe to the Minimalist Moms Youtube ChannelBook: The Call of the Wild and Free: Reclaiming the Wonder in Your Child’s Education, A New Way to HomeschoolPrevious Episode: Nature as a Classroom (EP119)Book: Balanced and Barefooot by Angela J. HanscomBook: How to Raise a Wild Child: The Art and Science of Falling in Love with Nature by Scott SampsonBook: Restoring Childhood: How to Set Kids Free in the Age of Anxiety by Peter GrayPrevious Episode: The Kids’ Mental Health Crisis Started Before Smartphones - So What Changed? | Peter Gray (Bonus Episode)Previous Episode: What’s Happening to Our Boys - and How Can We Help? | Dr. Leonard Sax, Boys Adrift (Bonus Episode)Connect with Ainsley:InstagramWebsiteBook: Grow Wild, My ChildAbout Ainsley |Ainsley Arment is the founder and leader of Wild + Free, author of the bestselling book The Call of the Wild & Free, and co-host of the regular Wild + Free Podcast. As she leads this movement of families doing homeschooling in a new way, she thinks deeply about making the most of life and ensuring her children have a fertile seedbed for their own uniqueness and creativity.Episode Sponsors |The Minimalist Moms Podcast would not be possible without the support of weekly sponsors. Choosing brands that I believe in is important to me. I only want to recommend brands that I believe may help you in your daily life. As always, never feel pressured into buying anything. Remember: if you don't need it, it's not a good deal!Enjoy the Podcast?Post a review and share it! If you enjoyed tuning into this podcast, then do not hesitate to write a review. You can also share this with your fellow mothers so that they can be inspired to think more and do with less. Order (or review) my book, Minimalist Moms: Living & Parenting With Simplic

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