Daily News from New York, New York • 3

Wednesday, May 19, 2010 3 DAILY NEWSNYDailyNews.com Drop kids off alone at park, hope for best No supervision, no problem, says Queens mom hang out at a discreet distance, only because she's worried they might be the center of media attention. She says those who want to take part should decide if their child is ready to be on their own in a public place, but she thinks 7 or 8 is a good starting point. "It's so innocent and so normal but because independent play has been seen through the lens of 'Law itseems crazy," she said. Maybe it's Skenazy who needs to have her head examined? Dr. Alan Hilfer, chief psychologist at Mai-monides Medical Center in Brooklyn, says a 7-year-old shouldn't be left alone in a backyard, much less a park.

"Even if they have been taught well at a young age, their judgment and their tendency to think too impulsively sometimes interferes with thembeing able to make the right decision," Hilfer said. He thinks unsupervised adventures should start with dry runs in the sixth grade and progress incrementally. Janice Reynolds, 32, the Brooklyn mother of a 10-year-old boy, thinks Skenazy has the right idea. "New York has too many crazy, overprotective parents," she said. "There's something wrong when kids can't just play with kids." Park officials took a neutral stance.

"There is no real hard andfast rule as much as use their best judgment to what's appropriate," said Eugene Patron, press director at Prospect Park. "Children need to be out in nature, but young ones shouldbe supervised." With Kerry Burke, Ryan Strong and Samantha Shirley knelsonnydailynews.com BY KATIE NELSON DAILY NEWS STAFF WRITER SHE'S EITHERTHE coolestmom on the block -orthe craziest. A Queens woman on a crusade against over-protective parents is declaring this Saturday an independence day of sorts forthe scooter set. Lenore Skenazy, an author and former Daily News columnist, is urging parents to take their kids to a park and leave them there alone. And a lot of New Yorkers think she's out of hertree.

"Never in a million years would I do something that stupid," said Carmen Javier, a Park Slope mother of 8-year-old Juan. "When the kid turns 18 fine. Until then you watchthem." Skenazy sparked lively debate two years ago when she put one of her sons, then 9, on the subway and told him to head home. Since then, she has written a book called "Free Range Kids" and now is trying to launch "Take Our Children to the Park And Leave Them There Day." The goal, she says, is teaching youngsters independence and social skills within limits. "I'm not saying we should leave our toddlers outside with no food," she said.

"I'm suggesting taking our kids to apark in ourneighborhood so theycanmeetmore children." Skenazy, who lives in Jackson Heights with Morry, Izzy, kids are cooped up inside because no one is allowed to play outside alone. "It's about breaking the ice for one day to get kids out to meet each other so this can become a normal thing," she explained. Skenazy plans to take Izzy and a pal to the Ancient Playground in Central Park. She'll Writer Lenore Skenazy has raised eyebrows with her "Take Our Children to the Park And Leave Them There Day." Photo by Craig Warga, illustration by Charles GeorgeDaily News Ring Around the Rosie days in city are long gone Joanna Molloy a bomb Times Square and the Herald Square subway station. As for leaving little guys alone in the playground, we called our baby-cousin cop, who arrested a pedophile in Riis Parkin 2005.

"He was trying to lure kids into the bathroom with balloons," she said. "He'dfilledtheballoonswith shaving cream, and drawn smiley facesonthem. He was in his late 20s, very normal-looking." Sure, it would be nice to uncage New York's children so they can feel the ecstasy of free play. But it's no less fun if we watch over them. In fact, it might be more fun.

Tag, you're it. jmolloynydailynews.com scientific bent. Did you know pink Peeps blow up in the microwave more awesomelythan yellow Peeps? Or that 1 0 Mentos shaken in a bottle of Coke is the perfect projectile? Orthatwhenyou want to set the birds free from their cage, the cat will ignore them, but the dog will think they' re dinner. And this all took place while an adult was in the apartment. I was there although asleep last month when my kid and some other scamps decided to melt all the Easter bunnies on the stove for some 4 a.m.

chocolate fondue. Skenazy first urged New York he creator of "Take Our Children to the Park And Leave Them There Day" must have kids with the judgment of Solomon or like Mia Farrow's son Ronan, who wenttoYaleatage 11. Writer Lenore Skenazy has declared Saturday to be a day when city parents leave kids as young as 7 alone in Central Park and other local playgrounds. Skenazy wrote on her May 22 dotcom FreeRangeKids, it would be "a day to get kids outside to meet each other and relearn the lost art of playing As opposed to PlayStationing." City parents to free their children from supervised play dates and subway rides in 2008, when she let her 9-year-old go home alone on the subway from Bloomingdale's. "The problem with the every -thing-is-dangerous outlook is that overprotectiveness is a danger in and of itself," she mused.

Come on, the world is a way scarier place than it was when we were kids. In the '20s, moms let kids play in the street while they cleaned. In the '60s, kids went out in the morning and bounced around all day playing Ringolevio. These days, kids get snatched off the street and people try to We're down with that, but what's wrong with a little parental spying, er, supervision? Seven? Atthat age, kids still think they can fly off the fire escape if they have their cape on. In second grade, my kid and his rapscallion friends were testing whatflushes down the toiletbetter bread loaves or gym socks.

At 8, they continued on a.