To think DH is being precious re. DD going outside?

[MrsNextDoor]

DD is 7...turned 7 in March. She has "made friends" with a neighbours' cat...and just now she wanted to go to the little open grass square to see if it was there.

The little grass square is literally out of our front door, walk past ONE house and you're there.

DH says no....she's too small to be there alone even for 5 minutes as we can't see her from the window.

I'm a bit She's not daft. AIBU?

Stand at the doorway or on the path very close by, gradually increase the distance between you and watch her until you're sure she can be safe. e.g. if the cat ran off into the road, would she follow it without checking for traffic?

my goodness, dd is 4 and she plays out on her own. There are a group of kids who play out round here and they all seem to congregate on the field at the back of the house.

a 7 yr old can he trusted imo.

having said that it depends on the child.

mrsnextdoor.

in your case I would tell dh that I am happy for dd to go out on her own, if you are not happy dh then I suggest you go with her.

that way dd still gets out and dh mind is at rest.

ime he will soon change his tune when he is bored of being sat on a bit of grass stroking a cat

yup, let him police this til he gets bored

I agree with CoolAs suggestion too - your DH needs to either 1) let her go outside or 2) go with her so that she can go outside. She should not have to stay in because of his irrational fears.

You are right, your DH is wrong.

She's 7 not 3!

I think overprotection is more dangerous than underprotection, actually. Your daughter is growing and needs to start dealing with small bits of freedom so that she can deal with more freedom when she is older. Whether your husband wants it or not she will end up an adult and if she hasn't learnt how to handle herself with all the freedom that being an adult implies she could be in serious danger.

I also think that it is no life for a child to be always confined to the house unless supervised.

It would depend on the child,the area and the traffic for me.
My dd2 at 7 wouldn't have had the forethought to check for traffic if the cat went across the road and she wanted to follow it.

My DS when 7 was allowed to play on the street. He had rules about staying on the pavement ( as he doesn't look when crossing the road) and he knew how far he could go, not to go into anyones house without my permission. I think it depends where you live, Would DD follow rules, a few other factors.

My 7yo is allowed to walk to her friends house. Mum then texts when she's got there. It's about 300 yards, busy ish road, one small culdesac to cross. It's the same route we walk to school and back every day as her friend lives next door to the school. One of my friends thinks this is akin to selling her into white slavery...

Unless you live in a crack den, dh is bonkers. My seven year old goes to the corner shop alone (100m away on the same side of the road) and so does my five year old (she's exceptionally grown up - there's no way I would have let ds at five!). I think it undermines childrens confidence not to be trusted at all.

My DD (6 nearly 7) doesn't play out with us been there she's grown up for age too. Were in a nice area too can I ask what age you let your children play out? Do their friends knock for them first or do you just send them out?

My 6 year old dd plays out on her own and has done since last summer. Residential street. We gradually built up the distance she was allowed away from the house ( no further than the 2nd, 3rd 4th lamppost etc..) tested her understanding of road safety, what to do if the ball went in the road etc... I think your dh is being a bit ridiculous at 7!

Borris- sometimes friends call, sometimes she sees them out on the street and just goes out or goes calling for people herself. Other times she might just have a scoot up and down the street on her scooter although obviously gets a bit bored doing this on her own!

What does he think will happen?

If your 6 year old isn't in sight of your house milkysmum I think you're wrong.

Throughthickandthin- with the greatest respect I don't think you can say I am wrong, you can say that you wouldn't choose to do this with your own child but not that I am wrong. If you read the rest of the thread it is obvious that most other parents of children this age let their children play out on their own. My dd is sensible. She knows exactly how far up the street she is allowed to go, she is not allowed off our street. We live in a village. If she is not in sight when I stand at the front of the house she is in one of the neighbours gardens. Why do you think this is wrong? Do your own children not play out?

If your 6 year old isn't in sight of your house milkysmum I think you're wrong.

Are there that many children being kidnapped in the UK nowadays? And as long as they know road safety, is a six-year-old more at risk than an eight-year-old or twelve-year-old? Where does it stop?

He is BU.She's 7! Surely she can play on the street without being watched all the time.

I think 6 is young and it depends on the area. A 9 year old would have more road sense/common sense and a 12 year old would be doing a good amount of independant stuff generally.

I wouldn't. I'm surprised that people let thier 4 year olds

Watch her from a window.