Leaving kids home alone

[weluvu]

Would you leave 2 children aged 8 and 6 home alone for one hour once a week?

I wouldn't leave a 6yo and an 8yo home alone, no.

so can anyone tell me the difference between letting my dds go to the park together without any adult supervision, and letting them stay in the house together??? (or did you get bored before the end of my post!)

I would leave them for 5 mins to post a letter, but an hour on a regular basis is wrong. Having said that, I live next door to a small playground and by that age I would let thjem go on their own for 20 mins or half an hour while I was out in the garden and could hear them

emsiewill - how's that for a xp?!

My theory on the park was that if they came to grief I would hear them cry, and all their friends knew where they lived so would have knocked on our door.

Home alone simple horseplay could lead to a fall. I didn't leave mine until they were old enough to be able to call my mobile if anything was worrying them.

They're 11 & 13 now and quite happy to be at home for a couple of hours, but I would still never leave them alone at night.

One reason I wouldn't leave an eight year old and six year old alone for any length of time at home (though in my case it would be a eight year old and five year old) is precisely because I had a typical 70s experience of being left alone and found it very frightening and some bad stuff happened. I wish I had been 'mollycoddled' a bit more as it happens. Having a strange person on the phone trying to persuade me to imitate oral sex on my little brother is not an experience I think would hugely benefit my kids. And I've never told anyone about this before, btw.

That must have been awful Aloha. I can understadn your ongoing concern.

I suppose my lack of concern is the direct result of nothing ever having happened to me! It just goes to show how the past can influence the present.

Aloha .

I suddenly realised with absolute horror that this was a really strange and bad call and didn't actually do anything (though even then I didn't know what he was getting at for quite a long while afterwards), but I hid behind the sofa for a long time afterwards and never, ever told my parents because I was very freaked out. And I was TERRIFIED if anyone came to the door.

Poor you Aloha!

A burglar entered our house during the night when I was young & I can remember the terror to this day.

May be another reason why I'd never leave a young child home alone!

Undertandable Thistle and Aloha.
I've been lucky really. I guess we assess risk on our own experience and that of those close to us.

NO. Children of that age are not responsible enough to know what to do in an emergancy.
I left DD2 at home alone for the first time when she was 10 told her I would be about 30 minutes and when I got back she was in tears as she thought I had taken lomger than that and didn't know what had happened to me.

ermsie will I wouldn't let a 6 and 9 year old go to the park without adult supervision, Our local park is just up the road and my children were not allowed to go by themselves until they were 10. They did have to cross a fairly busy road to get thete though.

I think the point that it depends on your previous experience is a good one - we were left home alone all the time and nothing bad ever happened. Hence I am probably a bit too chilled about it all.

OTOH maybe I am a bit worried that this might happen....

depends on the dc. I think it would be fine. I wouldn't have a problem with dd (6) being at home alone for an hour once a week. However, it would depend how she felt.

I'm actually thinking of letting ds go to the park (about three streets away, including corssing one realtively busy road, but which has traffic lights with a pdesetrian crossing), porbably not this summer when he is still 6 (7 in September) but next summer, when he'll be 7 going on 8.

But the frist few times he goes, he'll be "shadowed".

I've already started to let him go to the post box (along the road and round the corner) on his own. He takes aaaaages which is quite nerve wracking but it is becasue he is enjoying going at his own speed and not having an adult snarling at him "hurry UP!!!"

And I have already started to leave him breifly if I am going acorss the road to check something with the neghbour, or to go to the post box myslef.

Well, probably going against most of the thread, I leave my dc (6 and 4) in the house by themsleves for 30-40 mins while I go to the shops on a Saturday (butchers etc - not shoes!).
Always with the instructions - not to open door, answer phone, fight. So far they have been OK and they know that if they do any of these there will be consequences.

I couldn't and wouldn't ever leave a 6 year old child in charge of a 4 year old child.
I think it is unfair on the older child having to be responsible for their sibling.

No

I actually think that it is completely irresponsible to leave a 6 and 4 year old alone together for such a length of time. Why can't you take them with you?

Oh don't be effing stupid you can't leave youngs kids alone in the house for an hour to go to aerobics or half an hour to go to the butchers.

You can leave a child strapped in a car seat while paying for petrol or asleep in bed if getting milk from the shop directly next to your house.

Childrens logic and problem solving skills are not developed enough to manage on their own no matter how sensible you think they are. What on earth is a 6 year old meant to do if the 8 year old trips on a rug and knocks themselves out on the furniture, or the 8 year old has to deal with the 6 year old taking a stropp. Thats what parents are for. As for a 6 and four year old , OK 4 year old decides he wants mum, 6 year old has to try and stop him leaving the house come on its not fair on them.

I wouldn't expect my 10yr old to care fo his 6yr old sister for half an hour, even though I know she would watch the TV and he would play computer games and perhaps not even know I was out, but thats not the point.

Be very careful.... Social services would be very interested to know about that ! You should not leave any child under the age of 13 alone in the house.... unfortunately for all those poor children who end up injured etc each year, this is only a "guideline" and not a law !! It is definitely worth sticking to though. Do they know how to dial 999 and how to ring any relatives ? Are they able to get out of the house in case of an emergency and do they know anyone next door.

Think the best idea would be to take them with you to the shops, or leave them in the care of a responsible adult (over 16yrs)

I think it is very irresponsible to leave a 6 and a 4 year old on thier own in the house. They are little children and at 4 not much more than a baby.

no. never. its very irrisponsible and just think of what could happen if u did.

My chilren are five and seven and it wouldn't enter my head to even think about it until they are SO much older. I can't see what is so great at responsibility at such a young age.

NO