I stayed home by myself with no issues from the age of 10 onward. At 11, I was allowed to babysit my younger sister, and by 12, I was babysitting the kids of our neighbors and my mom's friends.
I realize people are more aware of dangers and scary situations these days, thanks to 24/7 news and social media. So, maybe that has something to do with the fact parents nowadays seem to think 10 years old is too young to stay home alone, and 12 is too young to be responsible for other people's children.
“Almost always, without fail, a fight erupts in the comments section with some people saying you'd be crazy to leave a kid under 14 alone and others swearing they've been staying home alone since the age of 8.”
I base this mostly on experiences I've had and situations I've witnessed at my various workplaces over the years. I recall a coworker at a newspaper I worked at regularly calling in sick to stay home if one of her children was sick or if school was canceled because of inclement weather ... even though the eldest was in high school, leading me to believe he could stay home alone when sick, or at least could have watched the other two, who were in middle school. My coworker assured she couldn't leave them all home alone together, lest they kill each other. 🤔
And what about babysitting?
I once asked my boss, who had a 13 year old daughter, if his daughter would be interested in babysitting Reese, who was 3 at the time. I just needed a sitter for a couple hours on a Saturday afternoon when my husband and I had overlapping work schedules and our regular sitter was tied up. My boss gave me a quizzical look and said, "Oh no, you don't want that. She's way too young to babysit. But if you need it, I can give you the number for the sitter we use."
I was truly surprised. At 13, I was babysitting my own 1-year-old brother. My sister was 11 by then, so she really didn't need babysitting. I also thought back to my years devouring Baby-Sitters Club books. If I recall correction, most of the main characters were 13 and two of them were 11!
I see articles on social media somewhat frequently about the "right" age for allowing a child to stay home alone. Almost always, without fail, a fight erupts in the comments section with some people saying you'd be crazy to leave a kid under 14 alone and others swearing they've been staying home alone since the age of 8.
I think the answer is somewhere in between the two extremes. I'd let Reese try an hour or so by herself at 10 years old, with plenty of ground rules about not using kitchen appliances, not answering the door, not letting anyone know she was home alone, etc. As for babysitting, I guess that's up to her and the people she'll someday sit for. If she feels comfortable babysitting at 13 and the parents of the kids she watches are cool with it, then I'm all for it.
What age would you allow your kiddos to stay home alone? And do you feel like that age is steadily rising? Or is it just me ... ?
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