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 Chicken Chick
Posts: 3562
   
Location: Texas | So a discussion on FB has me thinking. How old were your kids when you let them play outside by themselves? Not home alone or anything, but able to go outside without you sitting on the porch watching them the entire time. |
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 Accident Prone
Posts: 22277
 
Location: 100 miles from Nowhere, AR | 3ish. |
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 Expert
Posts: 4121
Location: SE Louisiana | I started going the 1/2 mile to fish in the Potomac at age 8 by myself... Been running loose ever since. |
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I'll Be Your Huckleberry
Posts: 1488
Location: Arizona | 4-ish. However, both my boys are very mature for their ages. My 8-year-old has friends who I won't take my eyes off lol. |
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  Neat Freak
Posts: 11216
Location: Wonderful Wyoming | What is your outside like? We have a fenced in yard that we put clips on the gates and my oldest was allowed out when he was about 3, but I looked out the window often. We have horses in the corrals, ram sheep and sometimes cows in the pasture by the yard, not to mention a big deep livestock water tank so we made sure he couldn't get out. The little guy has gone out with his older brother since he was about 1, but I still check on them often. |
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Chicken Chick
Posts: 3562
Location: Texas | Well it was a friend that was asking for opinions, and got some different answers.
My son was about 5 when I started letting him go play in the fenced backyard by himself checking on him out the window.
She had someone comment though that said "The base rule is 12 :(" I just think it is crazy that someone thinks 12 is the earliest they should play outside without you standing right next to them. So I thought I would ask to see if maybe I am the crazy one lol. |
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 Strong Willed Woman
Posts: 6577
Location: Prosser, WA | My oldest was probably 2 1/2. I had lots of windows and there was really nothing for her to get into. She didn't stay outside long, maybe 5 or 10 minutes at a time. She was really easy though. My son just turned 2 and I don't know if I will ever be able to not watch him. LOL. I do let my 3 kids go out in our backyard now by them selves. Fairly small backyard, fenced. My oldest is now 7. I always have a window cracked and I have 5 8' tall windows, plus a sliding glass door on that side of the house, so I can't miss them. LOL. |
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Miracle in the Making
Posts: 4013
| i would think depend where you live street thing s so different now than when justin was little |
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Cold hands and Warm Heart
Location: oklahoma | vjls - 2014-02-28 7:34 PM i would think depend where you live street thing s so different now than when justin was little
^. This |
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 Underestimated Underdog
Posts: 3971
Location: Minnesota | I don't have children but I just wanted to add a little to this. My parents didn't let me go anywhere by myself. I was probably 12 or 13 when I could start riding my bike down the street. I was not a bad kid and never gave my parents a reason to worry. My parents were much older when they had me, could that have something to do with it? Maybe. But I know from being raised that way it just sends me into a panic to think about letting my future kids go outside alone. Now my husband was the opposite, he went everywhere alone from a very young age. This is something we talk about a lot and I think I may show him this thread. |
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Cold hands and Warm Heart
Location: oklahoma | Ctrygirl14 - 2014-02-28 7:41 PM I don't have children but I just wanted to add a little to this. My parents didn't let me go anywhere by myself. I was probably 12 or 13 when I could start riding my bike down the street. I was not a bad kid and never gave my parents a reason to worry. My parents were much older when they had me, could that have something to do with it? Maybe. But I know from being raised that way it just sends me into a panic to think about letting my future kids go outside alone. Now my husband was the opposite, he went everywhere alone from a very young age. This is something we talk about a lot and I think I may show him this thread.
I own my grandparents home, they've passed but my parents didn't know where we were all day. We'd either be on our horses all day or here at this home, growing up, we spent the day down at the park. My son is 14 and has rarely ever been out front by himself. Too much foot traffic, different society all together from when we grew up. |
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Accident Prone
Posts: 22277
Location: 100 miles from Nowhere, AR | wyoming barrel racer - 2014-02-28 6:06 PM What is your outside like? We have a fenced in yard that we put clips on the gates and my oldest was allowed out when he was about 3, but I looked out the window often. We have horses in the corrals, ram sheep and sometimes cows in the pasture by the yard, not to mention a big deep livestock water tank so we made sure he couldn't get out. The little guy has gone out with his older brother since he was about 1, but I still check on them often.
3 was for the fenced in yard. My son was 5 when we moved here and I felt comfortable turning him loose. I'm not even sure when my daughter started going out with him and without me--she's 5 now and has been doing it a long time. We are isolated, very rural, surrounded by woods and the house is a long way from the road, so I don't worry about anyone snatching them. Both my kids are mature for their age, sensible farm raised kids, and they both know how to get out of the woods. My biggest worries are water and snakes, but I wouldn't do them any favors by bubble wrapping them. |
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I Really Love Jeans
Posts: 3173
Location: North Dakota | Fenced backyard around the age of 7, but we have full wooden security fences. NEVER in the front yard period! |
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Strong Willed Woman
Posts: 6577
Location: Prosser, WA | I let my oldest daughter go out of the fence by the age of 4 by herself because she wanted to go see the kittens that were in the pump house. If she is outside the fence she's supposed let our lab out too. She also has to tell me where she is going. We have a pretty long driveway so no vehicle traffic to worry about. |
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I Need a Xanax!
Posts: 2774
| I have turned mine loose in our fenced in yard from the time they were 1 and 2. I have trusted my son to be outside of the fenced yard without me for 10-15 minutes at a time since he was 4...he is 5 now. My 4 year old daughter is another story...she's always getting into something she's not supposed to or doing something dangerous so she probably won't be allowed to be outside unattended until she's about 7 at least. We live on the end of a 1/4 mile dead end road so traffic is not an issue. If we lived near a road my kids would NEVER go outside without me making every step they did! I grew up at the end of a nearly 1/4 mile driveway so we never had traffic but I know my parents wouldn't have turned us loose if there was. |
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Neat Freak
Posts: 11216
Location: Wonderful Wyoming | Three 4 Luck - 2014-02-28 7:00 PM wyoming barrel racer - 2014-02-28 6:06 PM What is your outside like? We have a fenced in yard that we put clips on the gates and my oldest was allowed out when he was about 3, but I looked out the window often. We have horses in the corrals, ram sheep and sometimes cows in the pasture by the yard, not to mention a big deep livestock water tank so we made sure he couldn't get out. The little guy has gone out with his older brother since he was about 1, but I still check on them often. 3 was for the fenced in yard. My son was 5 when we moved here and I felt comfortable turning him loose. I'm not even sure when my daughter started going out with him and without me--she's 5 now and has been doing it a long time. We are isolated, very rural, surrounded by woods and the house is a long way from the road, so I don't worry about anyone snatching them. Both my kids are mature for their age, sensible farm raised kids, and they both know how to get out of the woods. My biggest worries are water and snakes, but I wouldn't do them any favors by bubble wrapping them.
We are very isolated too. We do have snakes as well. They scare me more than anything right now. We did have a sick badger come up to the yard before I had kids. The dog was freaking out and this thing just came up and layed next to the fence all sick and frothy. So if something like that happened...but like you said, we can't bubble wrap them. We are lucky to live rurally and I love that they get all the fresh air they need. |
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 I'm Here!!
Posts: 4583
Location: Is it Summer Yet? | 3ish. but I have a 6' fence around my yard and he has to take Jonah with him. Jonah is a mini Aussie Sheppard that does not like any strangers. There is no one getting near my house without Jonah letting me know. My son is almost 5 now and still he has to take Jonah with him. |
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Chicken Chick
Posts: 3562
Location: Texas | Thanks for the replies. I understand situations are different. Before my son was 5 we rented in town and there was no way he was even going in the back yard by himself... I just didn't trust the neighborhood. When we moved out here I was a lot more comfortable with him being in the back yard by himself.
When I was little we lived in the ghetto and I think the only reason I was able to go outside is because we had a huge Catahoula that was my shadow. One day I was playing in my sand box, and a man hopped up on our 6' privacy fence and was looking into the yard. I said "get him blue dog" not really thinking about what would really happen considering I was around 4. The dog jumped the fence, and both of them were gone. The dog came back a little while later like nothing ever happened. I remember thinking "I am in big trouble", and was so happy when he came back. I just told my parents that story about 6 years ago lol.
Once we moved out to the country my parents turned me and my little sister loose. Actually it was more like "If you stay in the house you have to help clean."... so we were outside a lot exploring.
Anyway I just thought 12 was a little old to be the base rule of when they are old enough to play in a fenced back yard without a parent. |
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 I Chore in Chucks
Posts: 2882
Location: MD | my SO has a 7 and 5 yr old. no way can they go out alone. I don't think they actually would know what to do though so maybe they could.
I was out "alone" with the neighbor kids by the age of 5 easily. we had the run of 4 houses and knew when the street lights came on to come inside. and we frequently came in to get a drink of water or a bathroom break so I guess mom had some sort of inclination as to if we were getting lost.
I guess it depends on the kid you have and your comfort level! |
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 Elite Veteran
Posts: 822
Location: Southwest New Mexico | My step daughter is 4 and she's usually really good. Sometimes She will be mean to the animals (cats dogs) if you don't watch her closely though. We have no fenced yard but she stays close to the house. |
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 Serious Snap Trapper
Posts: 4275
Location: In The Snow, AZ | We are on 3.5 fenced acres. Cross fenced for the horses, and a long driveway. Amber just turned 5 this month. We've let her go out by herself since she turned four. But only because we are completely fenced. The only negative thing that has happened...... she had been our running around for maybe 20 minutes. She plays with the dogs and climbs on the wood pile. But on this particular day, she came running in all out of breath and says, "I've been out lunging the horses." Oh craaaap. Whaaaat? She knows better!I run out to the horse pasture and sure enough, they're all sweaty and huffing and puffing......Amber got a stern talking to about the dangers and what could have happened. It was scary, but kinda comical. Apparently the horses got some good exercise. |
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Expert
Posts: 4121
Location: SE Louisiana | Guess it varies...
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 Elite Veteran
Posts: 902
Location: Qld Australia | My son has just turned 6 and I am only starting to let him outside by himself for TINY increments eg take his new puppy outside for the toilet and to go to his new enclosed trampoline. (He has had it for about a month, FANTASTIC investment.) We have an upstairs house with limited vision so this also makes it hard to monitor from inside so he rarely is outside by himself.
Actually this very week I let him go to his trampoline while I made breakfast before school for the first time and I may continue this 'freedom' as he is relatively safe on the trampoline. See my mention below re snakes lol.
We have snakes, snakes, snakes and more snakes and I am terrified for him. We also have a few stallions and being on a farm there are dangers everywhere. When I was a kid, I grew up in the same situatin as him with less snakes and I was out probably by age 3 or 4 and could stay out most of the day. I did have two older sisters that were sometimes with me. I think back now to what I got up to and as a mother am horrified lol. I will say again, the snake issue is the major, major danger here.
I do see this restriction for outside freedom impact on his physical abilities and I hate that, but I would prefer him to be alive than the next super sports star. JMO and am willing to stand by it forever. :-)
Edited by rockinj 2014-03-01 5:16 PM
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10D Crack Champion
| After the girl from Springfield, MO was kidnapped a couple weeks ago while walking to her friend's house and just a few short hours later found dead, I can certainly understand how parents would not feel comfortable leaving a child outside alone or even with other children especially in town. People saw this girl being kidnapped & even followed the car/truck to get the description & tag number, but were unable to get to her. I can't imagine the sadness her parents feel. There are situations like this all over the country & it scares parents. I think the girl in Springfield was 12, but I can't remember for sure.
Edited by sodapop 2014-03-01 9:18 PM
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