Latchkey Kid? What age to leave home alone?
IF this whole watching SS9 after school with me thing doesn't work out, SS9 wants to stay at his grandma's empty house after school, but is he 9. Is that too young? I would normally say YES but he is soo...advanced. He has been left home alone a handful of times, and he, well, he is like a 60-year-old woman, you just have to know the kid. He just BREWS HIMSELF a pot of COFFEE and sips coffee and reads. He has a genius IQ but that doesn't mean he is emotionally equipped to handle something like strangers at the door, or a fire (from his darn coffee pot! nuts)
I looked up the laws for staying home alone, and most states, including mine, don't have any. They offer RECOMMENDATIONS, but most don't have actual LAWS. But I will say this, and it surprised me, in Illinois, you have must by law be FOURTEEN YEARS OLD to legally stay home unsupervised. That's old!!! I would probably think for most kids a normal age would be 11 or 12. The legal age for a couple of states was only 8. I
I don't know. I guess it depends on the kid. SS9 probably is ready. Probably.
Has anyone had any experience with leaving kids home alone maybe too early and regreted it?
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Comments
I think it's too young
In my state, it would be punishable (if something were to happen) as child endangerment and definitely could result in removal of child from custody of parent that allowed it.
I don't think it's a good idea regardless of his maturity or intelligence level. 9 is 9 no matter how you slice it.
Only this summer did I allow my SD14 to "babysit" the 10 and 6 year old over the summer. It worked out fine, but it still made me somewhat uneasy.
Just my humble opinion, of course.
Evil Diva
A 9 year old brewing a pot
A 9 year old brewing a pot of coffee and sitting down to read a book while alone???
I want that kid, minus the coffee! LOL!
14
I would probably allow my 14 to stay at home alone. I would never allow a 9 year old to stay alone or go into a house that has been empty all day long. Why cant the kd stay at after school day care or is that an option? If he does stay at the house and something happens somebody is going to be in big trouble for allowing him to stay there.