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The amount of time babies can be left alone in a secure, safe area, has less to do with the actual duration, and more to do with a baby’s temperament. A child with a cautious temperament may need parents to stick closer to them than an adventurous baby might. The Red Cross offers a babysitting class for 11- to 15-year-old children to prepare them for looking after younger kids.
If you have decided your child can stay alone at home, here are some tips that will make that process easier. There are no hard and fast rules for determining when a child can be home alone.
What Guidelines Should Be Considered to Leave the Child Home Alone?
This gives your child the chance to experience what it feels like to be left alone at home. Ask yourself the following questions to determine whether your child is ready to be left home alone. Clinical Psychologist, Juazel de Villiers advises that generally, a child should not be left home alone before the age of 10. Also consider that your child might be legally old enough, or older than 10, but not mature enough to be left home alone yet. She says that there are many other factors to consider, when trying to decide at what point your child can be left at home alone. So if you are a parent it is your responsibility to decide whether or not your child is mature enough to be home alone.
All children are unique and deal with situations differently. For parents trying to make a decision of leaving their child home alone, it is important to determine if your child is ready. Furthermore, it may be useful to do a practice run before actually leaving your child home alone. Later, you and the child can discuss the results of the practice run and determine what needs to be accomplished for the actual event. Only a couple of states specify a legal age to leave a child home alone, including Maryland and Illinois . However, most states have guidelines with the Department of Health and Human Services or other child protective agencies that test a child's ability to be left home alone.
Legal
Factors may include the child's age and maturity, the overall safety of the surrounding area/circumstances, and arrangements made to secure the child's safety. Most CPS agencies use the same guidelines for leaving children alone as are mentioned above. The exception is if a child is left in a car. It is never safe to leave a child, no matter how old, in the car without an adult present. Cars can heat up fast in the summer or get cold in the winter. It is illegal in most states and the police will arrest you when you come back to your car.
No matter how big your child is, you should not leave your child overnight suddenly. You should teach your children gradually and introduce them to different situations. Still, it’s possible that some children might not be mature enough at that age.
Preparation for Letting Your Children to Be at Home Alone
She will learn basic first aid, CPR, emergency plans, as well as how to keep younger children entertained and on-schedule. Can Parents Force Kids to Go to a Military School? Learn More Ease into allowing your child to stay home alone by trying it out for a half-hour, then an hour, two hours and so on. This will help calm fears, concerns and built trust between the two of you. Practice what she would do in a variety of emergency situations. Consider installing security cameras that you can monitor from your cellphone for extra peace of mind.
If your children are unable to respond accordingly despite their age, you should not leave them unattended in any situation. If you’re a single parent, you may be able to find a babysitter who is willing to take on the responsibility of taking care of your youngest child. If you don’t have a lot of time to devote to your children, however, it may not be worth it to hire someone to babysit for you. The parent or parents who left the child home alone may be subject to criminal penalties for child abandonment or child endangerment. The consequences of leaving a child home alone vary by state but most implement fines or jail time.
Parental Rights and Liability
They also have to make sure that the house is safe and secure. There should be no hazardous objects around the house that may harm the child. Moreover, the kids should have easy access to the telephone, first aid kit, and other basic things. If these things aren’t maintained properly, it will seem like negligence. According to the Family Services Act, 1983, c.16, s.1.
No going out at night as well as what chores need to be done. Make a list of people your teen can call or things that they can do if they feel lonely. By setting specific times of contact, your teenager will know what to expect, setting them at ease. You can include your schedule too so they will know when you are available and when you will be in a meeting.
They trust you to use your judgment as to safety and readiness. Though you could legally leave a child home alone at any age, it is wise to use discretion and assess your child's level of maturity and development. Maybe you have an important meeting that you can’t miss, or it’s school holidays and you have no one to look after your kids. You might be wondering whether it is safe to leave your teenager home alone or at what age your kid can legally stay home without adult supervision.
A court may not intervene unless it finds the child is being harmed. Want a printout of these home alone guidelines and rules to discuss with your children? Click here or the image below to sign up for my weekly email about raising strong, independent, and ultimately self-sufficient kids. You’ll also receive a copy of the Leaving Children Home Alone guidelines as a free gift. The age a child can a child stay home alone more literal sense is not until the late elementary or middle school years. And even then, a massive number of factors — geography, maturity, etc. — dictate whether and for how long alone time should be exercised.
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