My 5 years old daughter likes to ride bike or scooter in front of our house, we are in a small neighborhood, some neighbor kids always play outside themselve unattended, however i really don’t feel comfortable letting her outside by herself, am i worrying too much?
Our neighborhood is relatively safe, i am just paranoid.
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I know a lot of parents aren’t comfortable letting their kids play outside these days. It’s okay if you don’t think it’s safe, it’s very normal.
Our 7-year old stepson roams the neighborhood with the little boy who lives next door, they come home in the evenings with collections of dead bugs and sticks. I have a 7 month old and when he’s older I plan to let him play outside all day too, as long as there are other kids around that he can play with.
I don’t think you’re paranoid… Little Samantha Runnion, age 5, was kidnapped and worse, when she was playing on her porch with a friend, and she’s just one example of many… People get taken right out of their homes… No, I will not allow my kids to play outside, unsupervised. I did, as a kid, but times have changed… It’s sad.
depends. i have a 4,6,9 and 10 year olds and i am still out there with them. even if its sitting in a chair and being there. i will drive in “our safe town” and see little ones in the road playing and the door is shut the the house. i think at least leave the door open. so hearing is better than nothing. you can only judge how you feel in your neighborhood, thats a hard one to make.
No im sorry but if I’m not there he will not play.
I think you’re doing the right thing. Not even the safest neighborhood is immune to tragedy. Keep looking after her while she plays outside.
No no no you are not paranoid, it does not matter what neighbor hood you live in you could live next to the president of the united states and still not be safe.
I still sit on the porch while he plays on the sidewalk he’s six by the way, but our porch is closed in and he’s got tons of toys out there like basket ball hoop, easel, sand box, ect. If he stays on the proch only then I leave him alone but I’m usually making dinner so I can see him at all times. What I love is that our neighbor is a carpenter and is out all day practically and when he’s out on the porch alone I feel safe because I know he’s gonna be on the look out, plus they have fun together Christian stands over the rail and yells at him and they play back and forth, best neighbor ever he and his wife are like grandparents to us.
My 5 year old will NEVER play outside unattended, no matter how “safe” the neighborhood is.
i let my 6 yr old play outside… but he is not totally alone. usually when he’s playing outside i just take a chair and sit in the yard reading or something so he’s always in sight.
I ask him to be around the house and close enough so that i can see them. I have also wanred him not to go close to the road.
The neighborhood is safe and there are lots of other kids playing around too. And my son is also not a very adventurous kind so i know he won’t just run away without asking me.
As for my little one , he’s sure going to go places if i’m not around
My 3 year old and 5 year old are allowed to play out in our back yard by themselves, but we live in a semi-rural area and have quite a bit of a walk to any neighbor’s house. If your daughter is on the street though that’s a different matter. I don’t think you are worrying too much, I defiantly wouldn’t be comfortable with my 5 year old on our street and we have barely any cars driving on it during the day. I would say she needs supervision you never know when someone will come speeding down the street and you will have to get her attention.
I think it depends on your neighborhood, the maturity of your child and safety measures you have in place. I let me daughter-4 play by herself outside. We live on 200 acres in the middle of nowhere with our closest neighbor being my brother, but we have certain rules and she carries a walky talky so we can communicate with.
edit: You women are seriously ridiculous with the thumbs down. You guys are so silly and have no clue that each child and situation is different.
Does anyone know how large 200 acres is? With a house in the middle? An 1800′s farm house with panoramic windows and no blinds? With only one road in, the road that comes from my brothers who has about 50 acres of his own?
Have any of you actually read stastics on kidnappings now vs. 30+ years ago. They have gone way way down. With the media and communication being so easy you would think this sort of stuff just started happening but realistically it is much safer to be a child now.
I might run into the house to get something or i might be cleaning the truck, but other than that I am always out there with them. they are not allowed to go out without me. Our neighborhood is safe too, but you never know when that pervert will be driving by and see his next victim.
my girls are 8.5, 6.5, & 4
it doesn’t matter if your neighborhood is safe or not. A pervert will take a rich kid who lives in the best neighborhood, he doesn’t care!
No i wouldnt if they were 12 or ollder and knew how to defend themself in that case then yes..but 5 yearse old?thats a little young you know So i would be outside if it was my chid your not paranoid your normal:)
I don’t think you’re paranoid at all. I think you have perfect reason to worry.
I don’t have personal experience with this, but if i were a parent today I probably would not let me kids go out without supervision. Maybe by the time they’re in late mid elementary school (around the age of 8), and only with a group at that.
You don’t have to be butting into their playtime and hovering over them, but keeping an eye on your kid when they’re that young, well I think it’s best for the child. You know, it gives it a sort of balance where your there in case, but you’re letting them have their space and have fun.
And just make sure your child is with a group and knows what to do in case of an emergency like the ones we so often hear about now a days.
Well, that’s all I have. Hope it was somewhat helpful ^-^’
I let my almost 3 year old play in the backyard by herself but never, ever the front yard because she is just too young. She still is in the phase where a ball rolling into the street distracts her thought process or she would follow some kids just out of curiosity. By the time she is maybe 6 or so I would probably let her play out front so long as there are plenty of other kids out there. Our neighborhood has a lot of kids and when we’re out there you see a mom pop outside for a few minutes every so often so it’s kind of on a rotation. It’s not like the street is without adult supervision and everyone knows who all the kids belong to. So I think it just depends on how your neighborhood is.
Gaaaah! You guys have been watching too much TV. Kidnappings and other attacks on children have gone down since we were all kids. You are just seeing it more because the news is covering it more. It gets people to watch. And makes for great drama on the cop shows.
If you live in a safe neighborhood, and there are other kids around, relax. Everyday, millions of kids go outside to play by themselves or with their friends. And do you know what ends up happening to them? Usually nothing. 99.99999% of them come home tired, after playing and enjoying themselves, with nothing worse than the normal scrapes, cuts, and bruises that come from playing outside with other kids. If you want to wait a while before letting her run amok, or if you want to supervise, or keep an eye on them, that is fine. But you are going to have to cut the apron strings sooner or later. Otherwise you are depriving your kid of one of the best things about growing up. Getting to play outside. We don’t need any more couch potatoes. And the Dora will be just fine without your daughter there to help her find whatever cutesy thing Boots has currently lost for a few hours. Get her outside to develop her gross and fine motor skills, and let her work on her social skills with the other kids.
My Son is only 3 Yr old we also live in a nice location and have a back yard that is 100 % fenced in and i will not even let him play in there alone..If i have to go Potty i make him come in with me cause it only takes one second for a child to get them self in trouble or for some one to take them… Its never wrong to be a protective parent we don’t live like to old days.
Good Luck
Tonya
You know it’s funny because I clearly remember being 4, 5 and 6 and playing out in front of my house and riding my bike around without my parents. But I don’t let mine go out without me, my oldest is 6.
Each child needs to be judged separately. If your child understands not going with strangers. My daughter has had my phone number and my name and address drilled into her head. But my biggest concern is always cars. People don’t drive safely, not even through neighborhoods where there are kids playing. I let my kids out in the yard if it’s fenced in and it’s not a busy street. But I still keep a close eye on them out the window or something to make sure they don’t go out the gate. there is nothing wrong with being over protective it means you care. Some parents don’t care and they just send em out the door without a second thought. You can never really worry too much. That is our job!
Like I said though, each child really has to be assessed individually. you know your child, you know what they are capable of. And you also know your neighborhood Do what makes you comfortable.
I wouldn’t let her.She could be hit by a car