Parents: How Old Were Your Kids When You Let Them Out Alone?

In my old street where me and my friends used to skate, there was this kid who said she was four and she went out on her own. She seemed safe enough though. Seems weird when I would have been cautious at a much older age!

My kids are still minors. Maybe I will allow them to be on their own when they'll reach the legal age. Right now, I make it sure that they are always at my sight. But I am already anticipating the fact that soon they have to be on their own. That is why I am guiding & protecting them as much as I could.

Okay call me crazy but what is a "helicopter parent"? i've never heard that before... To answer your question..my kids were allowed to be out and about on their own (even up to the corner store) by the time they were 5 and 6 BUT the neighbourhood we were living in at the time is the same one I grew up in so other families knew who my kids were etc and it is a safe, nice neighbourhood..The ONLY thing they werent allowed to do was go out into the bush by themselves until they were a little older....

My kids are 6yrs and 7yrs. old. Where we currently live, I let them play outside by themselves, but there is a big back yard and sliding glass doors in the back of the house that lead out to it, so I can see and hear them from the house. Other places we have lived, I would not have let them out by themselves either because the yard wasn't big enough or I could not see them from the house or both, I mean, 6yrs. and 7yrs. is a little young if I can't see them and they don't have a big back yard away from the road....I will let them play outside and around the neighborhood on their own, even without a big backyard or being able to see them from the house as soon as they both learn to watch for cars when crossing the road; and my oldest learns not to be overly friendly /trusting with EVERY stranger he meets.....Right now, my 7yr. old is very good at watching out for cars when crossing the road or near it; but my 6yr. old simply walks around in his own little world and hardly ever pays attention to his surroundings....When I say my 7yr. old is currently to friendly with EVERY stranger he meets, I mean exactly that. He will walk right up to anyone, rather he knows them or not, start chit chatting with them, walk off with them, or following them, talking, except things from them, etc. Even though I constantly tell him not too....The sad fact is, not everyone is decent and can be trusted with kids. So my 7yr. old will have to start using more, or in this case, some, discretion when it comes to strangers before I let him out alone if I can not see him....It will probably be two or three years yet at least.

I guess I am kind of a "helicopter parent", but I think it definately depends upon where you lived. When we lived in a really rural area and knew everyone around, the kids had more freedom. Then we moved to a large city and we had to set up boundaries that they didn't have before. But then our house was also set up differently too. In our old house we had a fence all around the front & back yard so our dogs could go all around the house with the kids, but here there is only a fence in the back yard, so I don't let my kids play out front without an adult watching since the dogs can't be out there. My son is also has autism & I am afraid that if something happens he might hurt another kid by accident. I also remember everything I did when I was growing up under the come home by dark method, my parents would probably be surprised on how far I wandered from home when I was young.

Every child is different, some are more mature than others. I personally allowed my eldest two out at about the ages of 8 to go to local shop or to friends along the way so never far. Every neighbourhood is alos different. I will probably allow my youngest out into the close to play at about six providing he stayed within sight. We can at times seem to be overprotective these days because when I was a child as long as I was home by tea from the age of 5 I was always out but better to be safe than sorry. As a parent my answer would be whenever it feels right for you to allow them that freedom of playing out

When my son was 8 year old, we sent him alone to a shop for the first time. I think 7 or 8 is the suitable age to let them out alone.

I remember my parents leaving me to a nearbt playground alone to play when i was just in first standart that is at 6-7 years .