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Old 05-18-2012, 07:07 PM
 
745 posts, read 1,502,186 times
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I think my 9 year old would be okay at the park alone. I would be.too worried about someone calling the cops on me for doing so.

 
Old 05-18-2012, 07:17 PM
 
Location: Chicago
38,707 posts, read 102,951,116 times
Reputation: 29981
Quote:
Originally Posted by madpaddy View Post
Really, it depends on the kid and where you live. I live in a place where I would feel comfortable doing it. My child, however, wasn't ready to do it at 8; he wouldn't have wanted to be left alone.

I recall that at 8 I roamed the neighborhood freely and spent a lot of time at the park with other similar-aged kids....and there wasn't a parent in sight.
And much of the time I was tagging along at age 4 or 5.
 
Old 05-19-2012, 12:28 AM
 
7,971 posts, read 7,328,574 times
Reputation: 12041
Whatever happened to "Summer Playground"? In the 1960's (and early 70's), each elementary school in our area had an organized "Summer Playground" for when school let out in the summer until mid August. They had "playground leaders" (college kids) supervising us and organized activities (arts and crafts, plays, sports, square dancing, etc.) from 8:00 a.m. until noon, and 4:00 p.m. until 8:00 p.m. They even had "movie nights", where we'd sit outdoors on a blanket at night and they'd show a movie (Elvis Presley, Disney, Frankie and Annette Beach movie, etc.) on a big screen on the side of the school. It was like being at the Drive In. As long as we were there, our mothers didn't worry about us being left alone. My mother still has some of my "popsicle stick" creations in the attic.

Did anybody else have this growing up?
 
Old 05-19-2012, 01:14 AM
 
2,873 posts, read 5,836,370 times
Reputation: 4342
Quote:
Originally Posted by Mrs. Skeffington View Post
Whatever happened to "Summer Playground"? In the 1960's (and early 70's), each elementary school in our area had an organized "Summer Playground" for when school let out in the summer until mid August. They had "playground leaders" (college kids) supervising us and organized activities (arts and crafts, plays, sports, square dancing, etc.) from 8:00 a.m. until noon, and 4:00 p.m. until 8:00 p.m. They even had "movie nights", where we'd sit outdoors on a blanket at night and they'd show a movie (Elvis Presley, Disney, Frankie and Annette Beach movie, etc.) on a big screen on the side of the school. It was like being at the Drive In. As long as we were there, our mothers didn't worry about us being left alone. My mother still has some of my "popsicle stick" creations in the attic.

Did anybody else have this growing up?
I know a local youth group does something very like this. It's a summer activity group outside on the playground of a local school. So I think things like this still exist today, just not everywhere.

(I wouldn't consider this unsupervised though, of course, and as a child I would have hated something like this...too loud, too many people, too structured. I know many kids would love it though)
 
Old 05-19-2012, 03:00 AM
 
Location: On the Ohio River in Western, KY
3,387 posts, read 6,614,929 times
Reputation: 3362
Quote:
Originally Posted by Mattie View Post
Gotcha, I had never heard of it. And, I used to let my kids ride their bikes into town to the ice cream shop by age 8, with a group of friends. I would have no issue with this idea at all, if it wasn't for the publicity, which to me, makes it a somewhat riskier concept.
I agree.

Quote:
Originally Posted by RCCCB View Post
Insane! Do that and you should be arrested. If they would be too young to stay at home alone, they are most certaily too young for everything outside the home without adult supervison.

Forget the new age crap!
It's not "new age", it's OLD SCHOOL. When I was 8, I walked home from school daily, was a latch key kid, and played up to 1/2 mile away from home Mon-Fri every school week. I am fine.


Quote:
Originally Posted by NEOhioBound View Post
For the record, I was home with my twin brother and my father- my brother and I were 7- and we woke up, went downstairs to watch tv..several hours passed and we realized our father had passed away in his sleep. Being with a parent doesn't guarantee you crap so get over it
Sorry to hear that!

Quote:
Originally Posted by ParallelJJCat View Post
My parents did and I survived. So did the parents of every single kid I knew. This obsession with protecting children at all costs is very new...even though crime against children is down.
 
Old 05-19-2012, 03:53 AM
 
Location: TX
6,486 posts, read 6,371,847 times
Reputation: 2628
Quote:
Originally Posted by Cav Scout wife View Post
When I was 8, I walked home from school daily, was a latch key kid, and played up to 1/2 mile away from home Mon-Fri every school week. I am fine.
When I was 8, I was accompanied by an adult whenever I went to the park. They would watch me play from a distance. I am fine. And it's not just by chance.
 
Old 05-19-2012, 05:41 AM
 
28,164 posts, read 25,235,101 times
Reputation: 16665
Quote:
Originally Posted by Vic 2.0 View Post
Maybe I "evaded" your question (Really, I answered it sarcastically) for the same reason I won't be taking my son at age 8 and leaving him at a park unattended, because there's no point to it.
There was a point to the question. Surely you could see it.




Quote:
Originally Posted by Vic 2.0 View Post
A memory of the specific age at which I was allowed to venture forth unattended, yes. I was far too busy having fun to pay attention to what age I was when my mom first let me play at the park without an adult being there. As I said earlier, it didn't matter and doesn't today. Why? Because what I was allowed to do and the fact that nothing bad came from it does not mean every kid will be just as lucky. It's a silly thing to bring up, because it has nothing to do with the legitimacy of any other parent (including myself) and the choices they make with their children.

How bout this...

What, specifically, is the harm in not letting an 8-year old kid play in the park with no adult supervision? Let's see if any of you can answer this without making unfounded assumptions or exaggerating.

I don't know. I had a lot of fun as a kid and I specifically remember the ages I was allowed to do things because it was a big deal to get a new freedom/responsibility. I was about 8 when we were allowed to go to the park and public pool alone. I was also given a house key around that age and explained that it was a big responsibility to take care of it and not lose it. I was 13 when I was allowed to go to the mall and the library alone. The library is downtown, accessible by walking or biking.

I don't think it's a silly argument because I believe we, as parents, are becoming way too paranoid and protective of our children. I believe we are stifling these kids and not letting them grow to their full potential and independence by shielding them.

I would also suggest that if you were allowed freedoms and responsibilities as a child - whether they included a jaunt to the park or not - that played a role in your growing up to be a responsible adult. If you don't afford your children these same things, how will they grow up?
 
Old 05-19-2012, 05:45 AM
 
28,164 posts, read 25,235,101 times
Reputation: 16665
Quote:
Originally Posted by Drover View Post
26 pages worth of responses already? Good lord. What happened to the days when sending 8-year-olds out to play on their own was no more controversial than feeding them a ham sandwich when they came home at lunchtime?
I do believe even a ham sandwich for lunch would be a controversy today.
 
Old 05-19-2012, 05:47 AM
 
28,164 posts, read 25,235,101 times
Reputation: 16665
Quote:
Originally Posted by Mrs. Skeffington View Post
Whatever happened to "Summer Playground"? In the 1960's (and early 70's), each elementary school in our area had an organized "Summer Playground" for when school let out in the summer until mid August. They had "playground leaders" (college kids) supervising us and organized activities (arts and crafts, plays, sports, square dancing, etc.) from 8:00 a.m. until noon, and 4:00 p.m. until 8:00 p.m. They even had "movie nights", where we'd sit outdoors on a blanket at night and they'd show a movie (Elvis Presley, Disney, Frankie and Annette Beach movie, etc.) on a big screen on the side of the school. It was like being at the Drive In. As long as we were there, our mothers didn't worry about us being left alone. My mother still has some of my "popsicle stick" creations in the attic.

Did anybody else have this growing up?
They have this around here but the program has teens employed by the city. I've never seen these kids do anything but sit under a tree, chatting with each other and texting.
 
Old 05-19-2012, 05:51 AM
 
28,164 posts, read 25,235,101 times
Reputation: 16665
Quote:
Originally Posted by Vic 2.0 View Post
When I was 8, I was accompanied by an adult whenever I went to the park. They would watch me play from a distance. I am fine. And it's not just by chance.
There was a story awhile back about a girl who was kidnapped, quite literally, right from behind her mother's back. The mother heard the girl talking one minute, didn't hear her, turned around and she was gone. I believe this girl was between 6-9 years old and they were at a community baseball game. This was a chance incident. Had the mother had her eyes on the girl the whole time, this wouldn't have happened. However is this feasible? Is this an overall healthy way to raise a child? Some things do happen by chance and sometimes we, as parents, are only protecting our children against our imagined fears. And at the cost of their healthy psyche.
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