How Long Would You Leave a 7 Year Old Alone For?

Parenting
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QUESTION:

"How long (if at all) would you leave a 7year old alone? Not my child, just a general question. Do you think they are old enough to be left alone at all? No state law on minimum age."

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TOP ANSWERS (AS SELECTED BY MODERATOR):

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The following top answers have been selected by a moderator from hundreds of responses to the original question.

"Nope! maybe to catch a shower but to leave the residence hell no!"

"I left my child in the lounge or in bed while i showered etc? Left them alone tonwatchna movie or play toys etc, but not left in the house alone at all… not old enough"

"No They are not old enough to be left alone"

"Leaving a 7 year old alone in another room safely like in a closed off area that is safe with toys, learning activities or a show seems reasonable for short periods of time if you’re doing something like taking a shower with the bathroom door open or in another room cooking/ grabbing laundry seems fine others may differ that’s just my opinion but if the question is asking to be home alone or in a car etc… with nobody can be unsafe for a child under any circumstances"

"Never with me out of the house unless it’s for 45 seconds to run to the mailbox next to the next house."

"Uhh, to run errands, no. To bathe, clean, do homework, then yes… within the same house… That is way too young to be left alone. Unless the 7 year old has an older sibling that is mature and responsible."

"It depends on how far you’ll be, how long you’ll be gone, what kind of neighborhood you’re in, is there a neighbor nearby they can go to in an emergency and how mature the 7yo is. That’s what I took into account. There were a couple times I left mine for 15-20 minutes by themselves, but that was bc her older brother wasn’t around."

"Not at all, maybe in another room while I was doing something else but that is way too young to be home alone"

"To shower. I wouldn’t leave a 7 year old alone in the house."

"Long enough to take out the trash and come back in the house"

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It really depends on you child, how mature they are. Where you will be like if you have to water the pants in your yard. Is the child able to handle emergencies, do they know not to answer the door or home phone if you have one, do they still have a way to contact you if they get scared.

3

I have an 8 year old. EVen if she did not have special needs(she is deaf and has adhd) I would not leave her alone. Granted when I was her age my mom was working 3 jobs and I stayed home to take care of my sister. Times were different then. These days there are far more dangers. She and her brother are learning the basics to take care of themselves eventually but now is not the time.

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How mature they are at 7 ? Are you kidding if you think that’s okay you aren’t mature enough to have children!

5

I would not leave a child alone at this age, maybe start at 15 or 16

6

Only if you won’t be far or long. Even then it should be an emergency only… When my oldest kids were around that age I needed to go to the Emergency Room due to severe stomach pain. We lived just about 2 minutes from the hospital. Both kids were asleep so it would have taken a while to wake them and get them ready to go. So hubby dropped me off real quick without us bothering them. Keep in mind I don’t drive(seizure disorder) so he had to take me. We lived in a small town and the apartment had those doors you need a key or permission from a tenant to enter. My kids were alright for that short time betweehubby leaving to drop me off then returning. Less than 5 minutes. I ended up finding out I needed to consult a gastro doc to schedule gallbladder removal. I was in the ER so long that my kids had been ready for school and gone by the time hubby came to pick me up so they weren’t alone when I was done.

7

It’s illegal for parents in Illinois leave a child under the age of 14 home alone but you also have to look at the maturity level of the child even with state laws its just not as simple as o my state says 14 so thats when they can start to stay home alone for xyz time. they may not be ready, till 15. You need to do what is right for your child and not what may be good for your neighbors kids.

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It’s illegal for parents in Illinois leave a child under the age of 14 home alone but you also have to look at the maturity level of the child even with state laws its just not as simple as o my state says 14 so thats when they can start to stay home alone for xyz time. they may not be ready, till 15. You need to do what is right for your child and not what may be good for your neighbors kids.

9

I never left my kids at 7, I DID leave my 8-yr old older son (for less than 10 min) when I ran to the store to grab milk—the store was at the end of the street, and I could literally still see our house from the end of the street/store. He was also asleep, and just in case he woke up, I left him a note so he would not panic.

I could do this with my older son, but not my younger son—the younger one was probably 12 or 13 before I could feel comfortable leaving him for short periods of time… Even then, it might have been for 39min to an hour, tops.

I don’t think it’s safe to leave a 7-yr old for any period of time, unless it is to shower (while in the same house!), or to go cook or do chores while they are in another room. But still frequently check on them—especially if it gets “too quiet”.

10

Last I knew, OR laws read that at 10 yrs. of age they can stay at home alone. Then at 12 years are able to stay home with siblings. I don’t have a problem with that as long as the child shows he/she is responsable enough.

11

I agree with the comment " “Long enough to take out the trash and come back in the house”

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12

I was left alone when I was a kid since I was like 4-5 then the law changed where I needed a babysitter. so everything was fine with the babysitter for a while till she left me sleeping at her house with her husband and he raped me. so I think kids if taught are perfectly capable of being left home alone. It is prolly safer for them anyway