Have you left your children alone at home? Are you thinking of leaving them alone at home? Do you know what you should take into consideration when leaving them alone?
Every day there are more parents who work outside the home and, on many occasions, this manifests itself in children who spend hours alone at home until their parents come home from work. For this reason, parents should guide their children on how they should behave in situations that may arise during their absence.
Experts say that the age to leave a child alone at home ranges between 9 and 12 years, although it also depends on the degree of maturity and responsibility of the child. Most children or adolescents know how to defend themselves well and do not experience or cause problems.
Before leaving your children home alone, it is important to consider the following tips.
Giving a little autonomy to the child will help him increase his sense of responsibility and contributes to building his confidence. It is important not to overprotect them and leave them free so that little by little they can grow and do things on their own.
Make a plan of how to spend those hours alone: from homework to helping with some tasks around the house (such as feeding the animals, setting the table, etc.)
You can adapt the child to stay alone at home. If the child is between 6 and 7 years old, you can leave him alone for a few minutes, entertaining with some activity. From the age of 8 or 9, depending on their maturity, you can gradually extend the time, leaving them busy with some safe activity and with the knowledge that they handle some strategies to respond to any setback that may arise. With 10 years when the child has been taught all the rules to stay home alone it should not present any problem.
Before leaving them alone for several hours, it is better to go away for a few minutes so that they can adjust. Ask the child how he felt being alone.
Explain to the child that they should not play with fire, or go near the terrace or balcony and that they should keep the doors closed.
During his absence, maintain constant telephone communication with the child, you will transmit confidence and he will not feel lonely or anxious.
Leave a phone at their disposal.
Explain what to do in an emergency.
Avoid rules that you are not sure they will follow, such as forbidding them to watch television in the evening.
Before leaving the child alone at home you must make sure that he does not have access to dangerous objects.
Teach the child to handle the locks on the doors and windows of the house.
Train the child in the operation of the alarm system.
Prepare some things to snack on (cheeses, fruits, milk) so that they will know that they do not eat what they should not.
Leave them a happy note in a special place so they can see that they don't forget.
Call home from time to time and talk to the child to make sure everything is okay.
Tell them that they shouldn't answer the phone saying that they are alone in the house; do not open the door to anyone.
It is not only children who feel fear and anxiety of being alone at home. Parents often feel the same way when we leave our children alone for the first time. However, if we take these tips into account and show our children that we trust them and their autonomy, we can be more relaxed when we are away from home.
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