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About East Oregonian : E.O. (Pendleton, OR) 1888-current | View Entire Issue (March 1, 2018)
March 2018 - EASTERN OREGON PARENT - 7 Is your child is mature enough to stay home alone? By JENNIFER COLTON Just thinking the term “home alone” can conjure images of chil- dren running amok, having unau- thorized parties or foiling would-be burglars with bizarre booby traps. The “Home Alone” mishaps don’t have to be the reality, how- ever, as long as you make sure your child is ready to be on his or her own – and probably not for an entire holiday. To see if your child is ready to stay home alone, make sure he or she passes tests for maturity, self-reliance and safety. The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends children can stay at home without adult supervision in the 4th or 5th grade, as long as the child is comfort- able being alone. The law in Oregon does not set an age where children may or may not be left unsupervised. But it does set guidelines for child neglect in Oregon Revised Statue 163.545: A person having custody or control of a child under 10 years of age commits the crime of child neglect in the second degree if, with criminal negligence, the person leaves the child unattended or at any place for such a period of time as may be likely to endanger the health or welfare of such a child. Both the recommendation and the law focus on keeping children safe and suggest a simple number may not be enough to determine if a child can stay home alone. Every child is different. A good sign that your child is ready for some independence is a desire to have it. Some children may be uncomfortable being with- out an adult even at the ages of 11 and 12. If your child does express an interest, have a conversation to make sure she or he understands what is involved in staying at home and to get a few indicators if he or she is ready. During – or before – that dis- cussion, decide if your child is able to follow directions and solve problems on his or her own. They should know their own full name, address and telephone number – as well as a parent’s full name and contact information – including the exact name of where the parent is when not at home (for example, the employer’s business name, not just “at work”). Ask yourself, how your child would handle an emer- gency? In order to be unsupervised, any child must be able to recognize a real emergency and know how to find help and when to leave the house. A quick check at Childwelfare.gov recom- mends evaluating a child’s maturity – not age – to determine if he or she is ready to stay home alone. The following questions may help: • Is your child physi- cally and mentally able to care for himself or herself? Strategies make sure you have a plan. If the child is going home from school alone, make sure he or she contacts you as soon as they arrive safely. While at home, make sure the child has a way to contact you or another trusted adult, and make sure they know what to do in an emergency or if someone comes to the door. Your child should also know safe snacks they can eat if they get hungry, and where a flashlight and first-aid kit is located. Also go over basic safety rules – even if the child knows them forward and backward – and review contact and emergency plans be- fore you leave. You can also try to roleplay different scenarios to make • Does your child obey sure you and your child are on the rules and make good same page. decisions? For law enforcement, the biggest • How does your child priority is making a plan – and mak- respond to unfamiliar or ing sure you child knows what it is. stressful situations? “We would just encourage par- • Does your child feel ents to go over plans with their kids comfortable about be- for situations like this,” said Herm- ing home alone? iston Police Chief Jason Edmiston. Another recommenda- “Plan for what to do if someone unknown shows up at the house, if tion from the agency is there is a fire, ensure the kids know to consider the circum- their address, how to utilize 911 if stances: How long will a child be necessary.” home alone, and how often? Most For more, the American Red experts suggest starting small Cross offers a course – “When I’m and giving it a test run. First see in Charge” – that teaches safety how your child handles the lack of skills and decision-making for 8- to supervision before expanding the time he or she has run of the house 11-year-olds. ________ and how far away you’ll be, in case something happens. Jennifer Colton is news director of Once you’ve made the decision KOHU and KQFM, and mother of that a child will be left home alone, three, based in Pendleton.
