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Why Free Play is the Best Summer School
Posted on 6/25/14 at 10:14 am
Posted on 6/25/14 at 10:14 am
The Atlantic
Good article that will read as common sense for some.
But I'm bringing this to the OT with this question: Are any of you comfortable letting your six year old roam the neighborhood unsupervised?
I would love to live in a world where I could give my kids the freedom to explore like that, but is that the world we still occupy?
I know people will come in here citing reduced crime rates, extremely low incidence of non-related kidnappings, etc. I believe all of that but jumping from that to tranquilly telling my 6 year old "see you later" as she walks out the front door alone is not so easy.
quote:
The more time children spend in structured, parent-guided activities, the worse their ability to work productively towards self-directed goals.
quote:
Time for kids to bolt for the schoolhouse doors for two long months of play, to explore their neighborhoods and discover the mysteries, treasures, and dramas they have to offer. This childhood idyll will hold true for some children, but for many kids, the coming of summer signals little more than a seasonal shift from one set of scheduled, adult-supervised lessons and activities to another.
quote:
The authors studied the schedules and play habits of 70 six-year-old children
Good article that will read as common sense for some.
But I'm bringing this to the OT with this question: Are any of you comfortable letting your six year old roam the neighborhood unsupervised?
I would love to live in a world where I could give my kids the freedom to explore like that, but is that the world we still occupy?
I know people will come in here citing reduced crime rates, extremely low incidence of non-related kidnappings, etc. I believe all of that but jumping from that to tranquilly telling my 6 year old "see you later" as she walks out the front door alone is not so easy.
This post was edited on 6/25/14 at 10:15 am
10
Posted on 6/25/14 at 10:16 am to uway
quote:
But I'm bringing this to the OT with this question: Are any of you comfortable letting your six year old roam the neighborhood unsupervised?
We've started to let our 8 year old do it a bit. A lot of people think we're nuts. I think the mentality that they shouldn't do such under any circumstances is.
Posted on 6/25/14 at 10:16 am to uway
i was talking about this with a colleague the other day. bb-gun wars aren't the best idea, but are probably less damaging than over-structuring/protecting or sitting in front of a tv/game etc.
Posted on 6/25/14 at 10:18 am to uway
quote:I would probably be a bit wary of my 4 year old roaming the neighborhood. But if she were a little older, I'd probably let her go here and there especially if I knew my neighbors well enough and set some ground rules for her.
Good article that will read as common sense for some.
But I'm bringing this to the OT with this question: Are any of you comfortable letting your six year old roam the neighborhood unsupervised?
That's how my childhood was. Summer came, not many camps for me. My mom stayed at home, but as soon as the sun came up it was time to organize a baseball game or basketball tournament for the day. We played a lot outside.
Posted on 6/25/14 at 10:19 am to uway
Depends on the neighborhood. My neighborhood had a ton of kids my age when I was growing up and not many crazy teenagers driving around at 40 mph in a 25. Plus, it was a giant freaking loop (looked like a lasso), so it wasn't like I was going out onto a major road. I don't recall when exactly I could explore the entire neighborhood on my own rather than just go play in the yard, but it was very young. I know by six I was riding my scooter all over the damn place.
This post was edited on 6/25/14 at 10:21 am
Posted on 6/25/14 at 10:20 am to uway
quote:
Are any of you comfortable letting your six year old roam the neighborhood unsupervised?
i did. there were still huge wooded areas all around where i grew up in BR, swamps, etc. my friends and i lived outdoors. i had a fairly short leash at 6 but not by 8 or 9.
we had regular pickup football, soccer, baseball games.
i rode my bike all around BR (not so safe), we road go-carts and dirt bikes (motorized). went on Tom Sawyer adventures on the bayou.
of course, we also stole cigarettes, found dirty books and mags in the woods, ran a baseball card scam, etc. all part of growing up.
damn, no wonder i've waited so long to have kids.
This post was edited on 6/25/14 at 10:50 am
Posted on 6/25/14 at 10:25 am to uway
Hm, this must be why young urban males are so well-adjusted. All the unsupervised "free time" they get, starting at the age of 6 or so.
ETA: My non-smartass answer is that it depends on the speed limit of the surrounding streets. I would not trust a 6 or 8 year old if we're within a block or two of 35 or 40 mph speed limits. Cars are by far the greatest danger they face.
ETA: My non-smartass answer is that it depends on the speed limit of the surrounding streets. I would not trust a 6 or 8 year old if we're within a block or two of 35 or 40 mph speed limits. Cars are by far the greatest danger they face.
This post was edited on 6/25/14 at 10:27 am
Posted on 6/25/14 at 10:26 am to uway
quote:
But I'm bringing this to the OT with this question: Are any of you comfortable letting your six year old roam the neighborhood unsupervised?
Depends on the neighborhood. Where I currently live in BR? Not really. I might let them go a few places, but it's nowhere near safe.
Where I grew up? Absolutely.
Posted on 6/25/14 at 10:50 am to uway
I have a 7 year old. Basically he has a 5 house radius that he can play in unsupervised. I'm not letting him go unsupervised all over the neighborhood. for another year or two.
Posted on 6/25/14 at 10:56 am to uway
I was born in 85, so that gives you a reference for when I was running around. At age 6, I was allowed a couple blocks away from the house by roadway and I was allowed to go to the other side of the horse farm next to our property. A couple years later I had free reign and a range of about a square mile, maybe more. if I lived in the same neighborhood I grew up in and had kids, I'd let them do the same. If I had kids in the neighborhood I live in now, they'd have a shorter leash in certain directions as there are some large roadways and less-desirable neighborhoods where bullets are likely to fly.
Posted on 6/25/14 at 11:36 am to uway
My 6 & 3 yr olds get to ride their bikes when the wife (no pics) or I are outside and they still have to stay on our street/cul de sac. I really don't know when I'd feel comfortable letting them roaming the streets alone.
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