What age would you let your child walk home from school.. Alone?

DD just started Kindergarden. I see what looks like first graders walking home from school! I wouldnt let my 6 year old walk by themselves.. I would be a nervous wreck! Now our school is K-5 and it is inside a neighborhood. So there are not any major streets or anything.. But Still.. We walk a good 1/4 of a mile or maybe more.. (up and down hills..)

What age would you let your child walk alone?

 

I would definitely let my son walk home from school at his age now, which is 11, if it was a nice neighborhood and traffic wasn't a major concern. I don't think I would be comfortable at first grade unless he had had an older responsible child walk with him.

 

I dont let my 8 year old walk home from school by himself. I see the other kids walking and they dont watch the cars or they run on the road. We walk together and have a chat its nice to spend that time together.

 

I used to walk .8 miles home when I was in first grade, with a neighbor kid. I also walked to school. Of course, we had sidewalks. There are no sidewalks where I live now (and the school is 5.3 miles away).

I think around age 10, and with a friend or sibling is better, provided there is no major road to cross.

 

My dh and I were just talking about this since we walk our girls to school too and it's only about 2 blocks from our house. We have sidewalks, but they do have to cross the street once so for me it would probably be second or third grade and this is me walking half way with them. I would walk them across the street and to the school yard and then they would be able to walk across the playground on the sidewalk to the school. Now when my girls are in 5th grade their brother will probably be in 1st and I would let the three of them walk to school together without me. I say that now but we will see when the time comes.

 

At our school parents are Required to pick up their children through 2nd grade. For 3-5, they can go home alone. But, our Middle school is on a pretty well traveled road--for out here, and kids need a signed premission slip to ride bikes to school.

 

My oldest is 8 and he walks to and from school. We do live in the middle of farms and orchards (in the boondocks) though so there's hardly any traffic.

 

I get nervous about my kids walking back from the bus stop alone (well, neighhood kids too) and that is only 3 houses up and in our development that has very little traffic but does have sidewalks.

 

This kind of makes me curious. We are coached in volunteer training that it is illegal to leave a child under the age of 8 home alone, unsupervised. But then why can that same young child walk home those few block from school unsupervised? I just can't quite figure out what's acceptable. Personally, I don't want my 7 yr olds waiting for the bus alone. Even though we live on a very untraveled road, and the bus stop is right across the street from our house, I don't feel right with them being alone outside of our yard. I know at some point I will feel more comfortable, but it depends on the kids and how responsible they are for their age.

 

We let our kids walk to and from school alone starting last year, when they were 8, 7, and 5. But they only walk a block and they stay all together. I walked with them the first week, then sent them with a walkie-talkie the first month, then let them do it alone. If they didn't have each other, I might more nervous, but my oldest is extremely responsible.

My 5-year-old got out of kindergarten at 11:30, and my friend and I took turns picking him and her son up, so even though it was only a block, I wouldn't let a child younger than 7 or 8 walk it.

 

I don't even let my almost 8 year old walk to/from school by herself and we are less than 1/4 mile to the school and it's in our neighborhood. There is a boy in 2nd grade with her that does ride his bike to/from school by himself, and I think that is way too young. He's not a mature boy either.

I've thought that maybe in 5th grade she can walk to/from by herself, but not earlier. I'd be too nervous.

 

I would say about 10 or 11. My friend won't let her son walk home from middle school by himself yet though and he's in 8th grade. In her defense, there is a major intersection (with a light) to cross.

 

well, to be honest, after that 13 yr old boy was abducted while he was running from the bus to his home a few years back. . . . I'm not sure I would.

 

It's funny, I remember walking to school in 3rd, 4th, and 5th grade. And to get to school, we had to cross Northern Blvd on Long Island--2-3 lanes of traffic each way--so busy that every 2-3 intersections has a traffic light.

 

My MIL lives right behind the school, but I still can't see letting them walk there alone until at least Grade 3 (and even then, with my MIL looking over the back fence so they can see her. It's a residential neighbourhood, but the street at the front of the school is quite busy and the traffic is pretty steady at the end of the school day.

 

QUOTE(sharongl @ Sep 8 2008, 09:05 PM) [snapback]970523[/snapback]
It's funny, I remember walking to school in 3rd, 4th, and 5th grade. And to get to school, we had to cross Northern Blvd on Long Island--2-3 lanes of traffic each way--so busy that every 2-3 intersections has a traffic light.


those days are long gone for most of us unfortunately. . . times have changed. I remember not coming home until dark when I was 5 or 6 yrs old and my parents not really knowing exactly which house I was even at! LOL!
My kids will never know that freedom, I probably shouldn't have either, anything could've happened. . . .