(Is that how you spell that?!)
Let’s say, hypothetically, that you have one sick child and one healthy child. The sick child is firmly parked on the couch in his/her jammies and feels lousy. The healthy child needs to be taken to school.
If you lived in a super-safe neighborhood; and if the doors were locked; and if you had a really loud, annoying dog; and if the round-trip school drop-off would take 10 minutes or less; and if the sick child could be trusted 100% to remain on the couch no matter what;
would you leave the sick child home alone while you took the healthy one to school?
Or would you at least be really, really tempted?
Just wondering. Hypothetically.
{ 21 comments… read them below or add one }
If the older child was the sick child, I would be incredibly tempted and would very likely do it, ensuring that the telephone was nearby in the event it needed to be used. If the sick child was the younger child, I would still be very tempted, but likely not do it.
Depends on the age of the child. I will admit, though, that I’ve often left my 6.5 year old alone in the house for ten minutes while I walk down to the mailbox or take out the trash. Somehow, though, it doesn’t feel like he’s “home alone” so much if I’m still within the condo community than if I’d gotten into the car and made a quick trip somewhere.
Like they already said, it depends on the age of the child. It also depends on the behavior and well, intelligence, of that child. Like does he/she know not to stick forks in electrical sockets, that kind of thing.
Yes I would do it – after going over the rules, making sure the child had a phone handy and that the door was locked. I think it depends less on age than on maturitly level, if they are responsible, etc.
Ugh! Have been strongly tempted by this as well. I made him go with me. Let him keep his jammies on, just threw his coat on and made him sit in the hallway at school and play with my iphone while I did the drop off.
PS OMG I AM STILL HOME SICK WITH SICK KIDS TOO. ARGGGGGHHH.
i’d be sorely tempted.
Totally. My responsible, old-enough child, in a safe home in a safe neighborhood for a safe, short amount of time?
Totally.
Have done this on a number of occasions since the sick child was 7- give or take a few months (and depending on the child – one child is much more confident alone than the other child was at the same age)
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I have put one sick child in the car in jammies w/a blanket and pulled right up to the front of the school w/the other and walked her to the front door. Usually I say I have a sick one in the car and they understand. Although I would be very tempted to do that if they were a little older.
It would depend, for me, on the age of the sick child. If my older child was the sick one then I would be very tempted – I think in the end, I probably would. But if the sick child was my youngest, I wouldn’t. And I wouldn’t be tempted.
Depends on age. What I’d probably do, though, is ask neighbor if she could sit on my porch or even just hang out in front of her own house for ten minutes while I ran healthy child to school, so that sick kid would only have to call out if help was needed.
I would, hypothetically, leave the sick child on the couch while I walk the other child to the bus stop, wait 5 min. for the bus and then walk back home again. Of course, it helps that I can actually see the house at all times in that case.
I would be sorely, sorely tempted. And then I would call my mother-in-law and beg her to take the sick child to school.
I mean the well child.
Er. That was an … interesting slip.
Very, very tempted. If they were just a bit older, even more tempted.
Definitely tempted. I’d probably force a neighbor to walk my kid to school, but I am lucky to have lots of neighbors with kids.
I’ve done it.
I’ll do it again.
I have practiced with each of my kids how to dial my cell phone and make sure there is a copy of it by the phone. Also, they know where to go in case of a REAL emergency – like the house is on fire. Oh – and the usual:
Do not answer the phone (unless it’s me – they can tell by caller id)
Do not answer the door (yes – they usually act like pavlov’s dog)
No cooking – toaster, microwave, or otherwise.
I go over every one of the rules before I leave. Lest it sound like I leave them home alone alot -I don’t – I just don’t want to hear “But I didn’t know…”
Screw hypothetically: been there, done that. When sick kid was about 5. Yeah. 5. And the super-trustworthy-but-not-scaredy-cat-child-like-her-older-brother-was.
Depends on the kid. I don’t know if this is true, but a friend who ‘s a social worker told me that’s why there isn’t a specific age in most states when you can leave your child home alone. It just depends on the kid.
Tacy, yes. CJ, no.
And I agree that it completely depends on the kid.
It does depend on the child. But I err on the side of not leaving ANY kids alone for any length of time. Call me paranoid. Go ahead. Here, let me capitalize it for you Paranoid!
I have been tempted for sure. But no, I haven’t done it.