Would you let your 9 year old go unsupervised ?

[nataliesdaddy]

no way would I let a child of nine hang out alone at any park or water park - no way no how - unlike the old discovery zones there is no child tracking system at disneyworld... it would be easy for any creep to snag a kid at disney or universal - I guess if my kid had a GPS computer chip imbedded under the skin I might allow it hahahahahahahah

 

[tmbasuhre]

NO WAY!!! My kids are so precious to me that the thought of them out of my sight at a park, store, or any other public place just makes me sick. My kids don't go to another department in WalMart while I'm buying toilet paper they stay with me and if I have to go to the restroom my 9 year old son with his mortified look on his face stands inside the ladies restroom- GASP!!! I'm sorry but children cannot be replaced and should remain with their parents or guardian while in places where they may need protection and it's a sad world but our kids need protected almost everywhere!!! Please keep your son in your sight- two way radios will not prevent someone from taking or harming your child.

 

[pintrader]

Unconditionally NO !!!

Disney has rules regarding unaccompnaied minors. and nine is too young even according to Disney. As I put in an earlier post on another thread. We don't always get what we want in life even as adults and age 9 is not too young to begin learning self discipline. Follw the rules and common sense they are provided for reasons.

Lifeguards are not babysitters. If they stop your child for any reason and ask him where his parents are and you are not there ...

Last thought, What would you do to yourself and anyone who told you it "might" be OK if something horrible happend to your child? Wouldn't you place blame? Could you ever forgive yourself or the others who confided that they thought it 'might' be OK?
I've worked with grieving parent and the ones who were not directly or indirectly responsible for their child's paralasis, disease or death blame themselves and make their whole world miserable. Think of how a parent who knows they are responsible carries forward with the rest of their life.

 

[KathyT]

Just wondering exactly what you meant by unsupervised? Did you mean letting the 9 yr old wandering the park on their own or just going on a ride by themself?
I've never been to BB so I don't know how the rides are set up. I have brought my kids to waterparks in this area and in Maine. They do not wander through the parks by themselves. I'm always with them but I do let them go on the rides by themselves.
I always wait for them at the bottom as I do not like waterslides. Also the parks I've been to you can see the kids the whole time they are walking up to the slide and while they are waiting their turn. They go on them as much as they want while I either sit or stand at the bottom. They aslo like to go on the lazy river ride and will stay on for over an hour while I watch and wave as they go by.

 

[Dogslider]

I have 3 boys (22, 20 & 12) My answer is a big NO! I don't think that I could have explained why better than the poster below. Your thoughts were well written, even without having children you seem to have a good feel for the possibilites and no it isn't different when they are your own. When that panic feeling hits, even if it is only for a few seconds it is the worst feeling in the world. With 3 boys I have had my share of these instances.

Pam

Originally posted by PugLover
I dont have children so I probably have no business even offering my opinion but I would say absolutely not!

Maybe this is my inexperience with children talking.... last year I took my husbands small cousin (age 8) to a Barnes and Nobles. We were looking at a row of books together, I bent down to pick one up and when I stood back up she was gone. That moment was perhaps one of the most frightening of my life. My heart was pounding, I started shaking and sweating and could barely speak.

Turns out she saw some puppets in the childrens section and wanted to go "check them out" as she told me later when I found her. She is a smart girl and never have I know her to get in any sort of trouble.. however, after she looked at the puppets she came back to find me and I wasnt there (of course I wasnt, I was running around the store like a lunatic). When I wasnt there she got panicked and a kind old man noticed and asked her if she needed help and that foolish child said yes and started talking to him. Normally she would never talk to strangers for any reason but I guess she felt vulnerable since I wasnt there.... even smart/mature kids can get fazzled and make poor choices.

Like I said.. maybe it is different if it is your own kids so pardon me of this is way off base. After that experience I truly understood why my Mother would become so upset with my sister and I if we were late and didnt call or wandered off.

 

[rebelmom]

No way, anyone who would let there 9 year old go anywhere at disney by themselves is crazy.

 

[Niagara2]

I have a 9 year old and a 8 year old. We did BB this year and it toonk all my energy to keep track of both of them. The farthest one went was to fill his refillable mug but the stand was directly behind us. I just let them go "together" when we stay at OKW to take the garbage out or go buy a newspaper at the bus stop. They both know WDW like the back of their hands but it is others that are there that I worry about. Now my DH is another story. He gives them more freedom, but I am always on the trip so DH has only been grounded twice for allowing the guys to roam at the pool at OKW!! (LOL)

 

[ariel_459]

ok, i'm 15. i was recently at WDW with my school's music department and we were not allowed to go off alone (ie minimum of 3 in our group) and we did the parks with a group of 7. not to say that WDW is a scary place, but there are a lot of creeps out there and i wouldn't consider going off alone at my age... thats 6 whole years older than your son. mind you, i'm a smart girl, who is vigilant of her surroundings but there are some situations where i just wouldn't walk around by myself. its what i would call a "yellow light" zone. lol. i know you trust your son, but its not him i would worry about trusting, theres some creeps out there.

 

[Amaris]

Never in a BAZILLION years.. not at 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, *maybe* at 14...

That's just me though. My kids live in a bubble, LOL!

 

[nataliesdaddy]

unless my kid had a gps tracking device embedded in her and the front gates had alarms should she be taken out of the park and somekind of in built camera system so I could make sure no pervs bothered her - NO WAY -

I did let my kid hang out alone at discovery cove but that was an entirely different world... I could literally introduce my little one to three lifegaurds and they all agreed to make sure she stayed in the ray pool while I got the fiance - and even then I was nervous about it...but a Dis park with little if no control - I guess if you had the bucks to hire a nanny or something - but otherwise NO WAY

 

[disneyjunkie]

When DS and went to BB in August 2001, he was 9. I let him spend time alone in the area with the ropes and floating pieces of ice. ( can't think of the name of the area right now)

This was the only area of the park I allowed to do on his own.

I know my son will never walk away with someone he doesn't know. I find it hard to believe that a stranger will be able to take a 9 year old out of an amusement park.


Everyone knows their child and what they are comfortable with.

 

[f-LORI-da]

This past April, DH & I were getting in line for Gang Plank Falls (the family raft ride) at TL. Two boys (I guess about 9 yrs. old) tried to push in front of us, and then found they couldn't carry the raft themselves, and asked if we would help.

Now if you're familiar with this ride, you know how big those rafts are. DH & I could barely carry our own raft, let alone help these boys. I told them it was a family raft ride, and to go get mom or dad to help

 

[kokomom]

Originally posted by disneyjunkie
When DS and went to BB in August 2001, he was 9. I let him spend time alone in the area with the ropes and floating pieces of ice. ( can't think of the name of the area right now)

This was the only area of the park I allowed to do on his own.

I know my son will never walk away with someone he doesn't know. I find it hard to believe that a stranger will be able to take a 9 year old out of an amusement park.


Everyone knows their child and what they are comfortable with.

What planet are you on! People abduct children from their own yard and you think it would be hard to take a 9 year old out of an amusement park...get real! I am sorry if I offend you but this is reality and 2003! Look at Elizabeth Smart...abducted from her bedroom...the other little girl abducted from CA last summer from in front of grandma's house and found murdered and you think a theme park is safe!

I have an 8 year old and 6 1/2 year old...I would never let them go off with me in the area. The lifeguards and CM's are not babysitters...it takes a SECOND for a child of any age (even if the are the best swimmer in the world ) to slip under water. It is your responsibility as a parent to watch your child.

In these days and times letting a 4 1/2 year old walk down the street to a friend's house is insane (another poster). Giving a 9 year old a two way radio and going to the AK pool...who is making sure that child doesn't drown or injure themself?

If I didn't want to ride the same ride as my children I would wait in line and watch them get on...then go straight to the exit.

It is scary enough sending them to the restroom when dad isn't with us...they won't go in the ladies room. I stand right outside the door and wait---they know to yell if anyone says anything.

It is a scary fact that it is unsafe world we live in...we are responsible for our children's safety. If you are tired after a day at the water park...tell your child it is time to go and safely take them back with you. Be thankful your child is safe and with you---don't make a split second mistake that you will regret forever.

I know I will offend some...sorry this is my view and I apologize to those who I offended by stating things I would do. I am not an overprotective mother but my children are my top priority.

 

[Amaris]

I think that many 9 year olds can be talked into anything if the person is persuasive enough. My son is very bright, yet if someone said they worked for Disney, had a Disney shirt on, and said they had exotic BUGS in the parking lot and it would only take a minute to look at them.... I am guessing he would verify that the person worked for Disney by looking at the shirt, trust that they weren't lying to him, and exit the park to see the bugs for a minute , since bugs are his passion.

A nine year old can only figure out so much. If the person is smart enough , your nine year old will leave with them. I would not put a nine year old's life in his OWN hands. Parents would be arrested for leaving a 9 year old child home alone in many states. Why would you leave them in an open park with hundreds
(thousands) of strangers?

I do agree with the previous poster, though. Each child is different and parents have to make their own decisions based on what they *know* about their children.

For us, this would not be a good decision, and I am guessing for most 9 year olds it would not as well.

 

[timbud1]

NO WAY! I have a 9-y-o super responsible DD and I wouldn't let her out of my sight . Not now and not for quite a few years. I have just started letting her go to the restroom alone at very SMALL restaurants recently!! I would at least follow her to the entrance and watch her climb up/go down and meet her at the exit of each slide. I did do this at TL, but I could see her at all times except for one curve on the path up, and I was freaking out until I saw her little head again!

 

[thetraveler]

Being the parent of an almost 13 YO and almost 9YO, I would not let either of them be at any of the water parks unsupervised. There are too many variables that neither of them would be able to handle. Go with them and enjoy your time together!

 

[Castillo Mom]

A couple of years ago I let my then 10 year old son go to Universal Studios with his aunt, her husband and a group of other adult family members. As they were getting ready to leave the park, they stopped to take pictures. According to what my sister in law told me, while she was looking through her camera to take the picture, my son was a few feet away from her looking at the balloon guy. A woman approached him and grabbed him by the hand. My sister in law sped towards my son and the woman said she thought he was lost and then she quickly walked off and they lost her in the crowd. My son said she never asked him if he was lost, she just asked him if liked the balloons. Needless to say, when I heard about this I was extremely upset about what could have happened. It made me not want to ever let any of my children out of my sight and not let them go anywhere with other adult family members, and for a while they didn't.

It just goes to show that things can happen anywhere, anytime. Needless to say, I would never let my nine year old be unattended anywhere, especially where there are large crowds. I don't rely on a false sense if security and I'm not willing to take that risk.

 

[Disneymoon04]

depends on the childs maturity but generally i feel that:
under 10- no
10 to 13 - yes IF using a buddy system
14+ - yes

 

[disneyjunkie]

Originally posted by kokomom
What planet are you on! People abduct children from their own yard and you think it would be hard to take a 9 year old out of an amusement park...get real! I am sorry if I offend you but this is reality and 2003! Look at Elizabeth Smart...abducted from her bedroom...the other little girl abducted from CA last summer from in front of grandma's house and found murdered and you think a theme park is safe!

I have an 8 year old and 6 1/2 year old...I would never let them go off with me in the area. The lifeguards and CM's are not babysitters...it takes a SECOND for a child of any age (even if the are the best swimmer in the world ) to slip under water. It is your responsibility as a parent to watch your child.

In these days and times letting a 4 1/2 year old walk down the street to a friend's house is insane (another poster). Giving a 9 year old a two way radio and going to the AK pool...who is making sure that child doesn't drown or injure themself?

If I didn't want to ride the same ride as my children I would wait in line and watch them get on...then go straight to the exit.

It is scary enough sending them to the restroom when dad isn't with us...they won't go in the ladies room. I stand right outside the door and wait---they know to yell if anyone says anything.

It is a scary fact that it is unsafe world we live in...we are responsible for our children's safety. If you are tired after a day at the water park...tell your child it is time to go and safely take them back with you. Be thankful your child is safe and with you---don't make a split second mistake that you will regret forever.

I know I will offend some...sorry this is my view and I apologize to those who I offended by stating things I would do. I am not an overprotective mother but my children are my top priority.

Oh well, to each his own. Kids here ride the city bus and subways alone, so having a 9 year old stay in one area of a park alone isn't a big deal to me.

I know my son will not walk away with someone he doesn't know. Heck, if he sees me speaking to someone he doesn't know, he'll ask if I know them.

I just can not believe a 9 year old will leave a park with a stranger. I don't see how someone can take a child (9 or over) out of a park without causing a scene.

On our next trip my son will be 11(he turns 12 during the trip) I will him allow to explore some areas of the parks on his own.

Last summer I took him and a few of his friends to an a theme park in Long Island. As soon as I gave them their bands for the rides, they took off. They knew what time to meet me at the arcade, and they checked in with me from time to time. We're going to do the same thing next month.

 

[Trish5768]

Sorry but... NO WAY!!!