Kids alone in parks

[CarolA]

We are letting a pair of 13/14 year olds go on thier own this time....

They are good kids and know the rules. I don't expect any problems.

Rule one of this type of thing I learned in Girl Scouts. BUDDY SYSTEM. It works...


(And as for not leaving the house due to terrorists.. there's the method my crazy neighbor tried on 9/11. She got on the front porch of her house with a GUN saying she was going to shoot any strangers since "they are coming to get us" We called the police since her next door neighbor had teenage boys and there were always "strangers" coming. We never had any problems from these kids, but I didn't want Ms. Loony shooting them. The cops took the gun and called her daughter to deal with her!)

 

[BeckWhy]

(And as for not leaving the house due to terrorists.. there's the method my crazy neighbor tried on 9/11. She got on the front porch of her house with a GUN saying she was going to shoot any strangers since "they are coming to get us" We called the police since her next door neighbor had teenage boys and there were always "strangers" coming. We never had any problems from these kids, but I didn't want Ms. Loony shooting them. The cops took the gun and called her daughter to deal with her!)

I was being sarcastic when I made my comment. That is really over the top.

 

[Biscuitsmom31]

I went on many band trips to amusement parks when I was a teenager. We were allowed to roam freely and were told to meet at the bus at a certain time. I remember that I took my first band trip as an 8th grader to the state fair. We were very annoying to people I'm sure but we didn't get into any trouble.

 

[Linzybrooke]

The malls in our area you have to be 18 or over to be by yourself. Otherwise you have to be accompanied by an adult (I think they have to be 25+). The reason for this is because of how distructive they can be, theft, and loitering problems.

My concern is not kidnappers or child molesters. I don't know the statistics, but I think that the amount of kids kidnapped/molested is low. I am more scared now as an adult female of being raped. And I'm sure more women are raped than children are kidnapped or molested (I'm not sure about it, I could be wrong). So I guess me being a female I should just never leave my house. Because I could be raped. Or better yet, no one should leave their house cuz the terrorists are coming!

Um, alright... Regardless, I'm just pointing out a fact I think is being overlooked here. Even if the stats are lower that that of adult women it doesn't mean they aren't important, in fact 44% of reported rape victims are under the age of 18. At least as an adult you would know what to do, many children wouldn't. Whether you agree or not is beside the point, it is still something that happens everyday in places people feel are safe.

When I worked at Mall of America they require anyone under 18 to be accompanied by an adult, and it was just as much for safety reasons as those you described. Many parents would drop their children off at the mall as a sort of daycare while they went to work leaving mall employees to try to keep their children safe.

I'm not saying you shouldn't ever let your kids out of your sight, I was off and doing my own thing by about 13, but I think this is an important thing to think about when making this decision.

 

[CarolA]

I was being sarcastic when I made my comment. That is really over the top.

I was just trying to add some humor. This woman was always over the top, but that was the day we realize that PROFESSIONAL help was needed. I swear she really thought that the terrorists were going to drive down the street any minute shooting at us..... Bless her heart, her daughter eventually wound up having to get her declared incompetent. (There were other issues that strated coming out...)

 

[Goobergal99]

I think it depends on the kid. When I was 11 and 13 I was allowed to go to the parks with my older cousins who were in their later teens.

It depends on their maturity. I would think with cell phones now that ppl would be even more willing to allow their kids some freedom. When DD is older we will probably allow her to bring a friend with her and as long as it is ok with her friends parents I wouldn't have a problem allowing her to go to the parks.

Then again, I was a latch key kid so what do I know

 

[freckles and boo]

The malls in our area you have to be 18 or over to be by yourself. Otherwise you have to be accompanied by an adult (I think they have to be 25+). The reason for this is because of how distructive they can be, theft, and loitering problems.

My concern is not kidnappers or child molesters. I don't know the statistics, but I think that the amount of kids kidnapped/molested is low. I am more scared now as an adult female of being raped. And I'm sure more women are raped than children are kidnapped or molested (I'm not sure about it, I could be wrong). So I guess me being a female I should just never leave my house. Because I could be raped. Or better yet, no one should leave their house cuz the terrorists are coming!

A majority of women who are raped or otherwise sexually assaulted know their attackers. When a predator attacks someone he doesn't know, he is usually seeking what appears to be a vulnerable victim, which is why children are such easy targets. When it comes time to loosen the apron strings for my kids (they are only 4 and 6 now), I plan to make sure they understand those dynamics. It really stinks that even at WDW one's kids should have to be wary of strangers, but that is just an unfortunate fact of life.

 

[BeckWhy]

A majority of women who are raped or otherwise sexually assaulted know their attackers. When a predator attacks someone he doesn't know, he is usually seeking what appears to be a vulnerable victim, which is why children are such easy targets. When it comes time to loosen the apron strings for my kids (they are only 4 and 6 now), I plan to make sure they understand those dynamics. It really stinks that even at WDW one's kids should have to be wary of strangers, but that is just an unfortunate fact of life.

Ok how about this.... That is part of the reason why it depends on the child himself and not their age. Again I am not sure of the statistics, but I have never, ever heard of a child being abducted in WDW and I'm sure Disney will not give you any statistics if there were any.

A lil OT here.. do you people not allow your little boys attend the Catholic Church because there have been so many reports of molestation going on there?

The fact of the matter is we are tought to live in fear. I am more scared now to walk around my neighborhood during daylight, than I ever was as a child. And just to make any clarifications, I was almost kidnapped as a child (one of my cousins was molested as a child) and while being in elementary school there was this "phase" that the town was going through in which high school students were doing very bad things to animals and little kids. If you would like to know more about it, you can read a book by Jeffery Victor called Satanic Panic. His son was one of the boys accused of engaging in these activities. (BTW none of the activities were proven and no files were ever charged.)

I feel WDW is one of the safest places in the world. And it probably is. I would no allow any one under of the age of 13 go off without a parent. And they would not go off by themselves; they would be with another person/kid/whatever. The biggest thing is educate your children about all your concerns before you go.

 

[Goobergal99]

A lil OT here.. do you people not allow your little boys attend the Catholic Church because there have been so many reports of molestation going on there?
QUOTE]


I wouldn't I knew one of the priests in the Philly scandal and it turned out he molested alot of my classmates.

 

[freckles and boo]

The fact of the matter is we are tought to live in fear. I am more scared now to walk around my neighborhood during daylight, than I ever was as a child.

I definitely agree that there is too much fear-mongering going on!!! It is hard to watch the news or read a paper without finding something to worry about. I can't take seriously a report about whether one cup of coffee is good for me but two are bad. The "experts" just don't have a clue in the long run and worrying about coffee is silly. But when it comes to the safety of my children, I do listen to those who are supposed to be experts and follow the advice I think is reasonable - like using car seats, getting immunized, and warning them that, sadly, not everyone in this world is a good person.

edited for atrocious grammar

 

[BeckWhy]

and warning them that, sadly, not everyone in this world is a good person.

This is really bad. And I'm glad you brought it up because I didn't think about it before. If you see a child who appears to be lost, you can't go help them anymore. It's insane. But it's a good point also. If you are allowing your kids (I should say teens) to go around WDW alone, then you definately make sure they understand that if anything happens they can go to a cast member.

And for any children, whether they are going off by themselves or sticking with you. You should make sure they know they can go and see a cast member for help. Also for the little ones, it's a good idea to put a card with your names, cell #s, hotel, etc with them. I mean, put it on a business size card and put it at the bottom of their sneaker or something (make sure they know its there) or if they have a bag put it in the bag or in a lanyard around their neck. And make sure they know its there and that they can give it to a cast member if they get lost or something.

 

[jann1033]

This is really bad. And I'm glad you brought it up because I didn't think about it before. If you see a child who appears to be lost, you can't go help them anymore. It's insane. But it's a good point also. If you are allowing your kids (I should say teens) to go around WDW alone, then you definately make sure they understand that if anything happens they can go to a cast member.

And for any children, whether they are going off by themselves or sticking with you. You should make sure they know they can go and see a cast member for help. Also for the little ones, it's a good idea to put a card with your names, cell #s, hotel, etc with them. I mean, put it on a business size card and put it at the bottom of their sneaker or something (make sure they know its there) or if they have a bag put it in the bag or in a lanyard around their neck. And make sure they know its there and that they can give it to a cast member if they get lost or something.

good advice and ot but it is sad about the state of affairs today...it's sad you can't even talk with a little kid today cause you aren't out to hurt him but that might make him more readily talk to someone who is.

 

[Mickey'snewestfan]

WDW is definately 7 - I know because my oldest was able to ride barnstormer alone but I had to ride with my then 6yo. The next year they wanted to ride together with me behind them and the CM asked if my youngest was 7, she was.

I have an e-mail from guest relations in my files somewhere, but you can take my word, its 7!

TJ

That's interesting -- last summer we were at the Haunted Mansion with DS (then 6) and his godsister (then 10, but has non-visible special needs). I stopped for a second to fix my shoes and the CM swooped in and practically forced them into a ride vehicle. My DS is calling out to me "Mom, mom I want my mom" and I'm calling "Those are my children, please have them wait for me, let someone else go first" while I tried to get past the people who had walked in front of me. Then DgD jumped out (because she was scared to ride without an adult) leaving DS alone. They had already put people in the next 4 or 5 cars so DS would have been completely out of sight. I made them stop the ride to get him off -- They were furious at ME. Their excuse is that they "didn't know" he was mine (both kids are a different race from me). Surely the fact that he's calling me should have been a clue?

Having said that, I didn't have any problem with the kids riding the Barnstormer in a different seat from me, or riding Dumbo, the Tea Cups or the Carousel by themselves since I could see them the whole time. The CM's didn't have a problem with it easier. It seems a little silly that your 6 year old couldn't ride in their own seat on the Barstormer but they can on Space Mountain.

 

[Snoozan]

I also believe the age depends on how familiar the kid(s) are with the Disney parks. My kids have been numerous times, so I first let my DS travel on his own when he was around 17(but he looked younger). I took the other DS when he was 17 and with a buddy, but he rarely left my side! I've got 2 Dneices and 2 Dnephews going this summer for the first time with their parents(ages almost 16 to 10), but I'm hoping their parents don't let them run off on their own. They have no concept of how the bus system works or where anything is located so if they get separated at all - they'd have no idea where they were or how to get where they need to go.