My child not allowed outside to play

December2012

She's in preschool, starting this September.

I won't let her out to play because we live on a road with no front gardens, and there is some traffic. I feel she's too young and it is not possible for me to be outside watching her due to other commitments with the rest of my family.

Some of my neighbours let their kids out to play unsupervised. Some of the children are younger than my child in question and she knows this.

They were playing today and when we came home, having been out at a playground my child wanted to play with them, but its not safe in my opinion.

We have a back garden that she can play in but didn't want to.

These are not her buddies from playschool in case it makes a difference to your advice. She does get physical play every day and play in the home with siblings.

I don't know these children nor their parents so I'm not going to invite them in to play (as I've said I think some of them are too young to be out, eg 3, and I don't want the responsibility of looking after them).

So what tactics can I use when my daughter gets annoyed with me that I won't let her out to play with them?

January

Just try and distract her from the outside play with an inside activity.

My 4yo is not allowed out to play on the road, I'll let her out in the front garden or out in the front garden two doors away (her friend that was in play school with her lives there and I know her mother watches them like hawks, like I would do if they were in my garden). But other than that she's not allowed out, we'll go to the playground but if she moans, she just has come in and she can like it or lump it.

December2012

Normally I do and normally it's not an issue but today she was a bit demanding anyway, plus with the extra daylight it's becoming more of an issue.

Queen-Mise

December2012 wrote: »

Normally I do and normally it's not an issue but today she was a bit demanding anyway, plus with the extra daylight it's becoming more of an issue.

Put your foot down is the simplest way IMO.

My 7 year old went out to play last summer for the first time (her bday is in Sept). Tell her she can go out to play when she is X age and when she asks - keep repeating it.

There were toddlers/preschoolers out on our road unsupervised - the whole time my daughter wasn't allowed out to play. I am not their parent though. It was so dangerous, the smaller kids had absolutely no road sense and would walk out from behind a car right in front of our car. I spent four years driving down our road at less than 10 miles an hour.
Bad summers and rainy days were my best friend:D

nesf

My 6 year old wouldn't quite have enough sense to be left on a road unsupervised (i.e. he'd forget to be careful if he got too excited playing). I wouldn't let my 3 year old near the road for love or money, she'd have zero sense of danger and consequences.

It's a good bit easier for us to lay down the law though, we have a front garden.

hoodwinked

we have an open front garden (aka no walls) and a through the estate road outside, our three year old is not allowed out without one of us watching her like a hawk

just the other day i was driving home when our neighbours one and a half year old ran out in front of the car, luckily i am so used to it i had plenty of braking time.

i waited briefly for an adult to come get her but nobody was about, i mean no-one, their front door was even closed and i don't think she's even tall enough to reach. in the end i had to drive around her

by the time i parked she was climbing up on one of the walls that start at half her height and ascend upwards to a drop i as an adult wouldn't jump from.

so if you want to do what i do which is either let her out with you watching (or if like us you'd prefer her not to hang around with them,) create a big distraction or promise to do something fun later but its important to make sure you follow through with that so they learn that when you say it you'll do it.

michellie

We have the same situation my daughter is 4, in preschool starting school September. We don't have a front garden either and have a road going through the estate.

It actually annoys me how young the children are left out roaming the streets here. As young as 2. I mean probably still in nappies!! There's a little girl who's only a few months older than my daughter and she has free roaming of the estate and often knocks on my door asking can she come in!?! Last summer I did leave her play in the garden with my daughter but had to stop it as she kept asking could they go out and play on the road.

It's so hard to say no when she asks can she go out to play, but it's just not safe. She has a cousin in her preschool class and they are the best of friends so I try have her over here once or twice a week.

AllthingsCP

December2012 wrote: »

She's in preschool, starting this September.

I won't let her out to play because we live on a road with no front gardens, and there is some traffic. I feel she's too young and it is not possible for me to be outside watching her due to other commitments with the rest of my family.

Some of my neighbours let their kids out to play unsupervised. Some of the children are younger than my child in question and she knows this.

They were playing today and when we came home, having been out at a playground my child wanted to play with them, but its not safe in my opinion.

We have a back garden that she can play in but didn't want to.

These are not her buddies from playschool in case it makes a difference to your advice. She does get physical play every day and play in the home with siblings.

I don't know these children nor their parents so I'm not going to invite them in to play (as I've said I think some of them are too young to be out, eg 3, and I don't want the responsibility of looking after them).

So what tactics can I use when my daughter gets annoyed with me that I won't let her out to play with them?

Much the same problem here, But i have my family pushing me to let him out i stand my ground untill he is old enough no is no i would rather be safe then sorry.

one of my sister's has a boy same age and is completely different will let him roam.

We bought him a white electronic car for Christmas so at-least he can drive around the estate or to his preschool in the morning {only 500 meters away} while me or his mother are with him so he kinda starting to understand, he looks both ways but at the end of the day 3-6 is too young and even 7 is too young if too close to the road.