Summer Care
Author
Thomas Wiest
CEO, Aspirience Home Care
The fun of summer for all, not just kids, often brings the worry of summer care for parents.
During the summer, many are cared for by older siblings, neighborhood high schoolers, family members or summer nannies. But one question comes up, what is the “right” age that children can be left alone for a few hours, or the entire day? Once care is chosen, what preventative steps can parents take to ensure children are safe?
There is no Minnesota law that states at what exact age a child must be before he or she may be left home alone or left under the care of another child. There are general laws, however, that require adequate and appropriate supervision of children. Each case depends on the maturity of the child or caregiver, their experience in this field and the environment they might be left in.
The general law indicates the following guidelines:
- Children under age 8 should not be left alone for any period of time.
- Children ages 8, 9, and 10 can be left alone for traditional latch-key hours under certain circumstances. (before and after school)
- Children 11 to 14 may baby-sit with the expectation that an adult will return later in day.
- Children 15 and older may baby-sit for more than 24 hours.
Regardless of who is providing the care, here are 5 important things to make certain your care provider has at the ready:
1. Emergency Contact Information. All phone numbers for doctors, vets, relatives, etc.
2. Copy of insurance info & medical release form. This is important in an emergency so child care provider can get medical procedures started while waiting for parents to arrive.
3. Log book of some kind. Important so families and care provider are leaving important notes and info (meal plans, reminders of appointments, pick up times) in one central location to provide excellent communication of all activities. This serves as a nice review of the entire summer, too.
4. Grab and go kit. Prepare an easy-to-grab kit that contains important items such as: sun screen, bandages, first aid cream, extra set of clothes, etc. A small handled bag will make this easy to take to the park, beach, fishing or Valley Fair. This way, the day isn’t ruined because you do not have the tools for a simple fix.
5. Cash. Work together with your care provider and children to devise a weekly budget for important summer items such as: ice cream cones, movies, pool entrance fees, park fees, etc.
Ensuring these steps are followed is a great way to savor all the summer activities with peace of mind.
It’s important to know, Aspirience Home Care is there to help all ages enjoy the summer.