Sleeping away from home for the first time, tips for deciding
Sharing a magical time with a good friend like the night is a plan that excites any child. On the contrary, parents live in anguish at this moment, whether it is only one night or in a camp. Therefore, it is necessary to know previously and responsibly analyze the environment and circumstances so that they are appropriate to their age and personality.
Sleep at a friend's house
Children, at these ages, are so friendly that it is not enough for them to spend the whole day together, they would also love to fall asleep telling each other stories and adventures. In fact, many times the most pleasant experiences and resources of childhood have to do with these experiences. This situation should be used by parents to grow in various aspects of their education, as long as certain requirements are met:
- That the family is known very well of the friend in question, being the environment of that healthy house and according to one's own ideas.
- That the boy is prepared to live with other people different from their family.
Before leaving your child to sleep outside the home
A bad invitation can end many educational efforts of parents or make the child live very committed situations. In this sense, parents should assess on what topics it is important to inform themselves before their son goes to a friend's house for a weekend, a year to study abroad or just to spend a night out.
1. Who will your child be with? It's good to find out if your son and his friend will be in charge of parents, older siblings or babysitters. Not all the older brothers, nor all the "kangaroo" are really responsible and your child can live complicated situations like: that they see a movie discouraged for their age; to invite other friends and put on a party taking advantage of the fact that the parents are not there; to see them smoking; to invite the bride or groom and not behave properly, etc.
2. Control of the computer and television. Many times, children have a computer or television in their bedroom and nobody controls their use of it. Therefore, it is good that with discretion find out if the friend has a computer or TV in your room. Your child could be involved in the viewing of an inappropriate movie or get into inappropriate websites that you yourself would not let you check at home.
3. Alone or accompanied. There are parents who do not give importance to leaving the children alone, while your child may feel very helpless, even distressed, at the thought of being left without the care of an adult. In the event of a home accident, it is important that they have someone to turn to, especially when an accident occurs away from home.
4. The family situation. It is equally necessary to know the environment in which you leave your child. For that, you have to know previously some aspects such as if the parents are separated and in the case that they are, how this situation is lived. It will be a way to avoid your child living a conflict situation, always very hard for a child.
5. Education mode. Each marriage gives more or less importance to various aspects such as: modesty, courtesy, vocabulary, austerity, etc. Therefore, you must take into account how that family lives those educational aspects, and if they coincide, at least in the essentials, with the way in which they live within your family.
Tips to decide if your child sleeps outside the home
- Respect the recommended age. When a child stays at home with friends and family, it does not matter how old they are, but where they go and who they will be with all the time. On the other hand, there are children with a special attachment, who are not immature, who remember their family and have a hard time when they are away from home. However, if it is a camp, the most recommended is that they go after 9 or 10 years approximately.
- Know your son. There will always be children who are very excited to sleep outside the home while others reject the idea. Some are excited because it is an adventure to go to bed later and feel older and others reject it because of insecurity if they still do not master their needs like the rest of their friends, or because, for example, at night they can not sleep in other houses. Therefore, we must first know the children and find out if they really want to do so and feel capable.
- Decide with whom and with whom not. On some occasions, parents should let their child know that they can go to some homes and not others. You can not always get them to understand it, nor do you have to pretend it. What you have to keep in mind is that parents know, better than their children, what suits them and should ensure that this is so.
- Say "no" in some cases. Sometimes it is good to say "no", without exceptions, without feeling obligated to get away with it, or committed. Parents must do, based on their own criteria, what they think is best for their child.
Sleeping away from home implies
- Correspond to the invitation. After a child sleeps at a friend's house, it is important to always correspond and invite their friends home, something very useful to see that child or that cousin in action and observe how he behaves.
- Do not abuse the calls. Calling them when they sleep outside continuously, or giving them a mobile to locate them at all times, does not help them mature. It is better to wait for the possible, without losing sight of those who are with them.
Maria Lucea
Advisor: Maite Mijancos. Director of the IEEE
