A. Anytime children do things they do not fully understand or understand the consequences of, the risks are greater. Children generally do not have enough life experience to do this on their own and thus need to have regular and often constant adult supervision so they can be taught as well as safeguarded from their own, as well as others, actions.
If one would not let their child cross the street by themselves then certainly one should not let them have matches and play with fireworks by themselves. Like crossing streets though it all depends on the street as well as the kid. To cross a major intersection in a busy city is far different than crossing a country road out on the prairie! And some kids may be driving the tractor to get the mail at an age their city cousin is beginning to learn
Parents often have a hard time with all the risks posed to their children. We want to keep them safe from everything all the time, yet we also want them to learn about life too; that means allowing them to take chances so they can learn …… a scary thing indeed.
The same is true for adults but we generally have more experience and ability to reason, so we have less risks.
Setting a chronological age for doing something is an easy and convenient way to try to delineate who should be able to have or do certain things, but it isn't always that simple. Some 5 year olds are more responsible and mature than some 40 year olds! What individuals will do and is often quite different than when they are in small groups, especially true for teenagers.
Finally on this subject, one of the leading causes of fire related deaths and injuries, and property damage in the US is children playing with matches and cigarette lighters. However it is the fault of adults who leave them where children can get their hands on them
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, La Crosse, WI USA. All rights reserved worldwide.Revised July 17, 1998