Procurator fiscal Vicki Bell told the court two parents became suspicious of Mathewson after being informed their children were not present while the childminder carried out a school run.
They secretly went to the school and found their children were not with Mathewson, despite being in her care.
They then went to her home, where they heard a “child screaming” and found five unattended children in the garden.
One of the children told the witnesses there were no adults inside, and Mathewson had told them to “wait in the garden”.
They approached the door of the house to check if there were any adults present, when they hear another child “screaming hysterically” inside.
The door was unlocked, and when the witnesses entered they found a child crying under the kitchen table.
A further nine children, all under five, were found in an upstairs bedroom. Two of them were strapped into prams. The children were said to be “distressed” but uninjured.
Police attended and Mathewson said the children had been left alone for at least 30 minutes.
The court heard ring doorbell footage showed this was the second time that day the children were left inside the house.