Youngsters who take care of themselves a few hours while parents are away, often Monday through Friday after school, are called “latchkey kids.” In some communities, half of all children ages five to 13 spend part of their day at home alone. When school resumes, some parents go back to work, which increases the number of children who take care of themselves after getting home.
Because injuries are the leading killer of children and teen-agers, AMR urges parents to keep their latchkey youngsters safe from the many hazards of fending for themselves.
Ryan Wilson, operations manager for AMR in central Mississippi, said, “Latchkey children are at greater risk than those supervised by adults to suffer a serious injury, become victimized or engage in delinquent behavior. Proper planning, emphasizing safety, will help protect youngsters on their own at home. Some states have outlawed leaving children under a certain age at home alone and it is a crime in every state to leave a child in a dangerous situation. So, first, parents must comply with such laws.”
“Next, ask yourself if your child has the judgment to stay at home alone safely,” Wilson said. “There is no age at which children suddenly are able to deal with the challenges of being home alone. Some younger kids are more mature and responsible than older children. Parents must assess each child individually and see how well he or she retains the parent’s safety instructions. It’s wise to build up gradually the time the child is at home alone.”
Parents who adopt the latchkey lifestyle should:
- Check your home thoroughly for safety risks. Eliminate the risks or teach the child to avoid them. For example, the parent might teach the child never to use the stove, but, instead, to use the microwave. If there is a gun the house, for the children’s sake, put a trigger lock on the gun and then put the gun in a locked cabinet the child can’t open.
- Teach the child when and how to call 9-1-1. Post the number “911” near each ground line telephone.
- Be sure each child knows his or her full name, complete home address and home phone number, your full name, the exact name of the place where you work and your work phone number.
Consider loading an application in your cell phone for tracking your child’s location. - Consider installing cameras and alarms in and outside your home which you can monitor at work.
- Assemble an age-appropriate first-aid kit with your child’s help. Teach your child how to use its contents, such as band-aids.
- Develop and practice fire escape plans.
- Require your children to take the same route to and from school each day. Counsel them to come directly home. If possible, have them walk with friends.
- Establish a check-in routine so a responsible adult knows of the child has arrived home. If your child checks in with you at work, develop a back-up system in case you are unavailable. If you can’t take a call from your child at work, arrange for a relative or friend to help. There are companies a parent can pay to routinely answer latchkey kids’ calls.
- If the child has a cell phone, consider setting a reminder to call the child to call you the same time each day. Put a similar reminder in your own cell phone, so that you expect the child’s call.
- Discuss with your children how to respond to strangers. Work with the child to practice saying “No!,” getting away from a stranger and then immediately telling a trusted adult.
- Don’t let the children carry bags or other items with their names printed on them. Don’t let them wear keys in a visible place. Be sure their keys don’t have a name and address on them.
- Practice with the children how to handle different situations, such as:
- They lose their key
- What to do if they think they are being followed
- The door is open when they first get home, or a window is broken
- Someone they don’t know or expect knocks at the door or calls by phone
- How to answer the telephone without letting callers know they are alone
- They receive a prank telephone call
- A sibling gets injured or feels sick.