Latchkey Kids

It seems like the debate regarding latchkey kids has gone on forever, with many articles debating the pros and cons.
Here in our area, the legal minimum age to leave a child home alone is twelve. Even at age twelve, only the parents (hopefully) and the child can decide if this is a workable situation for them.

If your child is experiencing any fear, panic or anxiety over coming home to an empty house, than by all means try to make alternate arrangements.  This can be a simple as visiting your child’s school events and getting to know the other parents.  There are 25 or 30 other kids are the same school bus, and maybe one of them would stay with your child until you return from work. In any event, in this case, an alternate solution is a must.

Katie is a young girl who has been a latchkey kid since the age of twelve and she loved every minute of it!  She spent her time reading and writing, and found this “alone” time to be a time of both freedom and enjoyment. Her parents had been able to discuss basic safety issues such as not answering the door, what information to reveal or not reveal on the telephone, etc., without making it seem frightening or threatening.  They were able to teach her “stranger danger” lessons without making her afraid.  They accomplished this through dialogue which allowed her to ask questions, voice her concerns, and so on. They provided her a list of telephone numbers including the number of their nearest neighbour in the event of an emergency she might not feel capable of handling alone.  It goes without saying that this was prearranged with the neighbour in advance.

Once she got a bit older she spent this alone time pretending it was her own house.  This allowed her to grow and develop new skills, such as meal planning and preparation. She now makes the decision about what to make out of that pound of hamburger mom took out of the freezer earlier that day. Sure the family has shared some pretty awful meals while she experimented with cooking, but so what? So mom and dad have lost a few pounds as she works on her cooking skills, lots of parents would LOVE to have that same problem!

She is now a sixteen and still a latchkey kid whom many believe would be a great role model for others in the same situation. It is amusing to watch as she brings her parents up to speed on mom’s favorite talk shows and dad’s insatiable need to know the up to the minute weather forecast in their area. She hits the highlights of the six o’clock news so effectively neither parent feels the need to stay late to catch the eleven o’clock updates.

This informal education, a direct result of being a latchkey kid has made Katie seems wise beyond her years, albeit in a very constructive and beneficial way.  It has made her more aware of the world around her through exposure to Oprah, Dr. Phil, the weather channel and the six o’clock news. As a young teen there is so much more to her world now than just me, me, and me…

Might she have developed such a diverse interest in life had she not been a latchkey kid?  Maybe, but then again, maybe not. Dinner conversations at Katie’s house are much more animated and interesting than in days long past. Her school work and book reports and such took on much greater dimensions than usual in such a young girl, resulting in higher marks. Both parents and child have benefited immensely from these experiences. And, that’s a good thing, a very good thing indeed.