In the December issue of Parents Magazine, there is an article about leaving elementary students home alone. It is entitled, "The New Latchkey Kids" by Jenny Deam with the subtitle of, "More than a million grade-schoolers have nobody to take care of them once class lets out. Where have all the after-school programs gone?" I'll tell you, my immediate reaction was, where have all the parents gone?
This article is all the proof anybody needs that having a stay at home parent is not just ideal, it's crucial! It goes on to highlight several families who, do to single-parenthood, work demands, layoffs and new job hours, have no one to care for children as young as 5 years old after school and are allowing them to be home alone! Can anyone spell DISASTER?!? These parents are acting so torn, what can I do, my child's after school program closed? My boss gave me a raise and now I don't qualify for tuition assistance? My work hours are inflexible and I had to have a job after being laid off. They really try to play at your heartstrings that it's not really these peoples' choice to leave their kids alone. And even more outrageous, at the end of the article, the magazine gives "home alone safety tips" for parents! One of which is consider getting a cell phone for the walk home. A cell phone? You can afford a cell phone for your kid but you can't pay a teenager or day care worker to watch them for a couple of hours? And of course, you wouldn't need either if you were staying at home with them because you would be THERE, for your child, who is totally INNOCENT! There is going to be a tragedy because of this carelessness and if there is, the parents should be prosecuted. I don't care what sob story you have, single, widowed, losing your house. Who cares if you keep your house and beloved car if something horrible happens to your child? And that's the worse case scenario. How about the feeling of worthlessness you are instilling in that child by abandoning him/her every day for several hours, trusting a 9 year old to do their homework, fix a snack and not choke on it, and then watch age-appropriate tv. I hope you will read this article and address it on your show, simply because I hope it draws attention to the problem, not the excuses-laden where has the money gone for after-school programs problem, but the real problem of parents not putting their kids first!
I am my kids' home schooling mom and I can tell you, I would give up every last creature comfort to keep them safe. There is NOTHING that would let me leave my elementary aged kids home alone...nothing.
Thanks for all you do and for making me my husband's girlfriend!
Mindy
