America's Middle School Latchkey Children. Children who stay home alone, either for a few hours after school during the school year or for the summer months, are commonly referred to as "latchkey children." The phrase "latchkey" originates from the early 19th century, when children in a similar situation would wear the key to their home tied to a string they wore around their neck and were responsible for their own care. Families living on one …showed first 75 words of 887 total…

…showed last 75 words of 887 total…shoot hoops, use a computer or even get help with homework, while being supervised by a few adults? If our middle schools or local YMCA's were to offer the use of their gyms as after school opportunities our children would be given the opportunity to be children rather than little adults, being forced to grow up too fast. 3 REFERENCES: www.isminc.com/Latchkey_kids.pdf, www.afterschoolallstars.org, www.ut.essortment.com/latchkeychildr_rkep.htm