I've long been fascinated with the term “latchkey kid,” though something about it sounds offensive in an vaguely antiquated way, like describing an unmarried woman as a spinster or referring to siblings born less than a year apart as “Irish twins.” Perhaps that's because there's always been some shame for parents who ...
A latchkey kid, or latchkey child, is a child who returns to an empty home after school (or other activities) or a child who is often left at home with no supervision because their parents are away at work.
Gen Xers spent less time with their parents than previous generations of children had. First recognized as latchkey kids, this generation found themselves home alone and taking care of themselves and their siblings, while their parents worked. Divorce was common. They were not coddled for every emotional need and want.
Although the term "latchkey kid" first appeared in the 1940s to describe young children taking care of themselves after school while dad fought in the war and mom went off to work, the anxiety over latchkey kids really exploded in the United States in the late 1970s and early 1980s.
Like a snowplow clearing the snow off the street, a snowplow parent removes any obstacles in their child's way. This type of parent does not want their child to experience any discomfort or problems, so the parent intervenes and fixes it for their child.
These children, in turn, face a growing number of problems such as physical and sexual abuse, crime and delinquency, depression and suicide, drug and alcohol abuse, emotional and behavioral problems, learning difficulties, school attendance problems, domestic violence, pregnancy, abortion, and venereal disease.
The number of children left without direct adult supervision continues to grow yearly in part because family instability, single-parent homes, and two working parent households are on the rise.
Generation X, also referred to as the “Slacker Generation,” “Latchkeys,” “MTV Generation,” or “Baby Busters,” were born between 1965 and 1979.
What's a bulldozer parent? Bulldozers go above and beyond to remove any and all adversity from their children's lives. These are the parents bargaining with teachers for higher grades, mowing down any obstacle their child may come across.
An orphan is a child whose parents have died. You can also say that a child is orphaned. She's an orphan adopted by a wealthy New York family. She finds herself caring for an orphaned child. You can also say that a child with no mother is motherless, and a child with no father is fatherless.
PIP is a school based program enhancing the educational experience with additional one-to-one support to our Kindergarten to 5th grade student population. It is designed to help children feel positive about their school environment and enhance their (emotional, behavioral or social) development by early intervention.
One-third (32%) of Gen Z respondents say they are the hardest-working generation ever, with Millennials ranked as the second-hardest working generation at 25%. More than half (56%) say the Silent Generation is the least hardworking generation of all time.
Millennials are arguably the hardest working generation in the workforce today, albeit how they approach work looks drastically different than their older counterparts. Boomers typically approach work in a hierarchical structure.
The Pew Research Center uses 1928 to 1945 as birth years for this cohort. According to this definition, people of the Silent Generation are 78 to 95 years old in 2023.
babies, toddlers and very young children should never be left alone. children under the age of 12 are rarely mature enough to cope in an emergency and should not be left at home alone for a long period of time. children under the age of 16 should not be left alone overnight.
Which characteristic is observed in latchkey children? They prefer remaining isolated. The nurse recognizes that bullying is a common occurrence during the school-age years.
For many parents, the milestone is starting secondary school at age 11. This is often when kids start walking to and from school by themselves. Giving them extra responsibilities – and their own keys – makes sense.
As the kids would say, it's pretty cringe. That's a Gen-Z term that essentially means the same thing as cringey. A silly slang term, but then, each generation comes up with such words. If you're Extremely Online, like I am, then you are probably familiar with the Zoomer dialect.
As generational stereotypes go, I nominate Gen X to be, without a doubt, known as "The Coolest Generation." Baby Boomers (1946 to 1964) started off on the right track with the hippie movement in the '60s, but soon became the folks that brought us the “Me Decade,” yuppies, and President Trump.
Gen Z is also the smartest and best educated generation. Having an unlimited wealth of information at our disposal has not gone to waste. In America, 57 percent of Gen Z is reported to have enrolled in a two-year or four-year college, compared to 52 percent of Millenials and 43 percent of Gen X.
While every child is different, we wouldn't recommend leaving a child under 12 years old home alone, particularly for longer periods of time. Children in primary school aged 6-12 are usually too young to walk home from school alone, babysit or cook for themselves without adult supervision.
8 to 10 Years - Should not be left alone for more than 1½ hours and only during daylight and early evening hours. 11 to 12 Years - May be left alone for up to 3 hours but not late at night or in circumstances requiring inappropriate responsibility. 13 to 15 Years - May be left unsupervised, but not overnight.
Independence
Since latchkey kids have less contact with their parents, they learn to get by all by themselves during the day. This means they have greater freedom and become more independent.
Coming from a world where the economy was thriving and opportunities were booming, baby boomers tend to be driven in terms of their work ethic. Many people in this generation had an opportunity for a career and a university education, unlike their counterparts earlier in history.