For more than six million American children, coming home after school means coming home to an empty house. All of them have something  common. They spend part of each day alone. They are called latchkey children, who look after (them) while their parents work.

    Lynette Smith was once the headmaster of a school. She said, “We had a school rule against (wear) jewelry. A lot of kids had chains around their necks with keys fastened. I was (constant) telling them to put them inside their shirts. There were so many keys. It never came to my mind  they meant.” Slowly, she learned they were house keys.

    She and her husband began talking to the children. Fear is the  (big) problem faced by children at home alone. One in each three latchkey children were scared. Many had nightmares and were worried about their own  (safe).

    The most common way latchkey children deal with their fears is by hiding. It might be in a shower still, under a bed in a closet. The second is TV. They'll often play it at high volumeSmiths learned it's hard to get statistics on latchkey children. Most parents are unwilling  (admit) they leave their children alone.