Snack Big After-School Activity

Ever wonder what kids do when they’re home alone? About 3.5 million American children between the ages of 5 and 12 spend some time alone at home after school, usually about an hour. According to a survey done by Child Magazine, here’s how most of them spend their time: eating (27 percent), watching television (15 percent), studying (13 percent), and playing (9 percent). The rest do housework, talk, sleep or play sports (in descending order).

* Real boys don’t smile: It’s a fact that women grin more than men. Now a new study pinpoints exactly when the happiness gap begins. According to an article in September’s Parents Magazine, researchers who studied more than 15,000 yearbook photos discovered that boys and girls smiled equally until the third grade. In the fourth grade, boys raised to be tough and masculine - and therefore more serious - smiled less than their female classmates.

* Speaking of boys and girls: Studies have long shown that boys and men use more illegal drugs than girls and women. That may be because males have more opportunity. An analysis of long-term data by Johns Hopkins School of Medicine in Baltimore reveals that after girls have tried drugs, they are about as likely as boys to keep using them.

* Baby-sitting basics: Here are some tips for parents to remember when hiring a baby sitter. Genny O’Donnell, manager of program development for the National Safe Kids Campaign, says you should always provide your sitter with copies of the following:

* A list of emergency phone numbers that include where to reach you, your pediatrician, the police and fire departments, the poison control center, the closest neighbor and the closest relative.

* Written directions to your home so she or he can read them easily to an emergency operator.

* A fire escape plan that includes two ways to exit rooms, the location of ladders and extinguishers, your outdoor meeting place, the location of smoke or burglar alarms and what to do if they go off.

* Information about any allergies or other conditions your child may have, along with rules on how to give needed medications.

* The location of your first-aid kit and where you keep emergency equipment such as candles, flashlights and batteries.