Frequently Asked Questions

Q:  Latch-key Children At what age can my child be legally left alone or allowed to babysit other children?

A:   Georgia’s Guidelines for leaving a child without adult supervision:

• Children under 8 years old should never be left alone, even for short periods of time.
• Children between the ages of 9 and 12, based on level of maturity, can be left home alone for brief periods of time.
• Children 13 and older can generally be left as babysitters, with the exception of children in foster care. It is not recommended, however, that 13 year olds baby sit infants, small children and children that require special attention due to medical conditions.
• Children 15 and older can be left home alone overnight, depending on the level of maturity of the child

Q:  Provisional Enrollment – How long do I have to submit all “required” verification to maintain my child’s enrollment in school?

A: The Local Education Agency, LEA, must provisionally enroll the student and give parent, guardian, or other person in control or charge of a child a minimum of 30 days to satisfy all of the documentation requirements. LEAs should still work to get all documentation during school normal registration periods and provisional enrollment should be implemented as an exception, rather than as a rule. It should be implemented in instances where the parent, guardian, grandparent, or other person needs additional time to procure certain documents or evidence.

Q:  Online School - Can I withdraw my child from their school and enroll them in school online?

A:  Yes, Georgia Cyber Academy and Georgia Connections Academy are two public online school options that your child can attend for free if the online schools have available slots.

Q:  Home Schools - May I home school my child and how do I go about doing this?

A:   The Georgia Department of Education does not supply the curriculum, materials or resources for home school.  The law requires the following five content areas:  Registering & Rules for Home School

• Mathematics,
• English Language Arts,
• Science,
• Social Studies, and
• Reading

Q:  Supporting Grandparents Raising Grandchildren - What are the circumstances and guidelines for grandparents raising grandchildren in Georgia and how does it affect the child’s education/school enrollment and health care?

A:  Care of a Grandchild Act (PDF) & Grandparents Help Guide- The statutory power of attorney for the care of a minor child form contained in this Code section may be used to grant an agent grandparent powers over the minor child´s enrollment in school, medical, dental, and mental health care, food, lodging, recreation, travel, and any additional powers, as specified by the parent.