As children return to school and spend more time away from their
parents, it is important to teach them about personal safety.
There was a recent mamapedia blog post which questioned the idea of teaching children stranger danger for fear that a child would not seek help from a safe adult in trouble. It was a very thought-provoking article that you can find here: http://www.mamapedia.com/voices/rethinking-stranger-danger.
Teaching children to be safe is complicated. Parents have a difficult job of helping children to trust their instincts about which adults are safe and how to avoid potentially dangerous adults. It is a delicate balance between teaching children a healthy sense of distrust and scaring them into a state of anxiety.
And, since many abuse cases happen by people children know (unfortunately), it is equally important to teach children about personal safety regardless of who the adult is. The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children has some great resources and information on their website on ways to talk to children and teach them about personal safety: http://www.missingkids.com/missingkids/servlet/PageServlet?LanguageCountry=en_US&PageId=2814
Another great resource is www.kidpower.org which has resources as well as a free printable coloring book that teaches children safety skills as well as how to hand bullies.
Finally, here are a few quick tips from Stacy LaRosa at America's Most Wanted to help keep children safe:
1. Let your child know that if they need help go to a mom with a
child, a police officer, a mall security guard, or a store employee (preferably female).
2. When you go to any public venue - park,carnival, mall, etc - always show your child a place to meet you if they get lost (like an information booth).
3. If your child falls off a swing at the park and is hurt (and you aren't there).... he can get help from another parent there and they can call you or bring him home.
4. Also teach your child about specific scenarios, like if your child is walking down the block and someone pulls over in a car to talk to him, he should run and scream.
Children are intuitive, a parent's job is to teach them to trust their instincts.
parents, it is important to teach them about personal safety.
There was a recent mamapedia blog post which questioned the idea of teaching children stranger danger for fear that a child would not seek help from a safe adult in trouble. It was a very thought-provoking article that you can find here: http://www.mamapedia.com/voices/rethinking-stranger-danger.
Teaching children to be safe is complicated. Parents have a difficult job of helping children to trust their instincts about which adults are safe and how to avoid potentially dangerous adults. It is a delicate balance between teaching children a healthy sense of distrust and scaring them into a state of anxiety.
And, since many abuse cases happen by people children know (unfortunately), it is equally important to teach children about personal safety regardless of who the adult is. The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children has some great resources and information on their website on ways to talk to children and teach them about personal safety: http://www.missingkids.com/missingkids/servlet/PageServlet?LanguageCountry=en_US&PageId=2814
Another great resource is www.kidpower.org which has resources as well as a free printable coloring book that teaches children safety skills as well as how to hand bullies.
Finally, here are a few quick tips from Stacy LaRosa at America's Most Wanted to help keep children safe:
1. Let your child know that if they need help go to a mom with a
child, a police officer, a mall security guard, or a store employee (preferably female).
2. When you go to any public venue - park,carnival, mall, etc - always show your child a place to meet you if they get lost (like an information booth).
3. If your child falls off a swing at the park and is hurt (and you aren't there).... he can get help from another parent there and they can call you or bring him home.
4. Also teach your child about specific scenarios, like if your child is walking down the block and someone pulls over in a car to talk to him, he should run and scream.
Children are intuitive, a parent's job is to teach them to trust their instincts.
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