Promoting child safety

It is vital we teach our children about safety. We need to move away from old terminologies such as stranger danger.

We need to help our children learn about personal safety. A child needs to learn strategies to protect themselves.

It is important to educate kids from an early age as to what is OK and what isn’t and what they should do.

The challenge is children do not understand the concept of a stranger in context. A nice person asking about a lost puppy does not necessarily relate to a child as a “stranger”.

It is important to arm a child with safety knowledge.

It is imperative we teach them the age appropriate information and share tools to help them.

In an ideal world all children would remain free from risk or harm.

The unfortunate reality is not always the case. We are more regularly confronted with news headlines regarding a child’s safety being compromised.

Teaching “stranger danger” does not account for the numerous times that a child is abducted or placed in a compromised situation by an adult they know not a stranger.

As the responsible adult it is crucial that we know where our child/ren are at all times.

This helps to reduce the possibility for such situations. It is also entirely possible that a child may divert from the agreed. In these times it is imperative that the child knows how to handle the situation if necessary.

• • Use relevant terms.
  • Help children recognize warning signs of suspicious behavior. Teach a child when an adult asks them to disobey their parents or do something without permission, asks them to keep a secret, asks children for help, or makes them feel uncomfortable in any way this is behaviour to be suspicious of.
  • Speak in a more specific sense. Instead of saying don’t talk to strangers teach the child not to approach just any adult. Teach a child to select a police officer or shop attendant.
  • Teach a child to gain permission prior to approaching an adult they don’t know.
  • Let a child know that you would NEVER get someone to pick them up that they do not know. They are to NEVER get in the car with someone they have not already met.
  • Always inform a child if someone is to pick them up or take them somewhere. make it a rule that if you have not informed them previously DON’T go with that person. Make a list of possible people who can/may pick them up. Reiterate that it would only be the people on the list that would be collecting them.
  • Never talk to strangers alone or with only other children. Never listen to a stranger if there is not an known adult present. Back away.
  • Never get in the car of a stranger EVER. Teach the child that if they are feeling pressured or pushed to scream loudly. The child should make as much noise as possible.
  • If the child is approached by someone that they don’t know and they ask/offer you something- don’t! teach them to quickly go to the nearest safe place (your house, the house of a friend or a shop). To tell a adult straight away what happened.
  • If an adult or someone does something and tells the child not to tell their mum/dad cause something bad will happen it is important to reiterate to the child that they should not believe them. The child needs to be safe in speaking up. They should feel safe to tell a responsible adult who can help. A adult they trust. Encourage them to tell if they feel funny/unsure/worried/uncomfortable, etc about a person or incident. It is critical that if a child does speak to an adult that we listen to them, acknowledge what they are saying and monitor the situation. Tell them that if they are unsure about something to YELL. Yell for help, yell to simply make a noisy and attract attention.
  • Remind a child how important it is not to wonder off and that someone knows where they are at all times.
  • Teach a child not to go anywhere alone. This will not completely remove safety issues but reduces the chance. There is safety in numbers.
  • Make sure that a child knows their name, their full name and parents name/s. As a child becomes older teach them their address and phone number.
  • Have constant chats. It is necessary for the child to be aware, alert and informed.
  • Teach a child what adults they can trust. Include adults a child may not have direct contact such as police, fire.

Have an open conversation with the child about what they should/would do. Open honest conversations are more effective than  just speaking about. Involve the child. Encourage the child to problem solve in the hypothetical situations. Provide numerous hypothetical scenarios asking what they would do. Do this regularly.

Research shows that repetition is needed for it to remain familiar for a child. The more practice the child has the more prepared they will be in the event of danger.

It is important that we share the safety message with children. It is just as important to share the fact that not all adults are nasty.