15 Jul 6 Tips to Keep Your Child Safe from Strangers
We all want our children to be safe and secure. However, there comes a time when they need a little more independence. In order to keep your peace of mind and make sure that your children are safe while they play outside, there are some precautions that you can take. Here at CBI Security, we have decades of professional experience in identifying threats and minimizing danger. Here are some of our best suggestions to help you keep your child safe:
1: Quiz Your Child on the Basics
Every child should know a few basics as soon as possible. These include:
- Their home phone number and perhaps their parents’ cell phone numbers
- A complete home address
- Their parents’ first and last names
Quiz your children on these basic stats. If they’re having a hard time remembering, find creative ways to get it to stick in their memory, like a song.
2: Role Play Scenarios
Often, children are told abstract advice, like “be careful of strangers” but they seldom know how to translate that into action when they’re confronted with danger. Review common tricks that predators might use with children, like luring them with money, drawing them in with cute animals, or asking for help. Teach them to be wary of anyone who asks them to disobey family rules, for example telling them they don’t need permission to go somewhere, or that they shouldn’t tell their parents about something that makes them worried.
Teach your child to yell to attract attention. However, since we’re all used to ignoring tantrums that kids throw around their parents, make sure they also know to yell words that will alarm people around them, like “where’s my mom and dad?” and “I don’t know you!”
3: Teach Them to Identify “Safer” Strangers
Most commonly, this consists of letting children know that they can ask for help from people like cops, firemen, teachers, and often, store clerks with name tags on. However, in many cases, none of these people will be around. Teach your child to seek help from a mother with children if they can’t find an official.
4: Review Boundaries and Proper Names for their Body
Studies have shown that children who know the proper terms for body parts are less likely to be victims of abuse because they know how to recognize behavior that crosses personal boundaries, and they know how to communicate the problem to an adult. Make sure your children understand that they should never keep secrets concerning their body, and if anyone ever pressures them to, that it’s a sign that they should tell parents about it right away.
Dangers to your child aren’t just posed by strangers. In fact, 90% of childhood sexual abuse, and 93% of child abductions are committed by people who are familiar to the child, and usually trusted by the parents. It’s important that your child knows how to identify problems in the moment.
5: Make a Plan and Set a Meeting Place in Crowded Venues
If you’re going to a crowded place (for example, a water park or a fair) make sure that you set up a plan for in case you get separated. Inform your children where they can go for help if they get lost, and establish a meeting place that’s easy for everyone to find. It also helps if the meeting place is easy for others (like event officials) to identify, as your child might end up needing help.
6: Keep a Packet of Essential Information about Your Child
Our community service programs empower parents and children to recognize dangers, discuss them with family, and learn directions to avoid trouble. Included in the program is a step where we gather the child’s DNA, fingerprints, and ID cards and give it to the parents so that they’re equipped with what they need just in case of a missing person incident. If you’d like us to visit your school or community to have one of these sessions, contact us.
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