Teaching Children To Stay Safe

[classyred]

What do you do to teach your children to stay safe, I have to daughters and what worries me is that some sex offender is going to grab them some day, I try to keep up to date on any in my area thank goodness I live in an area where there are none nearby, but how do we keep them safe, I try to explain to them the importance of staying away from strangers and what can happen, but you can not be with then every second, any tips!

[jemoelle]

I think you have to keep the lines of communication open and make sure you keep talking to them about these things. Also have a secret password so if you send someone to get them they don't go with them unless they know the secret word. Also make sure they know that their best weapon is their voice so if someone tries to take them to scream as loud as they can

[mtatum4496]

Yes, I agree. My son knows that if he is to yell and scream immediately, as well as get to any place where there are plenty of people around, if he is approached in a relatively deserted area.

[arppt01]

I have told my daughter about the normal road safety and how to keep off from the strangers. It is also more important that how one reacts on the spot. If a child can react fast and according to the training then the child willl have better chance to remain safe.

[mtatum4496]

That is definitely the case. Gving the child exact things to do in the event he or she is approached by a stranger can help the child to react more quickly and with less indecision, even if the stranger is using some enticing tricks.

[jemoelle]

That's a good idea. Give your child different situations and ask them what they would do if faced with them and see what their responses are. Then maybe you can help them out if needed before they are put in the situation.

[vicki2]

I think that today the biggest area of concern should be the internet. A local 12 year old girl and a friend were recently missing for 24 hours. The friend had been talking to some guy on line and she talked her friend into going with her to meet him. They were both sexually abused by a pedophile who later released them. In many ways, they were lucky to get out alive but the ensuing publicity and trail will mark their lives. None of the parents had a clue that the kids were making dates on myspace.com.

[mtatum4496]

The Internet is a wonderful thing, but just like any good tool, it can and will be abused by persons who don't care who they hurt. Supervision of what your child is doing online is absolutely necessary. Don't rely on software that blocks some sites. In the instance cited above, the software probably would not have caught and blocked the site.

[Slashmire]

I think that even though the bad guys are to blame (obviously,) I feel that the parents might not have known that it's partially their fault too; monitoring your kid as well as simply explaining to them the problems, is a good way to go.

[jemoelle]

I agree that parental control and monitoring when kids are using the internet is a must. You have to be aware of who your children are talking to and what they are doing when they are on the internet. It is a very helpful tool but it can also be a dangerous one!