Daniel Vasquez recently reported about free child safety classes in South Florida offered by John Peek, owner and head instructor of ATA Black Belt Academy, a Deerfield Beach Tae Kwondo studio. I have included some of the tips below:
Saying NO: Peek says the way a child says it is key. A child should step back with their hands waving in the air and shout “no” in ways that call attention from others nearby.
Don’t touch me: Children need to be taught it is not appropriate for any stranger to touch them in the “bathing suit” areas of their body.
I don’t know you: It’s OK for kids to call attention to themselves whenever an unknown adult approaches them. Yelling “stranger danger” will let other adults in the area know something is wrong.
Home safety: Children need to know predators will sometimes pretend to be a friend of a parent or a person bringing news about a parent being injured or hospitalized, so strangers should never be allowed to enter a home. And they need to know it’s not safe to provide strangers any information over the phone.
Some of these tips may seem common-sense to parents, but parents need to realize that kids don’t think like parents. Parents need to explain these simple tips in a simple way to children, and continually reinforce them. Because of their innocence, many kids don’t realize the danger or threats of certain situations or decisions.
What do you think?
