Child Safety Article

Child Safety from Stranger

With the alarming statistics of child abduction and the much-publicized media reports on those cases, children’s safety has become the prime focus of families everywhere. Children have been taught to remember the phrase “stranger danger”, but over the years, use of the phrase has been the center of controversy. Some parties believe that it is not effective in bringing down the number of child abductions at all. They further say that children are misled to believe that all strangers mean harm to them when in fact, most abduction cases are those perpetrated by people whom the children know or are familiar with. Child safety from stranger is being taken literally. Well-meaning parents are unknowingly telling their kids not to talk to anyone they don’t know. Most of the time, kids flee from their rescuers because they are considered to be strangers.

Child safety from stranger does not mean that kids should completely abhor people they hardly know. It only means that it is our responsibility to educate them about being cautious when someone they don’t know comes up and talks to them. Even if we want to be at their sides if a situation like this happens, we can’t always be there to supervise their every move. That is why it is advisable that children understand the dangers that some circumstances bring.

It is not god to paint an ugly picture of the world to your child. It is a lie to tell him that the world is an unsafe place for young persons like him. Instead, give him tips on child safety from stranger and open his eyes to the bittersweet realities around him. Make him learn how to call from a phone and what numbers to dial in case he is in trouble.

Parents have their responsibility in child safety from stranger as well. They should make it a habit to know where there kids are and what activities they are into. Enroll them in self-defense programs and get them into sports. Parents should get to know their children’s friends. It is also advisable for parents to talk to their children as often as they can. This way, the children are encouraged to open up and are going to be motivated to share their fears, hopes and whatever emotions they would want their parents to know.

Child safety from stranger means doing the best things possible to protect your child from harm. Children look at the world as a place with two kinds of people – the good and the bad guys. Teach them that a person’s physical appearance is not a basis of his character. And some strangers, no matter how good-looking, may not have the best intentions at all.